Abuses of power in Reggie Ray’s Dharma Ocean community:
1. Narcissistic and Humiliating Leadership
Abuse of Power: Public humiliation and emotional breakdowns of followers.
Examples:
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Reggie Ray publicly tore apart senior teacher Tami Simon to exert control. The Guru Magazine
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He yelled at and publicly shamed students and kitchen staff for minor issues, using spiritual rhetoric to justify critiques. The Guru Magazine
- Students who taught meditation outside of Dharma Ocean were viewed with suspicion by Ray and were subjected to punitive criticism and admonishment intended to reinforce his position as the ultimate authority.
2. Coercive Social Control
Abuse of Power: Isolation tactics and required vows to enforce loyalty.
Examples:
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Ray required students to take new Samaya vows under threat of losing credentials, pushing obedience over independent thought. The Guru Magazine
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Facebook critic posts were suppressed, and the Dharma Ocean group was entirely shut down after members spoke up about abuse. The Guru Magazine
3. Manipulative Use of Alcohol
Abuse of Power: Coercing students to drink alcohol to reduce inhibition.
Examples:
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During retreats, Ray instructed students to drink sake rapidly as a “spiritual exercise,” continuing until some were visibly impaired. The Guru Magazine
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A board member was coerced in a meeting to down large quantities of sake when she asked a question Ray perceived as critical. The Guru Magazine
- Students were asked to engage in “drinking practice” consuming alcohol for the first time after up to 28 days of intensive meditation practice before donate money to the organization
4. Solitary Confinement and Punishment
Abuse of Power: Imposing isolation as punishment.
Examples:
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A student was banished to solitary for days and interrogated by Ray and Caroline Pfohl for questioning their authority. The Guru Magazine
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Other staff were sent into solitary as a punitive measure unrelated to actual retreat practice. The Guru Magazine
5. Estrangement from Family and Support Networks
Abuse of Power: Encouraging separation from outside support.
Examples:
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A former student reported being encouraged by Ray not to speak to their parents, resulting in a ten-year estrangement from family. The Guru Magazine
- Former Dharma Ocean students report being disparaged after leaving and losing all social ties with those who stay in the community.
6. Arbitrary Exclusion and Blacklisting
Abuse of Power: Punitive removal from community.
Examples:
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Ray banned a long-term student from Dharma Ocean and even from living in Colorado, citing vague reasons including perceived disloyalty. The Guru Magazine
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Staff reported that Ray maintained blacklists of people banned from the community without transparent cause. The Guru Magazine
7. Threats to Jobs and Roles
Abuse of Power: Intimidation and fear to keep people obedient.
Examples:
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Former staff described threats to their jobs and roles, creating an environment of uncertainty and anxiety. The Guru Magazine
- When a longtime staff member proposed a new role within the organization, Reggie Ray and Caroline Pfohl subjected her to six weeks of silent treatment, a punitive tactic used to pressure her into quitting after she questioned their authority.
8. Manipulation Through Spiritual Authority
Abuse of Power: Justifying punitive behavior using spiritual language.
Examples:
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Ray reframed abuse as spiritual exercises or necessary steps on the “true lineage path,” deflecting accountability. The Guru Magazine
9. Exploitation of Wealth and Status
Abuse of Power: Favoring wealthy donors for leadership roles.
Examples:
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Wealthy supporters like Tami Simon and Al Blum were fast-tracked into senior positions and enabled major acquisitions for the group, including property. The Guru Magazine
10. Refusal of Independent Investigation
Abuse of Power: Blocking transparency and accountability.
Examples:
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After an independent investigation was proposed, Ray agreed but then obstructed its completion and ultimately fired the ombudsperson appointed for the task. The Guru Magazine
- A 2018 independent investigation found a pervasive culture of fear and paranoia among Dharma Ocean staff, but Dharma Ocean suppressed the findings.
11. Minimizing and Denying Harm
Abuse of Power: Deflection and blame shifting.
Examples:
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Ray dismissed abuse allegations as students “not wanting to meditate” or “making things up,” accusing critics of trying to take over Dharma Ocean. The Guru Magazine
12. Creating a Culture of Devotion and Unquestioning Loyalty
Abuse of Power: Cult-like dependency.
Examples:
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Many followers visualized Ray above their heads as a Buddha giving blessings, with comments describing disciples believing everything he said and did was “enlightened.” The Guru Magazine
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Students who declined the 3 Samayas vow, written by Ray, which included a formal vow to never criticize Dharma Ocean, were removed from teaching roles and declined access to more advanced trainings.
- McKinlay describes how students were encouraged to devote their lives completely to practice and follow Reggie Ray without question, tying personal identity and daily life to loyalty to him. Neil McKinlay
13. Undermining and Attacking Departed Students
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Former senior teacher Neil McKinlay explains that departed students—especially those who raised concerns—were not treated with respect but were personally attacked:
“He would undermine any critique by attacking his former students’ capacity, commitment, and character.”
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Criticism was deflected by reframing dissenters as deficient, uncommitted, or psychologically unfit.
