Dr. Asanee Brogan, a dynamic spiritual life coach, diviner, and author, brings a wealth of global experience to her work. Her many journeys have shaped her holistic approach to personal growth and empowerment. As the Principal Coach and CEO of Asanee 44 LLC, she aims to help others tap into their soul mission. The focus of her work centers around African spirituality with an emphasis on the Ifá Tradition and Haitian Vodou.
Dr. Asanee imparts spiritual wisdom through transformative tools and resources based on African traditions. She has published books, courses, podcasts, oracle decks, and other works that explore the spiritual landscape of the continent. With a profound dedication to service and a compassionate heart, Dr. Asanee continues to touch lives and illuminate pathways for others endeavoring to traverse this path.
Dr. Asanee Brogan,Spiritual Coach
Can you share a bit about your journey in becoming a spiritual coach? What motivated you to start Asanee 44 LLC?
Spirituality and education are not just my professions, they are core to my essence. My astrological chart, with its many luminary aspects in Sagittarius and ascendant in Pisces, is a testament to my natural inclination towards education and spirituality. However, my career path in these areas took a detour before I was ready to explore them from a business perspective.
As such, Asanee 44 LLC actually began as a coaching service with a focus on career, business, and finances. I have always been interested in these dynamics, and working in academia made me a perfect fit in the world of life coaching. I was trained in healthcare administration, and I served as a professor and higher education administrator in this field for much of my professional life. This kept me in touch with the financial market and career dynamics, which is why I chose these coaching areas.
But my spiritual calling kept tugging at my heart. No matter how hard I tried to ignore it, I felt a burning passion to focus on spirituality in my business dynamics. It was clear to me that I had no choice but to go down this path. So, after spending about two years in the career, business, and financial sectors, I strategically pivoted my business and transitioned into spiritual coaching.
What initially drew you to specialize in African traditional religions, particularly the Ifá tradition and Haitian Vodou?
These paths were likewise part of my calling or destiny. Years ago, I experienced a major spiritual awakening that brought me back to my ancestral roots. I was raised in the Christian faith and believed in this religion throughout my childhood years. However, after being presented with hard evidence that contradicted my spiritual and philosophical beliefs, I ultimately stopped practicing Christianity.
After that, I went through a major period of self-discovery. I let my intuition guide me as I listened to the whispers of my ancestors and spirit guides. Through that process, I discovered that my spiritual heritage was rooted in the Ifá tradition and Haitian Vodou. As a person of African descent, traditional African spiritual practices are foundational to my identity. So, in a determined effort to reclaim my birthright, I connected with my spiritual roots.
Your work seems to emphasize not only educating others about African spirituality but also empowering them to connect with their ancestral wisdom. How do you approach this dual focus in your coaching and teaching?
These two dynamics are one and the same. Ancestral wisdom and connectivity are foundational to traditional African religions, so they naturally go hand in hand. In order to begin an African spiritual practice, one must be connected to one's ancestral legacy. Our ancestors are part of our cosmic and physical makeup. They hold the key to helping us understand ourselves at the deepest level.
In many instances, we engage in the same behaviors or activities as our forebearers without even knowing it. This is irrespective of whether we were raised by or around them. We do these things because they are part of us in mundane and metaphysical ways.
We are tasked with continuing the legacy of our ancestors. But more importantly, our ultimate goal involves balancing and harmonizing Universal energy. This is why each of us is born into specific family lineages. To avoid repeating adverse familiar patterns, we must learn vital lessons.
Our ancestors are tasked with leading us down this path of self-discovery. They were here before us, so they know the way forward. If we carefully listen to them and seek to activate their power within us, they can give us the knowledge and wisdom we need to fulfill our soul mission. As such, any sound spiritual practice must involve ancestral connectivity. It’s vital to achieving our overall life purpose.
What advice would you give to someone who is interested in exploring African spirituality but is unsure where to begin?
First, I would advise anyone to do the research before jumping into ritual work. Oftentimes, people come to African spirituality when they need healing of some sort. This could be medical problems, love issues, or financial brokenness. And there isn’t anything wrong with that in and of itself. Spirit often uses adverse circumstances to get our attention. Also, in many instances, Spirit employs these types of challenges to awaken us to our spiritual heritage.
However, the issue often arises in the way individuals approach African spirituality when facing life issues. Generally, their first resort is to engage in some type of ritual work or get a spiritual reading. Doing ritual work without proper education and guidance can be dangerous. Likewise, engaging with the wrong spiritualist can lead you down a dark path. Without any foreknowledge of these traditions, you typically won’t know what’s right or wrong at first.
This is why I encourage people to study as much as possible. While still small in comparison to other religious practices, there is a growing body of knowledge about various African spiritual traditions. Likewise, many spiritual coaches and mentors, like myself, are available to guide others down this path. As such, I strongly admonish anyone to find out what they are getting into before beginning an African spiritual practice.
In your opinion, what misconceptions do people often have about African traditional religions (ATR)?
The primary misconception that all other misunderstandings about ATR hinge on is the notion that it is demonic or evil. Due to colonial invasions, African traditional religions have been relegated to pagan status. This ultimately means they are the antithesis of Abrahamic faiths. But this simply isn’t true.
Many Abrahamic religious practices, including sacrifices, offerings, divination, etc., were derived from traditional African religions. As such, these practices hold the same meaning and significance as they did in Old Testament times. At one point, all of these elements were revered and commended.
