In today’s GRACED podcast episode, we dive deep into the themes of the Emperor card which represents authority, building a foundation, and power. The Emperor guides us into the systems that we surround ourselves with and how to build a stronger sense of autonomy within these structures that can ultimately be the key for our freedom. In this open and honest conversation, our guest today is Aja Daashuur, most known as the Spirit Guide Coach, and who has also co-created an Oracle Deck called “Guided by Spirit” with her husband Justin Daashuur Hopkins. Aja and I talk about how she created her community, the Spirit House Collective, setting boundaries, and defining what it means to build an empire for yourself on your own terms. Aja also gives us a collective reading from her deck! This episode is packed with wisdom, guidance, and a grounded way of looking at what it means to build a spiritual business that often can be ethereal in nature – like connecting to your guides, channeling, and mediumship.

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00:00 Grace’s Introduction

01:25 Interview begins

03:55 How Aja started the Spirit House Collective

09:19 Creating a strong foundation for yourself through ritual

11:50 Setting boundaries

15:22 Redefining systems that work for you

21:26 Letting go of control

25:05 AD – Learn how to create your own deck at createyourdeck.club

26:23 Aja’s process in creating her Oracle deck, Guided by Spirit

34:48 Working with your guides

46:51 Building your own empire

50:55 A collective reading from Aja

53:57 Creating boundaries with malicious spirits

54:52 Where to find Aja

55:46 End of episode – remember to leave a podcast review!

💖 Introduction

Hello! Welcome to the GRACED podcast where we talk about how we can infuse more everyday magic into your everyday life through rituals, wellness, tarot, astrology, and today mediumship and channeling.

Today’s guest is Aja Daashur, most known as the Spirit Guide Coach, a guide who connects you back to your wisdom through channeling and mediumship, often working through her own spiritual team to connect you with yours. I have personally worked with Aja 1-on-1 through one of her coaching offerings when I was just getting into my own spiritual journey and I still cherish one of the channeled messages she sent me from my 5D guides, which at the time, since I was still pretty new to all of this, it felt really affirming to receive a message like that and to foster that connection with my own guides.

Aja and I talk about the themes of the Emperor, providing structure for freedom, and what that could honestly look like, redefining what that even means, building a solid foundation for yourself, and providing to yourself so that you can ultimately provide for others.

This is a juicy episode and you don’t want to miss it, so let’s get into it!

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✨ Interview begins

Grace: Hello and welcome to the podcast, Aja.

Aja: Thank you for having me, excited to be here.

Grace: Yeah, definitely. So today we’re diving into the themes of the Emperor card, which represents themes of authority, strategy, big picture thinking, ambition, and power. Aja is a powerhouse having created her offerings as a spirit guide coach, a wonderful community of spirit seekers connecting to her guides throughout the entire process of building her spiritual wellness business. Also, a little birdie told me that one of your Tarot birth cards is the Emperor, which is paired with the Death card, and I’d love to start off there. How do you resonate with these cards as being your Tarot birth cards? And for anyone that doesn’t know, your Tarot birth cards tend to represent your overarching themes of your life that are unique to your life’s journey. And you can find yours on the Mystic Mondays App or any Tarot birth card calculator online. Aja, how do you resonate with your cards?

Aja: Oh, so many feelings come up around those cards. I think my first inclination is like “Really? Whoa, okay.” Because the Death card definitely resonates a lot because I feel like I’m someone that’s always looking at what needs to be shed or released, so that I can be reborn. What needs to die so that something else can live? And I think I do love doing that. I do like looking at the cycles of like a workshop, a program that I’ve created, or a creative endeavor. Okay, this feels as though it’s coming to an end, almost like the seasons of the year. So what is going to be coming into bloom? What do I want to bloom? So that definitely resonates. The Emperor, there’s so many feelings around that. I mean, we could talk about the patriarchy, we could talk about like the male dominant presence. But I think that the Emperor card is something in terms of like strategy, planning, and perspective that I do strive for. It’s definitely not easy for me. But I do tend to look at the larger picture, the dream, the larger dream, and then see, okay, so what are the steps that I need to take or feel inspired to take to achieve or create that larger vision, for sure.

Grace: I love that. I love that you are taking these smaller steps to create this larger vision, much like how tiny brushstrokes can create the entire painting.

Aja: Absolutely.

✨ How Aja started the Spirit House Collective

Grace: So I’d love to hear about how you created the Spirit House Collective and what was the vision moving forward into this big vision of yours?

Aja: That’s actually hilarious because actually the first time I even heard about, I didn’t even know what a collective was when I started. I was talking to a practitioner, a friend of mine, and all of a sudden I heard one of my spirit guides say: “You should start a collective!” and I was like “What’s a collective?” And I basically took that one sentence, reached out to a few other practitioners that I knew, had them come to my house and I said: “Hey, I want to create a community.” I want to create a place where people can learn, expand, and not be judged for, you know? I don’t know? Believing in spirits, aliens, wanting to dive into the akashic records, utilizing tarot as a way to basically create a deeper understanding of self. And all of those practitioners were amazing people and they all said no. And then I thought “Okay, I’ll just do it myself!” and it started out just simply, creating a newsletter, like saying: “This is what I’m doing. I’m hosting something at my home. Would you like to come?” And from there, had a couple of workshops where one or two people showed up and it was very—there’s the ego involved, like “Why isn’t anyone coming?” But all of those things take time to build in terms of connecting to the bigger vision. I just committed to creating space and having people and teachers come. Who I wanted to learn from. And it slowly built from there. And six years later, here we are. And it’s been life changing for me in every single possible way. I mean, that’s how I know you. You know, it’s been an incredible, incredible journey. And I think the lesson that I’ve learned is to, if you feel called towards something, lean into it. Don’t allow fear of not knowing what you’re doing to distract you from creating, you know, the world that you ultimately want to be living in.

