Black Girl In Om

PariseNichelle (she/her) or Iya Shango Didi as she is also lovingly called, joins BGIO founder Lauren Ash (she/they) in conversation around connecting with our highest selves by diving deeper into our ancestral lineages and practices. Parise is an initiated priestess, medium, diviner, and healer. For over 15 years, she has used her gifts to help women of color heal trauma and align to their highest selves. As the founder of Do The Healing Work, she offers services designed to tap into all aspects of life. She combines western therapy practices with Traditional West African spiritual practices to heal generational traumas and aid in self healing and mastery. Utilizing her gift of clairaudience, Iya delivers guidance straight from the wisdom of the ancestors.

In this episode of the Black Girl In Om Podcast, Lauren and PariseNichelle get into how sometimes we can feel a profound understanding within ourselves before we have the language or community around us to affirm that inner knowing. They encourage us to move beyond obligation and fear in our spiritual practice by giving ourselves permission to go internal and explore what’s most resonant for us. Parise affirms that our highest self is always communicating with us, and that it’s on us to hear and follow their call. Press play to dive deep. Ashe!

IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT

• The Yoruba concept of Iponri
• How PariseNichelle describes her highest self
• Communicating with our highest selves
• How Lauren is learning to be their own reflection
• Traditions from across the Diaspora that are a part of our cultural birthright as Black women and as Black people
• How our sensitivity and stillness connect us to the divine
• Unlearning limiting beliefs around spirituality and lifestyle
• Iyami Aje or ancient mother energy

Stick around after the conversation with Parise to hear a special Q&A with Cree Myles (she/her) from Penguin Random House all about the magic of reading and amplifying books written by Black authors. For recommendations of books that honor the rich breadth of Black experiences, head over to bit.ly/amplifyblackstories and follow Penguin Random House’s All Ways Black page on Instagram @allwaysblack

If you’re interested in connecting with your ancestors and stepping into further alignment with your highest self, you can schedule an ancestral reading or a spiritual DNA reading with PariseNichelle and sign up for her Power Tools Course mentioned in the episode at DoTheHealingWork.com

Keep up with Parise on Instagram @dothehealingwork

and on Facebook @dothehealingwork

If you’re interested in offering support to BGIO’s first physical space, home, or want to find out more, head over to blackgirlinom.com/home-by-bgio

Pastor Bae is back, y’all! Body and sex-positive preacher, writer, and transformational speaker Lyvonne Briggs aka “Pastor Bae” (she/her) joins Lauren Ash (she/they) for this special minisode all about the Queen Solomon Goddess Rising Summit coming up this Juneteenth. Lyvonne has curated this sacred space for those who are ready to embrace the power of the Divine Feminine. Four expert master teachers will come together to create a cocoon of safety and inclusion for inspiration and healing. Inside the cocoon, all of a caterpillar’s life force energy is channeled toward transformation. On the other side of that focused growth is an earned confidence in blossoming. Flying comes naturally once we’ve put in the work of nurturing our transformation. The Queen Solomon Goddess Rising Summit will offer a jubilant and nourishing space to evolve in the company of sacred community.

At the Summit, Lauren will guide an energy healing meditation and will talk about aligning and harmonizing Divine Feminine and Divine Masculine energy. Lyvonne will share about her gift of alchemy and offer insights into how to take energy that was meant for our harm and make it our medicine. Juju Bae, Hoodoo practitioner, Orisha devotee, and all around “bad bitch witch” will talk about ancient spiritual practices and how we can liberate our understanding of ancestral and indigenous wisdom. Hip-Hop Womanist scholar and manifestation maestro EbonyJanice Moore will share major keys to manifesting. Diviner and Spiritist Tatianna Tarot will lead a collective reading, so bring your questions and intentions!

If you’re curious to decolonize and liberate your spirituality, amplify your authentic voice, and tap into Divine Feminine energy, head over to QueenSolomon.eventbrite.com to get your ticket to the Queen Solomon Goddess Rising Summit! Use code Lauren16 for 16% off your purchase.

11% of all proceeds will be donated to Art and Abolition, an organization that exists to heal, empower, and protect young girls in Kenya who have survived violence as a result of poverty. You can donate directly to Art and Abolition at artandabolition.org

Lyvonne’s intention is for the Queen Solomon Goddess Rising Summit to be 100% doable for folks. If resources are tight but you’re still feeling that nudge and excitement to be at the Summit, you can DM Lyvonne on Instagram @LyvonneBriggs about how to make it happen.

Keep up with Pastor Bae on Instagram and Twitter @LyvonneBriggs

If you haven’t heard the last full episode of the Black Girl In Om Podcast where Pastor Bae blessed us with her presence, you can listen here

Hi community! BGIO founder Lauren Ash (she/they) is popping in with this special episode to announce that The Process: Unconditional Love begins tomorrow June 10th. This 28-day journey, exclusive for an intimate collective of members, will deepen into unconditional love and support with weekly group coaching with Lauren, a heart-chakra focused experience with special guest teacher Millana Snow (she/her) (Wellness Official Co.) and weekly community support. Rooted in the power of intention, spiritual rituals including meditation, Kundalini, and movement, storytelling, and journaling, those who fully commit to The Process will experience transformation. The Process: Unconditional Love is most rooted in an exploration of the root, sacral, and solar plexus chakra.

The journey kicks off on the New Moon in Gemini on Thursday, June 10th with our first group coaching call, and continues with 90 minute group coaching calls starting at 5:00 p.m. CST / 6:00 p.m. EST Thursday, June 17th, Thursday, June 24th, Thursday, July 1st. All calls will be live and recorded so that members unable to attend the call will be able to access the replays.

