#6 Belonging + Decolonizing Spirituality
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In this episode, Dr. Mona speaks with guest Dr. Giavanni Washington, affectionately known as Dr. G, who is an intuitive speaker, healer, and spiritual guide. She has a doctorate from UCLA’s Department of World Arts & Cultures, and was recently selected for the California Creative Corps Artist and Culture Bearer Fellowship by the California Arts Council. Dr. G is dedicated to amplifying Black beauty, reconnecting to the deep roots of the Black divinity and encouraging the full expression of Black joy. Dr. G’s latest creative endeavor is “Black Goddess Within Oracle Deck.”
To begin, Dr. G explains three events that happened that brought this deck to life. The first was Ferguson, Michael Brown being killed and the four policemen being acquitted. She was working with a group of Black women and left that meeting with a clear call to change the way the world sees Black bodies. The next event was that her son at 5 years old came home one day and told her that another kid told him during a coloring exercise that the color black was bad. He then internalized that, thinking he was bad because he’s Black. The last event was when she ordered an Afro-Cuban Oracle Deck and pulled out Oshun, the Nigerian Goddess of love and beauty and art, and she was portrayed as white. Dr. G remembered thinking it was unfathomable that a Nigerian goddess was portrayed as white. There was a violence associated with it where she felt assaulted by that card. This card perpetuated the assumption that the spirit world is restricted to white bodies, which is not true.
Next, they discuss how the majority of the world does not look like white men. The less someone looks like a white, male God, the less human that person becomes to others, and the more oppressed they are. When she created the first deck in 2016, she was speaking of it more in terms of representation, but it is in fact combatting this violence of only viewing white male bodies as superpowers. Her body is also sacred as a Black femme and these feelings of inferiority by society can get transferred into other areas of our lives. It excludes people, making them feel like they don’t belong in society, the spirit world, or to themselves. Dr. G brings up “OBOT”, referring to “only Black one there,” and times where she has been the OBOT in the spiritual space and has to explain her Blackness. People won't let you forget your Blackness and it begs the question: where are Black bodies safe? Dr. G tells about her background growing up in a Methodist church and leaving the church when she was 16. Many people that are religious have initial resistance to the deck until they get the cards in their hands, look at them, and understand that she is not trying to convert anybody, but rather heal the wounds of colonialism.
In addition, they discuss the difference between religiosity and spirituality. Religiosity is the level to which you identify with the doctrine. Spirituality is the degree to which someone feels a connection with their own values or a force that feels greater than them. The oracle cards are not a false prophet or idols, but a tool to use for ancestral healing. You don’t have to be in a Black body to receive this messaging. This deck is for everybody in every body and can have the power to change the way we think, and the way we think about Africa. Dr. Mona shares how she pulled a card from the deck and felt seen, because the card has an Egyptian goddess and she is Egyptian. This deck is a reminder that she is part of beautiful, rich and diverse African cultures. This deck can provide universal and ancestral belonging, and expand the way we conceptualize ourselves, the way we see Black bodies and expand our awareness.
Dr. G then explains more of the process of making the oracle deck. The first set of cards were completed in three days, but the second deck took three months. They spent more time on personal development and identifying the goddess qualities inside themselves. The goddesses on the cards are not models, but they are embodying the qualities of those goddesses and claim those traits in a ritual out loud in front of everyone. Dr. G thinks that ancestral healing and restoration is about filling in the holes in our story. There were so many stories and wisdom that were lost in the transatlantic slave trade and unearthing those stories is healing to her. Knowing your ancestral background fills that belonging gap and makes you stand up a little straighter. Dr. G says we know when we have belonging because we feel accepted and held without shame on either side of that relationship. We need to connect, build community and find one another in this world.
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1:12 - Dr. Mona introduces today’s guest, Dr. Giavanni Washington.
3:14 - How did this deck come about?
8:52 - The majority of the world does not look like white males.
12:40 - Only Black One There (OBOT).
16:23 - Religiosity and spirituality.
18:56 - This deck is for everybody in every body.
22:45 - The process of creating the deck.
25:28 - What does ancestral healing or restoration mean to you?
31:16 - What does belonging mean to you?
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Learn more about Dr. Giavanni Washington
Follow Dr. G on IG/TT: @blackgoddesswithin and FB
Purchase Black Goddess Within Oracle Deck
Dr. G is currently offering The Black Goddess Reunion for those who identify as Black. The Reunion is a place for the weary soul to find belonging, understanding, and community. Learn more at drgiavanniwashington.com/membership
Learn more about Belonging Reimagined Podcast
Connect with Dr. Mona Nour