Grace: Absolutely. And yes, that is how I know you. When I was living in LA, you offered sound healings and different workshops at your place in Eagle Rock, LA. And I do remember during that time, I was going through an awakening of my own of just like figuring out my spirituality and my connection to other realms and what that means. And it can all be very confusing, you know? So having a community and having a space that you were offering felt grounding and I would say scary. You know, it was scary to go into that path because of, I would say, societal conditioning of what it means to be this, or that, or who you are? And it’s a complete shift of your identity.

Aja: Shift of identity. Yes, shift of identity. I think it’s scary going, even if we take the awakening and spirituality part out of it, it’s scary to go into new spaces, right? You don’t know what’s going to happen. You don’t know who you’re going to meet. You don’t know if it’s going to be in alignment or feel right. But I think, anyone that walks through the doors of Spirit House or anyone that walks through any new door, whether it’s like a spiritual workshop or a pottery class, it takes courage, I feel, to put yourself in a new situation and be open to whatever comes, Even if it’s like “Oh, never going to do that again, right?” So I love that you were there. I’m so grateful that you showed up because it also anyone that walks through the doors, they’re saying: “I don’t know what is coming, but I’m committed to discovering.”

Grace: And you’ve mentioned the word “commitment” a couple of times, and that actually happens to be my word of the year. And I’m finding that there’s a commitment when you’re committing to a practice, you’re also on a higher level committing to yourself and showing up and being present. And I do feel like with this work of spiritual work, there’s a tendency to escape into another realm. And so I’m wondering how you balance those parts of yourself, grounding yourself to the present day, while also connecting to your guides and your spiritual team to then, I suppose, giving you those action steps.

Aja: Yeah, it’s really hard. I think that as human beings, we go through phases where commitment to certain practices is just much easier than at other times. And obviously, it’s during those tough times that we really want to be committing to those practices. And we often hear people talking about not just commitment, but balance. And I think something to understand is to not judge yourself too harshly when you’re going through those undulating rhythms of what commitment means. Commitment for me used to be “Oh, I’m going to meditate an hour every day, I’m going to do automatic writing for another hour, and then I’m going to talk to dead people all day.” That is a very—it is an incredibly difficult practice to maintain for the rest of your life. So, I’ve had experiences when, there might be weeks where I go by and I’m like: “Wow, I haven’t meditated. This is crazy, I haven’t pull cards.” This is actually part of who I am. How am I turning away from myself so frequently? So I think we have to have compassion for the fact that we’re going to be going through different things and then really ask ourselves, what does commitment mean today? Because it could be different.

✨ Creating a strong foundation for yourself through ritual

We want to obviously a foundation that we can always lean on and rely on because a foundation of some type of practice just helps us feel like ourselves. But we also have to understand and have compassion for the fact that that might shift and change a bit each season and to be okay with that. And to still honor what it is that we need for ourselves without punishing ourselves for being human and having a natural ebb and flow, if that makes sense.

Grace: Oh, absolutely. I go through that all the time. You know, I’m like: Oh, I have to do this for an hour. I have to have my morning routine. And then there are days and weeks that I don’t do it at all. And I agree that there is a sense of having compassion for yourself because we’re not robots. And we also fluctuate with the energy of whatever is going on astrologically, like the seasons. We’re picking up on all of these subtle things that are going on. And I do feel like sometimes we can be really hard on ourselves because of these expectations. And so some of that, I would say, Emperor energy, of providing that structure and foundation for yourself to always rely on, but to give yourself the freedom to ebb and flow to whatever is authentically true for you. So as you were speaking, I was thinking about how commitment can mean a lot of different things, but ultimately, committing to the most authentic version of yourself that day.

Aja: That is absolutely true. I think we can get away from the… the constriction of what “commitment” means, right? And again, you’re right, acknowledging commitment today can mean: I’m going to go for a long walk. I’m going to start a chapter of a new book and enjoy myself. I’m going to do 15 minutes of breath work. That is me committing to myself. I don’t have the bandwidth to go through 500 emails today, or plan out my whole marketing campaign for a project, and that is okay. You know, also especially when it comes to spirituality and wellness and for those of us who are not only connected to spirituality but we provide for ourselves through it. You know, we’re not living in a monastic world where we’re all sitting in a cave waiting for people to come in and bring offerings of food and drink. We have to pay bills. We have to take our dogs to the vet.

✨ Setting boundaries

Aja: There are things that we have to do and provide for that go outside of the wellness and spiritual world and while yes everything can be spiritual we have to be able to know what our limitations are within that idea of the Emperor. The Emperor is: “What’s the most important thing? What needs to be taken care of? What is it that I need to provide for today?” and that does change day to day, season to season, and that’s okay.

Grace: Absolutely. So what I’m hearing also is boundaries and learning how to set boundaries with yourself by committing to the smaller things that are not always enjoyable. But I think part of the shifting is finding the joy in the little things if you can and prioritizing your energy so that you are focused on the things that bring you joy.