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Departed members were cut off socially: “Departing students… receive nothing but the clang of a door slammed shut.” Neil McKinlay
These are just a few examples. There are many more.
Background
This website documents some of the abuses perpetrated by Dharma Ocean spiritual leaders and experienced by the community at large. Though not all members of Dharma Ocean have directly experienced the abuse– the brunt of it has been borne by Vajrayana students, minorities, staff members, volunteers, and people “close to the center of the mandala”– its shockwaves reverberate throughout the organization.
Because some Dharma Ocean teachings and teaching styles train practitioners to tolerate abuse, and because the pattern of manipulation and abuse in Dharma Ocean is longstanding, harmful, and unlikely to change– despite promises of new and inspiring visions from lineage holders that have long been used to mislead practitioners– it is our moral obligation to provide resources to recovering, current, and future students so they can make informed choices about their spiritual lives. The years of silence are over.
Reggie Ray was a founding member of Naropa University, a longtime Shambhala International teacher, and from 1996-2004 a teacher-in-residence at Shambhala Mountain Center. In 2005, Ray left the Shambhala organization– a group that is now famed for decades of emotional manipulation and sexual abuse under the leadership of Ray’s guru, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Ray founded his own non-profit, Dharma Ocean, of which he served as Spiritual Director. Dharma Ocean offered meditation programs and intensive retreats and was “dedicated to the practice, study, and preservation of the teachings of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche.” Ray appointed himself Vajra-master and began to offer samaya vows for Vajrayana students.
From its inception, a steady stream of students, staff, and teachers have left Dharma Ocean. Most quietly left the community after identifying abusive dynamics in the organization and severed ties with spiritual teachers Reggie Ray and Caroline Pfohl. Many also chose to drop contact with all other members of the community.
In 2018, a public conversation between past and current students about emotional, psychological, and spiritual abuse experiences within Dharma Ocean finally arose in the volunteer-run Dharma Ocean Vajrasangha Facebook group. Many sangha members who had disclosed experiences of abuse or expressed concern as allies were removed without warning from the Facebook group and from the Dharma Ocean sangha contact lists and website. Reggie Ray eventually instructed one of his students to delete the group.
Dharma Ocean hired a Director of Community Life to serve as an ombudsperson that people could approach with a variety of issues and concerns. The Director contracted Lama Rod Owens to facilitate a discussion about harm in Dharma Ocean. Reggie Ray, Caroline Pfohl, and current Vajrasangha members attended. Shortly after, Reggie Ray asked the Director of Community Life to resign, citing her lack of Ngöndro practice and spiritual insufficiency as grounds for termination. The Dharma Ocean spiritual directors did not engage in another discussion with the sangha about these matters. Lama Rod was not invited to continue facilitating discussions about harm in Dharma Ocean.
On October 7, 2019, a group of former students released an open letter to make public the abusive dynamics that underlie many cultic groups and that have long existed at the core of Dharma Ocean.
By October 9, the board of directors released a response to the open letter, including their plans for utilizing services from An Olive Branch to hear concerns of past and current students. The response also limited Ray’s scope of power over Dharma Ocean.
On October 15, Ray violated his agreements with the board and released this video. Dharma Ocean Board Chair Michael Reeds immediately resigned.
Within days Bryn Rees, senior teacher, and the final voting board member, urged Ray to accept counsel from the board and An Olive Branch and reconsider a request to amend DO’s governance structure, giving up his highly unusual veto power over the board of directors. Ray fired Rees, then claimed that Rees had resigned and not been fired for challenging Reggie Ray.
Ray appointed a new board, of which he himself is a member, and has not implemented any of the former board’s recommendations. Thereby, ceasing any further investigation into abuse at Dharma Ocean.
Senior students and teachers voiced concerns over Ray’s behavior, the video, and shared their own abuse experiences in a private forum called The Practitioner’s Circle. (The Circle, a forum designed by Ray after he shut down the Vajrasangha Facebook Group, was open only to Dharma Ocean members who had taken a ceremonial vow to abstain from criticizing Ray or Dharma Ocean.) Ray then ordered the Dharma Ocean staff to delete the Practitioner’s Circle forum.
Amidst the supposed dissolution of Dharma Ocean and closure of the organization, Ray published a series of dissertations via email to the Dharma Ocean Vajrasangha. These emails clearly demonstrate the abusive behavior that will be outlined on this website. You can see two of them on the Dharma Ocean website. Should Dharma Ocean delete the letters from their website, one of them is available here.
In March 2020, the Dharma Ocean staff completed their jobs.
In April 2020, the new Dharma Ocean board announced
*re-opening fundraising;
*the retention of their non-profit status and retreat center;
*Ray’s plans to teach introductory-level programs to new students and to continue working with Vajrayana students;
*and plans for Caroline Pfohl (Ray’s wife, student, and one of Dharma Ocean’s top donors) to begin teaching Vajrayana students immediately.
In April 2020, Dharma Ocean Europe, an organization made up almost entirely of new students, named Reggie Ray Spiritual Director.
In August 2020, Dharma Ocean created yet another new Vajrayana cohort for Ray to continue teaching.
Since then, Ray has continued to recruit new students and lie about what happened.