However, as society moves away from tradition, in some cases, people have begun to deem these dynamics as evil. Even more, these practices have been outright condemned within African traditions as a result of slavery and colonization. Though much of the propaganda and innuendo surrounding what we do in ATR is utterly false and misleading. African spirituality centers around the notion of destiny fulfillment, which requires us to exist in a state of balance.
Therefore, all African spiritual teachings and practices hinge on individuals living in peace and harmony within themselves, among others, and with their environment. We use our power to bring about a state of homeostasis. Anything done to the contrary is not African spirituality.
Can you share any personal rituals or practices from African spirituality that have significantly impacted your life?
Honestly, everything I do related to my spiritual practices greatly impacts my life. Rituals and ceremonies maintain a cumulative effect, much like natural medicine. They build up over time as each one develops upon the other. Even major ceremonies like initiation or receiving deity icons are ineffective without continual follow-up work.
The Ifá tradition, Voodoo, and other forms of African spirituality are a way of life. They are not a one-time event or ceremony. Instead, each rite of passage strengthens us to move to the next dimension in our spiritual journey—a voyage that never ends. So, I would say that every whispered prayer, every offering, every sacrifice, etc., has profoundly impacted my life to varying degrees.
Could you tell us more about the significance of divination in African spirituality and how you incorporate it into your mentorship services?
Like ancestor veneration, divination is pivotal to African spiritual practices. It is the core or foundation upon which we build an understanding of our destiny. By consulting the spiritual realm, we learn more about our purpose—the reason we came to Earth. Without sound spiritual insight, many of us would be lost. In fact, many people are very confused about their purpose because they haven’t had access to sound divination systems capable of providing them with this crucial knowledge.
To that end, I offer Ifá divination services through Asanee 44. These readings are conducted by a trained Babaláwo or Ifá priest with extensive experience in this area. Ifá readings are built around the notion of destiny fulfillment. They present information to help individuals understand their soul mission and properly align with their purpose.
I also serve as a diviner through my business efforts. However, I don’t currently perform fee-based individual readings. Though I intend to expand my operations in this area soon. Instead, at this time, I publish astrology readings on my blog and ancestor readings through my podcast. These elements are free and available for general public consumption.
Your creation of the Spirits of Africa Numerology Oracle Deck is fascinating. What was your inspiration behind it?
The Spirits of Africa Numerology Oracle deck was designed to represent the spiritual forces from African cultures worldwide. Sadly, there is a dearth of cartomancy tools that depict African people or culture. However, many diviners of African heritage utilize such tools in their work.
As a tarot reader and practitioner of ATR, I was originally inspired to create the deck for myself. However, during the development phase, I decided to make it available for purchase to others. Fortunately, I was able to do so. The deck has been hugely successful and continues to garner positive attention from its intended audience.
As someone who works extensively with divination, what do you believe is the fate or destiny of African spiritual philosophies?
Currently, traditional African religions are experiencing a resurgence among the African diaspora. This is true for many indigenous practices worldwide. People have become despondent with the Abrahamic religions that were forced upon our ancestors. This includes individuals of many races and ethnic groups, even Europeans who were forced to accept Christianity and Arabs who were compelled to adopt Islam.
This transition is part of a global shift in consciousness that was ordained to occur at this time. Many forces perpetuate it, and many are trying to prohibit it. But Universal flow will always do what it was designed to do. In this case, that involves revolutionizing a spiritual awakening deemed to bring us back to our ancestral roots and culture.
As such, I anticipate that this trend will only continue. There will likely be upheavals and challenges along the way. Change of any sort can be trying and confusing. But those dynamics can’t stop this transition. That being said, I think that the outcome of this revitalization will appear somewhat different than the traditional ways of our ancestors. I don’t focus much on what that will look like. But I feel it will come with a nuanced vibe as it engages distinct ways to converge tradition with modern culture.
Your work spans across various mediums, from books to podcasts to divination tools. How do you decide which medium to use for conveying different aspects of African spirituality?
This is an interesting question and one that I have contemplated many times throughout the years. African religions are primarily oral traditions. That’s not to say they were never cataloged in writing prior to modern times. Indeed, the ancient Egyptians and many other primordial cultures developed advanced writing systems. But community has always been a dynamic part of African cultures, and community means engaging in verbal dialogue.
So, starting the African Spirit Podcast was among my first tasks as I began down this path. I wanted to convey messages in a verbal format, similar to the storytelling that was critical to ancient societies. This form of communication allows people to use their imaginations.
However, visuals are likewise important, especially in the absence of live interaction and input. So, I try as often as possible to showcase elements of African traditions that some might not otherwise see. Much of my long-form, visually-based content is available on the Asanee 44 YouTube channel. I also have a growing catalog of courses that focus on showcasing various traditional African concepts and elements.
Even more, the written word is a vital part of comprehensive understanding. As such, I write books about African spirituality for those seeking to deeply engage with the more complex aspects of this topic. I also maintain a blog where I share basic knowledge about African traditions. Ultimately, I try to use each tool where it is most befitting.
What legacy do you hope to leave through your contributions to the preservation and promotion of African spiritual traditions?
First, I endeavor to leave a living, breathing legacy for my children. That’s the primary reason I do what I do. I desire to ensure that they understand their cultural heritage and have a positive, sustainable way of integrating into it. That being said, I love what I do in my business as well. It is an innate part of who I am and is critical to my soul mission.
I enjoy sharing my knowledge with the masses just as much as I do with my progeny. So, I hope that those I have been blessed to reach with this information use it to develop and grow. Even more, I would like for them to pass it on to future generations so that the wisdom of our ancestors is never lost.
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