Aja: Yes, and I think that… I know I mentioned balance earlier, but I think it’s also the sense of, can I—I’m trying to figure out how to word this. I think a lot of the times, especially for many of us who are either falling into like comparing ourselves to what other people are doing, or judging ourselves on like how much we have or haven’t done, I think that when it comes to joy, it can almost feel like, well, joy needs to be a reward for something. Oh, like: “If I finish writing this copy for my next book, then I get to do X, Y, and Z.” Instead of like: “No, no, no! I’m going to give myself what I’m asking for because I deserve it and because I’m worth it.” And then I’m gonna find the joy in these other things that provide for me in different ways. I think we really need to start, you know, relooking or reframing certain things, whether it’s joy or self-care or boundaries or priorities, away from what, as you’ve mentioned, like the way society has conditioned us throughout decades and decades of believing that we should be enacting and engaging with life. You know, we need to kind of be shifting things around and asking ourselves What is it that I want today? What is it that I desire today? How without feeling as though it needs to be earned in some way by hard labor, right? Of course we need to do things but can we give ourselves something that we want just because?

Grace: Oh, I love that. Just giving yourself pleasure because it’s available and that we deserve it as human beings. And I do feel like there is a certain exchange with rewarding oneself with the amount of work that you do, whether it has to do with your actual work, what you do for money or salary, but also with relationships and like how you might show up in relationships and the give and take of that. But what is our relationship to ourselves ultimately? And how can we give ourselves what we want?

Aja: It’s so hard sometimes to be our own best friend, right? It’s so easy for us to give advice to others like: “Oh no, give yourself a break!” or “Go to the beach for the day!” I mean, if you are able to, if you have that luxury, but when it comes to ourselves, it’s like: “Oh no, no, no, no! Not for me! I’ve got to do X, Y, and Z.” I have to finish this. I haven’t done that. It’s always like what you haven’t done, what you don’t have, what you haven’t achieved. Instead of “Wow, I’m blessed enough to be able to do this. I’m blessed enough to be able to eat a scoop of ice cream right now, because I feel like I want to.”

✨ Redefining systems that work for you

Aja: You know, yes we can talk about moderation but I think that especially in America we’ve been taught, from a very early age that in order to enjoy anything there must be some sort of sacrifice. Lots of different cultures, not just America, but you have to sacrifice in order to receive something and that is, it’s so toxic.

Grace: Absolutely. That was definitely a mindset that I grew up with as a child of immigrants and refugees and being first generation. I definitely bought into the hard work and grinding myself down and ultimately just feeling empty after a while. And that system was never set up for people to feel happy or fulfilled. It’s always set up for people to constantly keep working themselves to the bone. And I think people are starting to wake up that this is not fulfilling and trying to find their voice and purpose in their own lives to give back to community, but also to find satisfaction while finding your place in the world. And so I was wondering, how do you give yourself that satisfaction? Because I know with building a community, there’s so much of giving of yourself. There’s so much that you might be sacrificing behind the scenes when you’re connecting to your guides, you know that work is not easy. So I’m wondering what you’re doing to take care of yourself and the relationship that you have with your boundaries, your guides, your clients, and so forth.

Aja: It’s really hard. It’s something that I’m still working on for sure. I mean, I definitely feel that I’ve pushed myself to the point of complete burnout, even though in the work I do, obviously I’m talking about how you don’t do that. And actually only in the last year have I said “okay, this enough is enough!” My guide’s been telling me this for several years. But only in the last year or so have I been, and speaking of my guides, been starting to pull back in a lot of ways. Because when you are building community, supporting community, and creating community, you do come last a lot. And there is almost a sense of, if this person who is creating and opening themselves up in all these different ways. They must be okay. They must be fine. They must have it figured out. And that is the opposite. I don’t know. I’m learning along the way. So in some ways I’ve pulled back this year and said “okay, how am I taking care of myself?” I need to pull back from creating and how are you still finding more choice? Grace, I’m sorry. How are you? How am I going to be able to daily ask myself, as I mentioned, “What is it that I need?” and to also be able to say “no” to those that I historically have always said “yes” to. And almost immediately, it’s like you think something like that, you say it out loud, and then the universe will say “Well, here you go. Let’s test it out.” Right? And I have people in my community saying: “Hey, are you going to do another witches’ gathering market? Are you going to do this? Are you going to do that?” And I had to pause and say “No, I’m not. I’m not doing any of that. All I am doing is listening to myself and my body and giving it the nourishment it hasn’t been able to receive for years.” So that I can then come back to that community and give, as we always talked about, a cup that is full versus that is empty. So that is a process that I’m still working through and going through and discovering. And it’s not easy, you know. I don’t know anyone that has it all figured out, but I think the really beautiful thing when it comes to wellness or spirituality and community is that we have a container where we can ask ourselves the questions that our body mind and heart are hoping that we can find an answer to. Versus pushing those questions down, ignoring them, or completely acting as though they don’t exist to begin with.

Grace: Absolutely. I love that you’re taking that time out for yourself and that you are finding ways to say “no” when historically you’ve said “yes” because that’s very much about breaking patterns of I would say people pleasing, like things that just, you’ve probably done for a while and likewise me too, You know, it’s been hard for me to say “no” but now I’ve been exercising boundaries much more often and I very much resonate with taking a step back to on my side of things, because there is a self nourishment that has to happen when you give so much of yourself. And I feel like with anyone in a position of leadership. For anyone that starts a community or starts their own thing. So it can be a lot of people in a lot of different places in society. But oftentimes, when we’re not giving to ourselves, we can’t show up at our best. And so I think built into this whole Emperor strategy is how to give to oneself as much as you’re giving to others or how to replenish yourself along the way.

