True Ocean of Grace
Joe Reilly (he, him) is a singer, songwriter, social worker, and Dharma teacher in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh. Joe was ordained into the Order of Interbeing by Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village Community in 2011, receiving the Dharma name True Ocean of Grace. In 2021 Joe received transmission of the Lamp at the Deer Park Monastery in Escondido, California, becoming an ordained Dharma teacher.
Joe was raised Catholic and currently studies and practices progressive Catholicism, Native American spirituality, and engaged Buddhism. Joe has been a student of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh since 2004 and is often found singing and writing songs on spiritual retreats. He currently lives in Waawiyatanong/Detroit, where he co-leads the Building Beloved Community Sangha. He is of Cherokee, Choctaw, Italian, and Irish descent and identifies as Native American.
Joe is part of the teaching community at the Lotus Institute along with his Dharma mentors Dr. Larry Ward, Dr. Peggy Rowe Ward, and Kaira Jewel Lingo. Joe is also mentored by Barbara Newell.
Dharma Teaching Events
May 14-17th, 2026
Creighton University Retreat Center
Griswold, Iowa
The title of Joe's 2025 album, Learn to Love Again is a theme that invites us to explore the practice of cultivating our Buddha nature and growing our capacity to love. With the energy of mindfulness we are able to recognize and embrace our pain and suffering in ways that bring transformation and give rise to compassion. This allows us to love more freely and fully even as we encounter familiar "friends" of anxiety, fear, anger, and despair. The force of love can help us speak and act for justice, inclusivity, and peace in our families, our communities, and our society.
Space is limited. Please register by April 18. No one is turned away for lack of funds!
Questions? Contact: honeylocustsangha@gmail.com
June 20-24th, 2026
Garrison Institute
Garrison, NY
Wisdom for Meeting the Storm Together:
Holding and Transforming Our Fear with Compassion and Collective Care
BIPOC Retreat with Dharma Teachers: Dr. Marisela Gomez, Kaira Jewel Lingo and Joe Reilly
Assistant Teacher: Judy Yushin Nakatomi
In a time of intensifying uncertainty, grief, and pressure on our communities, it is essential for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to have spaces of refuge, truth-telling, and collective care. This retreat offers a place to pause, breathe, and remember that we are not meant to meet these storms alone.
Together, through mindfulness and embodied practice, we explore how fear lives in our bodies, histories, and communities, and how it can be met without turning away or becoming overwhelmed. We strengthen our capacity to stay present, to draw on ancestral and communal wisdom, and to support one another in meeting this moment with integrity and love. Inner transformation becomes the ground from which collective healing and wise action can emerge.
Mindfulness will be at the heart of all we do. The retreat will include daily dharma teachings, sitting and stationary meditation, mindful walking or movement, mindful eating, singing, dharma writing, and small-group sharing. We will practice for one full day and a half in silence and engage in optional somatic movement and nature practices that invite us into deeper presence with the land. Rooted in compassion and collective care, this retreat supports us in meeting the storm together and remembering our capacity to rest, heal, resist harm, and build Beloved Community.
Sharing the Dharma
-
Joe travels the world sharing meditation and mindfulness practices in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh, with his own musical expression of course! Email Joe for rates and availability.
-
Joe serves as a mentor for people looking to start or stregnthen their meditation practice, and for practitioners in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh who are aspiring to receive the 14 Mindfulness Trainings. Email Joe for rates and availability.
-
Read more about the Building Beloved Community Sangha.
Email Joe if you would like to join our email list and receive regular updates of opportunities to practice in community.