All those who enroll will receive:

• All questions answered during The Process group coaching sessions or during 1:1 sessions
• Group meditation and energy healing during weekly coaching calls
• Resource list for unconditional love and support
• Access to all content, including replays of weekly group coaching sessions, for the duration of their membership in The Circle
• Special guests, exclusive meditation and yoga playlists, and more!
• An invitation to The Process of Summer/Fall 2021 first (theme to be announced). It is required that you are a member of The Circle to access this.
• An invitation to The Process: Unconditional Love 30-day check-in. It is required that you are a member of The Circle to access this.

If you’re interested in claiming unconditional love as your center, we invite you to join us for this 28-day journey. Head over to https://bit.ly/3tZxGQ9 to claim your spot in the program. You can also find The Process: Unconditional Love by going to blackgirlinom.com and clicking on Offerings. Sign up soon before enrollment closes on June 17

If you’re curious to become a certified yoga teacher, or simply want to learn how to live a healthier lifestyle, you can sign up for Koya Webb’s Get Loved Up month-long yoga teacher training here: https://koyawebb.com/get-loved-up/

The life-changing book that Lauren mentions in the episode is called The Five Levels Of Attachment by Don Miguel Ruiz. You can order it online here from a local bookstore: https://bookshop.org/books/the-five-levels-of-attachment-toltec-wisdom-for-the-modern-world-9781938289453/9781938289453

Makkah Ali (she/her), Chicago-based podcaster, facilitator, and public speaker, joins BGIO founder Lauren Ash (she/they) in conversation around spiritual seeking and creating spaces for ourselves outside of the white gaze. Makkah is a multidimensional being who makes space for others to find peace and beauty in the many identities they claim. She executive produces and co-hosts the Identity Politics Podcast, which centers the voices of Black Muslim women and features new stories and perspectives about race, gender, and Muslim life in America.

In this episode of the Black Girl In Om Podcast, Lauren and Makkah talk about their individual journeys of defining their relationships with God for themselves outside of anyone else’s expectations. Makkah shares about the many ways that wellness and Islamic faith seamlessly overlap in her life. Lauren and Makkah also discuss the power of intentional connection in a white supremacist world that banks on us feeling and being isolated from one another. Makkah encourages us to create spaces for ourselves outside of the white gaze so that we can self actualize and define our values for ourselves. Press play to get inspired!

IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’ll LEARN MORE ABOUT

• Lauren’s first yoga class ever that Makkah attended in Chicago
• The Smithsonian National Museum Of African American History and Culture’s traveling series, GOD-TALK, where both Makkah and Lauren spoke
• Makkah’s answer to the question, “what is God?”
• Makkah’s journey of creating a space outside of the white gaze through the podcast she executive produces and co-hosts, The Identity Politics Podcast
• What it means to flatten yourself, and how to resist pressures to do so.
• Lauren and Makkah’s journeys of exploring their multiple identities and creating space for all of who they are.
• What it looks like to define your relationship with God for yourself
• Finding a community where you feel safe to ask questions
• The ways that wellness and Islam seamlessly overlap in Makkah’s life

Note: This conversation was recorded in September 2019 while Makkah was the president of the Board of Directors of the Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative. She now serves as a Director on the Managed Organizations Team at Arabella Advisors, where she works with philanthropic partners to develop, structure and maximize the impact of social sector projects. Makkah is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Crossroads Fund which supports community organizations working on issues of racial, social and economic justice in the Chicago area.

Follow Makkah on Instagram and Twitter @MsMakkah

Listen to the Identity Politics Podcast wherever you listen to podcasts, and find out more about the show at www.identitypoliticspod.com

For 20% off of Organifi’s delicious completely plant-based and non-GMO organic superfood blends, head over to Organifi.com/blackgirlinom and use code blackgirlinom

In this episode, Black Girl in Om Founder Lauren Ash explores the belief of creativity as a spiritual practice with mystic and mixed media artist, Chetna Mehta, creator of @mosaiceye. Through the lens of wisdom she has gained from lived experience and studying psychology, Chetna explains how practicing self-compassion can not only expand our capacity to connect with others, but also opens the floodgates of our divine creativity. Chetna encourages us to connect to and lean on our spiritual support system as a way to cultivate a deeper relationship with ourselves and subsequently the world around us. She offers decolonizing our relationship to creativity as a soothing balm to comparison mind and creativity as a gift for our inner child. Chetna believes that “our capacity to feel the “darker”, more uncomfortable emotions informs our capacity to feel the other spectrum of emotions. They play into each other and there’s wisdom in both.” [invitation]

IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL FIND OUT ABOUT:

• The three major life events that brought Chetna’s to self-healing through art and creating @mosaiceye.
• The meaning of @mosaiceye & how it relates to all of us.
• How Chetna stayed connected to her after moving from South Africa to California + discovered her purpose through art.
• The benefits of tapping into the deeper why of your creativity.
• The ancient Greek and Romans belief that creativity is a divine archetype that human beings need to exude and transcend our actuality
• Why we need our egos (sometimes).
• Chetna’s beautiful newsletter, The Moon Times: a nourishing, informational deep-dive into personal & relatable topics such as healthy boundaries, body wisdom, leaning into your awkward, and reparenting your inner child.
• Three pillars of mindful self-compassion:
  acknowledging the moment that you’re in
  understanding that what we’re going through is a part of common humanity
  having self kindness; allowing what is happening to happen, and asking “what do i need right now?”
• Why Chetna loves crying.
• Decolonizing our creativity by reclaiming the belief that we are supported by a collective, Universal source.