Aja: Absolutely! I mean, the Emperor is a delegator too, right? The Emperor has people to support. And I think a lot of times, you know, we don’t ask for support. We encourage others asking for support, but we as ourselves don’t ask for that support. We’re perpetuating a cycle that we’re saying should not be perpetuated anymore. And I’ve definitely been taking that lesson to heart, either figuring out what needs to be delegated or getting an idea and saying “That’s a great idea, Aja, but you don’t need to do that right now. Let’s put it on the shelf. It’s not going anywhere.” versus “I have an idea. I have to create it. I have to create it now. otherwise—” Otherwise what!?

Grace: Right. And I feel like that also shifts to following your joy, and noticing what doesn’t feel right. And those are often the things that I tend to delegate more of because I’m like “I am dragging my feet on this. It’s taking forever.” Like, “Low key, I hate this. I cannot do this anymore.” And those are things other people can do. It’s not in my zone of genius and I think it was like—

✨ Letting go of control

Grace: It’s funny because the Emperor is so much about control in a lot of ways, but there’s also a letting go of control that needs to happen for these bigger ideas to shift, but also to give ourselves the time and space to be human and to enjoy ourselves and to reward ourselves in the process.

Aja: Yes, I love that, nod to the zone of genius too. It’s like, yeah, we’re not gonna be great at everything. We’re not, and there are others that are going to be, you know? and we can ask them for help, or learn from them, or have them do what we need to do to help create something magical. I think that it’s really difficult to step away from ancestral and societal patterns that were created for a reason, because they worked for people for a certain amount of time and in certain ways. But those patterns also dehumanized us and separated ourselves, and for a reason also for preservation and security, separated ourselves from honoring our feelings and our needs because we needed to survive. And some of us still have to live in those situations, but a lot of us don’t. And I want all of us that don’t have to live in those situations and those world views to be able to move away from it and really experience life, actually live, which I know sounds crazy, but so many of us don’t actually engage and live our lives. We’re focused on getting to the next thing. What’s the next thing? What’s the next thing? And there’s no sense of presence and that’s a shame, you know? I think you and I talked about it even before we recorded like: What’s the bar? Where are we trying to go? Do we even know? Is it all arbitrary? Because we don’t want it to be arbitrary. We want there to be an intention. Otherwise, we’re just a cog in a wheel.

Grace: Absolutely. I know even just earlier today, I was thinking to myself What is enough? What is enough? What is the bar? Like you said, what are the limitations? And oftentimes, I don’t even think, like for me, I don’t even know until I get there or I go there. And so part of it too is experimenting with ourselves on what our barriers are or our limitations and what we’re willing to do. I think that creates a contrast where you’ll push yourself and you’ll realize what you’re made of. On the other hand, you’ll also learn what your boundaries are along the way. And so I think there is a, like a forgiveness process that happens as you’re going because sometimes you push yourself a little bit too far and there could be all of those negative voices that are like “Oh my god! I did this! I did that! That was wrong!” But I love that you’ve mentioned this compassion that we can have for ourselves in the process that we’re experimenting, that we’re learning, that there doesn’t need to be a rigidity in how we’re approaching life, which I think sometimes we think that there are certain rules that we have to follow. And while I do agree that a good foundation is really important for us to thrive and grow, there’s also knowing when to step outside of that, like whether it’s making your own rules eventually, or stepping outside of your zone to learn something new about yourself, but always pushing and growing upon a strong foundation so that you can constantly uplevel and grow.

Aja: Oh, I mean, couldn’t have said it better myself, Grace. Absolutely. Especially when it comes to, I think you also mentioned failure or mistakes, right?

A short interruption to let you know about the Create Your Deck Club. If you’ve ever been interested in creating your own deck, to get guidance and support around this creative process or even how to approach the process, feel free to get more information at createyourdeck.club.

Aja: And, you know, something that my guide said to me actually when I was creating the Guided by Spirit Oracle deck was that humans have this idea of failure and there is no failure. They’re only lessons. So if we can look at a “mistake” and say “Okay, look this isn’t a mistake. I learned something. I’ve experienced something, I have more knowledge now. Then it takes away the weight of feeling unworthy, worthless, not good enough, or I should have, I could have, instead of what did I learn so that I don’t have to go back there ever again? That’s also why we’re here in this life, to learn lessons. And all of those lessons are not going to be positive ones because otherwise we wouldn’t actually honestly appreciate the positive things as much. So yeah, that’s something that changed my view. There are no failures, there are only lessons and we take those with us so that we can create different versions of success and achievement in whatever form we wish them to manifest in.

✨Aja’s process in creating her Oracle deck, Guided by Spirit

Grace: Absolutely. So I do want to shout out your deck here Guided by Spirit, an Oracle deck that you created with your partner. And it’s so lovely. I was pulling some cards this morning and I was just struck by the beauty of the cards and the poetry of the words in the guidebook. They’re like collage based and I’d love to hear about your process creating these cards I read through the guidebook that their channels in co-creation with your guides and just would love to hear about your process.

Aja: Absolutely. So that Oracle deck my guides have been talking to me about making for years and I wanted to work on it with my partner who is an artist and you had to work within his schedule, but the purpose of it really was to give my guides, the guides that I work with, who work with at this point thousands of people, the opportunity to reach more people with words, themes, and wisdom that they feel that can really reveal new parts of ourselves to our souls and hearts so that we can utilize that wisdom for more clarity and direction. And it was a beautiful experience. I love connecting to my guides and they have so many, so many incredible things to share and that’s basically what happened. We created that. I mean even though the process took a really long time, the words, the channeled words for each card literally took, you know, it came through me in two days. So I’m very grateful for them. I’m in the process of making creating another deck with them and they always just I’m just in awe of what they have to share and definitely feel as though I want to be utilizing their guidance more. I definitely sometimes hear a lot of sighing when I’m doing something. [sigh] I’m like okay I’m still human. I’m working on it!

Grace: That’s hilarious. So you mentioned that this took a long time and I was just wondering in context what that means for you because everyone’s deck process is different and when you channel with your guides are you automatic writing? Are you doing it through dreams? What does that look like for you?

Aja: It’s definitely automatic writing. So I’ll sit. So the process took several years, but just because of life. But when I sat down to ask them what the themes are? What did they want the cards, the medicine to be? I automatic write, which for those who aren’t familiar, there are several ways of automatic writing, but the way that I utilize is allowing a spirit to move my hand and write. So they wrote all 36 themes out, and I went through them myself after. And there’s certain things I said maybe we’ll wait for this for later or what would be a compliment to this. And then I asked each guide, and there are 6 guides, it’s broken down into each guide’s cards that they are connected with. And I asked them just to begin writing for each one, whether it’s roots or fearless. And they used my hand and wrote everything out. And of course, maybe I changed a word here or there, but for the most part, all of each theme, all the copy is intact with what they felt would be the most potent medicine for those who connected with the death.

Grace: And who are your 6 guides that co-created this with you?

Aja: Well, my main, the guy who I referenced the most is Monty. And in the deck, he’s Monty of the Fire. And Monty is actually the guide who, before I even started talking to other spirits to the dead, he was the one that came through. He was the one that told me to start Spirit House. He was the one that told me to basically merge life coaching with mediumship, which was terrifying. So he’s kind of the leader. Yes, there he is. So much fire.

Grace: What a beautiful card.

Aja: We have Isabella, we have Sonalon, we have Bernard, we have Charles, we have Clarence. I mean every guide and I will say that you know this is just these are just my opinions. Mystics have different you know points of view and opinions but these are the guides that I believe are my unique team. That are there to basically say “Hey, why don’t you try this?” or “Hey, we know what your blueprint is.” “We’re asking you to make a left instead of a right here.” But also I want people to understand that we can all decide to listen to the guidance that they have to offer or go in a completely different direction. And they’ll adjust accordingly. They’re there with us through the ups and downs, whether we listen to them or not. And what I really want people to understand with this Oracle deck, whether they connect with the individual guides or not or the magic, the message is we’re not alone. We’re never alone. We always have energy and spirits that are surrounding us with love. And that was so comforting to me during my awakening and during serious times. Yes, exactly!

Grace: It’s inside the box and I love this little touch. It says you are not alone in gold.

Aja: It’s true and it changed my life. Like as someone that’s struggled with depression and anxiety and a whole bunch of other things. Moving into a part of my life where I could finally not just understand but know that I’m not alone. It’s changed all those dark days for me. I still have them, but they’re not as dark, they’re not as deep.

Grace: Yeah, I love that. And so you mentioned, for example, like Monty was like, “Hey, combine mediumship with coaching. It’s a great idea!” Which what was the reaction? Was it hard for you to trust that voice? And was there any resistance?

Aja: Yeah. Oh, yeah.

Grace: What was the level of your self in your body and learning to trust the voices of your guides.

Aja: I mean, I was terrified. I thought that was a horrible idea. I was like, I’m going to be called crazy. I’m going to be ostracized. Nobody is going to want to work with me. But I trust my guides. I trust my guides so much that I said “okay.” And I did it. And I would say I’m not even exaggerating. I would say within 30 days, my whole practice changed. And by that, I mean I was booking consistently through word of mouth because you know I had no real social media presence and I remember asking Monty one day, I said “Why me? Why am I doing this work? Why are all of these things happening, right now?” and he said “because you listened” and I was thinking “oh wow” Like we’re giving you advice and you’re picking it up and you’re making it tangible. And that was really important for me to hear at the time, because it just showed the level of—speaking of going back to commitment, if we can commit to our truth, if we can commit to what we believe in a tangible form, the rewards are limitless. And speaking of which, like almost coming full circle in a way, the last few years have been very difficult for all of us in lots of ways with the pandemic and lockdown and things happening around the world. And I remember, I was feeling really disconnected and I was sitting talking to Monty and I was telling him how I was feeling and he said “you’re not listening anymore” and I just got quiet. He’s like “you’re not listening” and I thought “wow, okay” I need to pull back. I need to come back to the practices and connections that have nurtured me and just opened me up and I have and again it feels like that—speaking of the Death card it feels like I’ve ended a cycle and started a new one. And just for any anyone who’s listening to this like when you’re listening to your spirit guides what you’re really also doing is you’re listening to yourself. and that’s the whole goal here: to listen to yourself, honor it, make it your reality.

✨ Working with your guides

Grace: So over the years, I’ve been in touch with my guides as well. And I know you’ve also channeled my guides when I was working with you, which I found very comforting, because I think at the time there was a lot of figuring out my spirituality when I was working with you. And it’s nice to know that you’re not alone, that on the other side, you do have a spiritual team and something that resonates with me and I’m wondering if it resonates with you is when you come across different spirit guides, they’re often different aspects of you whether it’s in different dimensions, whether it’s your future self, or whatnot and this might get a little woo right now for people but it’s definitely something that I believe in that all these different aspects of you tend to show up in the form of guides, messages, and whatnot. So I was wondering what you think about that?

Aja: I think that’s true, I’ve definitely had clients who some of their guides are future versions of themselves or past versions of themselves. I think some mystics believe that none of your guides are people or energies you’ve ever met and I have not found that to be true. I’ve met people who some of their guides are angels. But whether it’s a future or past version of yourself, or whether it’s an angel, or an ancestor. There are absolutely elements of us within those energies. That’s why they’re there because they get us, they understand us, and also we can see ourselves,and hear ourselves, and feel ourselves in them, which just expands the trust. No one is gonna call you out on your shit more than a spirit guide and they’re gonna rid you of filth and you’re like Yeah, that’s totally true. You’re right. Not in a way that’s trying to knock you down, But in a way that is just complete and utter transparency. There’s no manipulating or trying to move around or… There’s just absolute truth and there’s also a freedom in that. You don’t need to hide. There’s no reason to hide. You can be 100% who you are and they already have known you in multiple lifetimes. They’ve seen all these different versions of yourself. Versions of you where you’ve been the conqueror. Versions of you where you’ve felt less than dirt. They’ve seen every shadow and aspect of who you are. And that’s why we trust them, because they’ve seen all the different facets of the hologram, and they have seen it all come together. And it’s a really beautiful thing.

Grace: Well, I think the difference between listening to guidance from someone in your life, whether it’s like a dear friend, family, or teacher, whatever, versus listening to a spiritual guide, is that your spiritual guide often has your highest regard in mind. So whatever they tell you is typically for your highest good, whereas someone in your life might tell you something, but it’s based on their own filter of what they think is best. Which can often be their own insecurity, their own judgment, their own fears. Which can be translated into: “Oh, I really care about you.” But really this is my projection of what I think is best.

Aja: But yeah, you’re right. Other people, they’re filtering it through their experience and it’s not malicious, they mean well, but they’re like: This is what I’ve experienced and this is how I’m taking what you’re saying and filtering it through. And our spirit guides are—it’s unconditional love. All they want is for us to feel fulfilled to love ourselves as much as they love us. You know, like, “Can you love yourself as much as I love you, completely.” right? Those are their goals. That’s what they’re trying to do, so there’s no manipulation.

Grace: That’s totally it. Yeah, there’s no manipulation. And I think like for anyone who’s very energetically sensitive, you can tell the intention between the guidance that you’re receiving through your guides or through like the people in your life. So I wanna take a step back because not everyone may be in touch with their guides. And I was wondering what your journey was to connect with your guides in the first place and any advice you have for anyone who wants to connect to their guides deeply.

Aja: Absolutely. I mean, even though I’ve been talking to spirits or seeing spirits since I was very little. My connection with my guides didn’t start until my 30s, my early 30s. So I the first thing when it comes to that is going back to commitment. Having a committed—whatever commitment means to you, practice of connection. and that can start with “Oh, I’m in the shower and I’m going to talk out loud to my guides. Even though I don’t I’m not hearing what they’re saying.” We are just going to strengthen that cord of connection, to let them know that we know that they’re there, right? You can be driving, commuting to your job and just saying “Hey everyone, hope you’re all doing well.” I always start with that “Hi everyone, how are you doing? Hope you’re all doing well.” I’m very polite. Here’s what’s going on today. Here’s what I’m hoping for. Here’s what I’m struggling with. Show me ways that I can navigate this or receive with gratitude and grace. And you will almost immediately know that shit is happening throughout the day, because you’re acknowledging them. So it can start very simply like that. And then as you begin to progress, of course it’s pulling cards every day. It might be journaling every day. These are things that we all know, we’ve heard a million times, there’s so many people have said, and so many people have said them because they work. It’s just a fact. The more that you are committed to your practice with connecting with your guides, the louder that you’ll be able to “hear them,” right? And we don’t wanna be comparing that they were connecting. Some people will say, I want to be able to see them in front of me. That might not be the way you see. You might see or hear through turning the radio on and a certain lyric pops up. Basically, the more we’re connecting with our guides, we are creating a language of communication with them. That takes time. It might not look like the way Mary connects, or you, Grace, connect or I connect. It is going to be something unique to you and your strengths. That they find a way to communicate and express what they’re seeing and hoping and guiding you towards. So we also have to like be committed, but also not have specific expectations because it won’t look the way that we are imagining it.

Grace: Absolutely. And I love that you mentioned that it is a language. And if you don’t necessarily know what you’re looking for, you might not find it. But I think it’s just paying attention to the certain symbols that are popping up in your day to day. So you could be seeing angel numbers like 111 every time you look at the clock. You could be seeing Phoenix. There was a period of time when I was seeing Phoenix a lot, whether it was like Phoenix Arizona or like Phoenix on a T-shirt, you know. So it’s just about paying attention to the science and creating your own dictionary of sort. So the thing is, is that I might define Phoenix one way, but Aja, you might define Phoenix in another way. So, and likewise for angel numbers, I like to tell people to really notice what’s happening when they see 111 or 888 or whatever, because that might have a different meaning for you versus me.

Aja: Yes.

Grace: Yeah, so for anyone that is curious about that, I would just you know, just start paying attention to what comes up for you.

Aja: Totally, can you hear me?

Grace: Yeah.

Aja: Yeah, I totally agree. I go through certain phases of, for example, seeing angel numbers. And for me, for me, they usually mean just to take a breath, to take a moment. And then I, and I just thank them for that. Yes, this is a reminder, because most of the time when I’m seeing an angel number these days, it’s on my phone. And I’m like, you know what? You’re right. Let me just take a moment. Let me put the phone down and take a few breaths and, have gratitude for where I am and the energies I have around me on with my day. It’s all interpretation, which I say to clients too, I’m going to see a red truck, a red truck for me might mean something and some completely something different to you. These are interpretations. And then ultimately, you are the one that decides the significance. But what I often see is people saying “Oh, I think this is a sign!” or “I think this means this, but it’s probably nothing.” or “It’s probably just my imagination.” How quickly we can discount a feeling of connection, just like that. And so that being to accept if I see a bird flying overhead Wow, I need to be more aware of the ways I’m taking flight. That means something to me. In this moment, I felt it. Let me allow myself to receive that and then utilize it because it’s medicine. versus immediately discounting it and throwing it away.

Grace: Absolutely. So the Emperor is so much about building a foundation. I know we’re talking about building a foundation in our external world, but there’s so much about building a foundation in our internal world with our spirituality. And I even feel like our spiritual team is helping us build our spiritual world to then be reflected in our external world. And I’m wondering how true that is for you while building Spirit House Collective and how much of a hand did your guides have in guiding you towards this process?

Aja: I mean, in the beginning I would say 90% of it was them. You know, they would suggest something and I would do it. They would say “you should do this class” and I would do it. Or they would say “you should close your books, you’re too busy” and I would do it. “You should start a new way of opening your books” and I would do it. And the more I listened to them and trusted them, then the more that when thoughts came to me, or ideas I would trust them. I wouldn’t need to go to them for everything. I knew that if something was shifting the wrong direction, I would hear them. I began to trust myself more. So and the more we are connected to our souls and to our guides, the more obviously we’re connected to our beings and our path and then obviously that’s going to connect to the choices that we make. It’s all connected. The more you know disconnected we are in my opinion from our spirits, our higher self, our bodies and our minds, the more cloudy things get, the less clarity we have, the more “mistakes” and “failures” we perceive happening. because we’re not really connecting in the moment. And that doesn’t mean that I haven’t created ideas or started projects that didn’t work out. But when I’m really connected, I don’t see them as not working out, I see them as it not being the right time. And I’m not hard on myself about it, you know? Like I’m really: “Oh wow, that was a really great idea!” or “I really love that project.” “This is probably not the right time. I’m gonna come back to it.” And I give myself the grace to do that. And when I do come back to it, it works out. Versus when I’m disconnected and I start something or something isn’t working I like beat myself over the head about it. Like I can’t believe this. No one sees me! They’re not getting it. I’m not getting it. I’m wrong. I’m gonna lose everything! Like you go on this tidal wave of just shadow thoughts. And when that happens, I say to myself now versus you know before Oh, I need again to step back. I need again to relook at the way I’m connecting, receiving, and the gratitude I need to have for where I am. And it always works. It always works. I always end up being able to come back to that rhythm, back to that receiving, back to that connection. And it’s a blessing. It just, that’s the simple truth of it.

✨ Building your own empire

Grace: So obviously we live in a patriarchal society and the Emperor represents this masculine energy, can represent like a father figure in the deck. And I was wondering how much of what you’re doing is dismantling ideas of the patriarchy and what has come up for you when supporting like BIPOC communities and what the vision is moving forward for building your own empire or definition of empire.

Aja: That’s a lot. I think that when I think about Spirit House or the Spirit Guide Coach or anything that I’m doing and the way it fits in with society, I really think about the fact that what I’m doing is connecting people to original medicine, original magic, things before the patriarchy, things that existed in the beginning with a multitude of different cultures and more specifically BIPOC cultures. And this is a remembering, it’s a coming back to, it’s a coming home. I’m not creating anything that hasn’t been done before. I’m reminding people of the magic and the power that they have. And when we think about the patriarchy, when we think about white cis male domination A lot of these systems were in place to eradicate the medicine, the knowledge, the magic of all of these different cultures. So what we’re doing is saying we’re still here, we’re still united, we still have power, we’re actually even more powerful. And we’re going to remind those of you, those who are here now of the connections to their ancestry and their magic that have always been there and help them expand it. So when I think about, you know, an empire, I think about Let’s just come back to who we originally were. With more of an understanding of what we can build together. And again, that image can change, but that truth remains the same, if that makes sense.

Grace: Absolutely. When I think about empire too, there’s just so many different ways of approaching it, but I’m even thinking about like, how the pyramids were built? You know, if you really believe aliens came through and helped build the pyramids, there are just different systems of support that are helping you build the vision. And whether you want to connect to your spirit guides and how that’s all going to happen or delegating things to an assistant, or however you’d like to build your empire. I think it’s about giving ourselves the permission to build in the way that feels most authentic to us. And I know that throughout the years, building Mystic Mondays, I really felt like it had to look a certain way, it had to be a certain way. And then all the while figuring out, no, it just has to feel right to me. And sometimes there isn’t a tangible way that it can look in a certain moment. So I know I’m a very visual person, but coming back into the body, into how it feels, is also really important. And as the Emperor is related to the number 4, I think that has a lot to do with structure, systems, but also your body, your ties to ancestry, and how you can build that solid foundation for yourself in a way that feels good and feels right.

Aja: Yeah, I agree with all of that. And even like rephrasing, you kind of mentioned this too, What the idea of an empire is? An empire doesn’t have to be something that obliterates everything or that takes over everything. And it can be an empire of love, an empire which is community, an empire of healing. We get to decide and define what empire means and it can mean very different things versus just one thing.

✨ A collective reading from Aja

Grace: So I would love to pull some cards from your gorgeous deck and have you interpret them. Is that alright? Can’t hear you.

Aja: Yes, let’s do it.

Grace: Awesome. Okay, so I’m gonna shuffle here. And I’m gonna pull three. And this is a reading for the collective. Okay, so I got Reflection, Wisdom, and Charles Water.

Aja: Oh my gosh. Yeah, I mean, so those are obviously, those are great cards. When we think about reflection, we’re thinking about all the different pieces that make up one reflection of who we are. And there are lots of different little pieces that can come together. Are we acknowledging all of them? Are we looking at the different pieces of who we are and how they can work together? Because that’s where we can really gather the wisdom. We already have wisdom and knowledge living inside of us, but oftentimes we choose to ignore it or discount it. And this is about, what is the wisdom that I’m receiving from myself when I look deeper into myself and who I am? Can I be in the moment? Can I allow myself to be present and receive the medicine that I already have at my disposal? And how can I utilize that as I move forward with into each day?

Grace: Amazing. Thank you. And we’re gonna wrap up with some rapid fire questions. What is your Sun, Moon, Rising?

Aja: Aquarius, Cancer, Leo.

Grace: Aquarius Sun, Cancer Moon, Leo Rising?

Aja: Yeah!

Grace: Okay, awesome. How does that resonate with you?

Aja: I think it’s very accurate. It’s very accurate. Like I call myself an introverted extrovert. I can do the thing, but I love also just like being in my feelings and allowing myself to like create new worlds where I am, honestly, just talking to dead people. So that’s what I love to do.

Grace: Do you have any rituals that you love and practice right now?

Aja: Oh yes, over the winter I’ve been making a fire every day for my automatic writing. And fire is so nourishing and it teaches so much. And I’ve been having incredible downloads so every day. Going out if I need to chop some wood, gather wood, coming back in, making the fire, sitting by the fire, listening to the fire, allowing the spirit of fire to speak to me has been incredible. And beyond that, honestly my meditation practice. Even if it’s just for 10 minutes. Being able to come to center and receive and have gratitude is something that never gets old and is always beneficial.

✨ Creating boundaries with malicious spirits

Grace: And how do you create boundaries with spirit if you’re talking to a dead person or malicious energy? Like, how do you set your boundaries there?

Aja: Well, I used to have no boundaries, but now I have a lot. And basically, I have an opening prayer and I have a closing prayer. And I surround myself with protection. So I’ll say, I asked my spirit guides, angels, masters, teachers, and loved ones, my animal guides, to protect me from anything that is not of the highest and best. That doesn’t mean that spirits, other spirits, can’t sometimes slip through, but their ratio is much lower. And then when I’m done speaking to spirits, I close it. I say “I cut the cord, and I’m no longer open to receiving.” You know, so really creating like an opening and a closing point is incredibly beneficial because otherwise we’re just hearing and receiving all the time and that is not sustainable.

Grace: Definitely not. And with the theme of the Emperor, it’s all about sustainability.

✨ Where to find Aja

Grace: So thank you so much, Aja. Where can our listeners connect with you?

Aja: Well, they can connect with me on my website at thespiritguidecoach.com or on Instagram @spirithousecollective. Those are the places to find me.

Grace: Amazing. And I know Aja has monthly offerings and spots for coaching. And as someone who has worked with Aja in the past, I would highly recommend that you work with her. She’s very gifted. And I also feel like Aja works with a lot of integrity. And I know this world can be quite scary. So I think that Aja is a really amazing channel to both grounds, but also connect you with the higher dimensions of oneself. So thank you so much, Aja. This was wonderful. And thank you so much.

Aja: Aww, thank you. It’s been an absolute pleasure, which is not a surprise at all.

✨ENDTRO

Thanks so much for tuning into today’s episode with Aja Daashur! I’m so grateful for Aja’s guidance and honest take on her relationship with the Emperor. I feel like a lot of us are redefining systems for ourselves in a way that feels more supportive. I like to call this systems of support and what might be in those systems to uplift us and to empower ourselves to continue to grow into our fullest and most authentic selves. And sometimes we notice when these systems aren’t working for us, in which we find ourselves rebuilding, restructuring, and redefining, continually until it feels like a system that was made for us. Which you are creating, ultimately for yourself to be free and to be your most autonomous in the structures that you build. You get the opportunity to figure out what works best for you and that is ultimately the energy of the Emperor. The changes that you make in your own life will ripple out into the universe, and ripple out into your communities, to the people that are around you. So the changes that you make to transform yourself and the systems that you implement that best take care of you do matter, and do make a difference.

So keep on making that positive change and be that source of light for others!

As always, sending you so much Grace, today and everyday.

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