PodcastsPhilosophySoul Salon with Ayandastood

Soul Salon with Ayandastood

Ayandastood
Soul Salon with Ayandastood
Latest episode

108 episodes

  • Soul Salon with Ayandastood

    99: a work of he(art): Weeping Becomes a River Ft. Siphokazi Jonas

    2026/05/05 | 1h 59 mins.
    If you've ever felt disconnected from your cultural roots, struggled with linguistic loss, or carried shame around not being "fluent enough" in your mother tongue — this Soul Session is a love letter to your becoming. Today, we sit down with the extraordinary poet Siphokazi Jonas — South African poet, playwright, producer, performer, and author. author of the stunning book Weeping Becomes a River, for a profound exploration of storytelling, cultural reclamation, and the sacred art of invention. Siphokazi is a creator, a storyteller, an inventor who brings worlds into being through the fusion of poetry and Intsomi (traditional Xhosa storytelling). This conversation invites you into a world where language is layered, where stories carry the wisdom of generations, and where the act of creation becomes an act of healing and liberation.We dive deep into Siphokazi’s journey of writing a book that leaps off the page and leaves the reader forever changed. Siphokazi shares her personal journey from childhood dreams of publishing, to facing criticism — and finally to the moment she fulfilled her long-held dream of being a published author. We discuss the trauma of apartheid and colonialism, the loss of culture and language, and the beautiful, brave, messy work of weaving together a new identity from the threads of what you have been given (and what has been lost). This Soul Session is especially tender for anyone who has experienced cultural rupture, who has been taught to shrink or apologize for their existence, or who is in the process of reclaiming what was stolen.Siphokazi also takes us behind the scenes of her creative process, the importance of community support, and the liberation that comes from releasing perfectionism. This conversation is an invitation to honor your multiple identities, create with what you have, and trust that your voice — exactly as it is — is medicine the world is seeking.Timestamps: 00:00 Welcome: The Soul of a Storyteller05:06 Invention and the Blackness of Creativity08:15 The Maternal Lineage of Insom Storytelling19:01 What Does the Soul Mean to You?30:17 Compensation Patterns: A Poem26:06 The Act of Listening as Soul Connection1:08:07 Melting Point: Frozen Pipes and Father's Wisdom52:44 Plucked Tongues and Colonial Violence54:03 Straining Cloth: The Cost of Model C Schools1:19:28 The Journey to Publishing: Overcoming Perfectionism1:00:33 Weeping Becomes a River: The Title's Meaning44:17 The Innovative Structure: Poetry Meets Insom1:04:52 Reclaiming Language Without Perfection1:40:00 The Future: Children's Books and Animation1:55:24 Soul Recognition and Closing RitualKey Topics Explored:✨ The traditional oral storytelling tradition of Intsomi (South African, Xhosa) ✨ Cultural rupture, colonial education, and the loss of mother tongue✨ The journey from perfectionism to creative liberation✨ Weaving together fragmented identities into something inventive and new🎨 [FREE 7 DAY TRIAL] Join SoulCraft, the creative community where big dreamers stop saying "someday" 🫣 — and start making creative dreams REAL with accountability, community, and supportConnect with Siphokazi Jonas: 📖 Read Weeping Becomes a River (book & audiobook): 📸 Follow on Instagram📝 WebsiteNext Steps:💖 Get the FREE Soulful Visibility Guide to help you overcome the fear of being SEEN🎨 [START YOUR FREE 7 DAY TRIAL] Join SoulCraft, the Creative Community, where heart-led visionaries turn creative visions into embodied realities: 🫂 Join the FREE Soul Salon Collective and meet fellow soul siblings from all over the world 🌍#weepingbecomesariver #intsomi #storytelling #mothertongue #spiritualawakening #blackwomenstorytellers #creativehealing #perfectionism #africanstorytelling #ayandastood #siphokazijonas #soulsalon #poetry #colonialism #collectivehealingFollow me on socials:
    ✨ YouTube: ⁠@ayandastood ✨ TikTok: @ayandastood ✨ IG: @ayandastood ✨ Website:
  • Soul Salon with Ayandastood

    The #1 Block for Big Dreamers isn't What You Think.

    2026/04/13 | 16 mins.
    🎨 Join SoulCraft, the creative community where soul-led visionaries, artists, & dreamers stop hiding, playing small, and saying "someday" 🫣 — and start showing up for their creative dreams with consistency, devotion, and accountability ✅. Overcome the fear of being seen, take real action on your dreams, finish the projects you love (and avoid 🥹), and meet like-hearted creatives: https://www.skool.com/soulcraft

    If you've ever felt like you need to be perfect before you can start, if you've been waiting for permission to take up space, to express yourself fully, or to reclaim a creative identity you lost touch with over time — this Soul Session is a love letter to your expression AND expansion. Today, we're diving deep into the sacred act of giving yourself ALL THE PERMISSION you've been conditioned to withhold from yourself. Permission to show up imperfectly. Permission to try. Permission to be seen in your vulnerability. Permission to take up space in a way that society has conditioned you out of.

    I introduce the concept of the Permission Circle — that invisible boundary around each of us that society has taught us to keep oppressively small. But you are being called to expand that circle, to stretch like a tree reaching toward the sun, to reclaim the fullness of your expression and your divine right to take up space. This Soul Session invites you to reject the myth that you need to have it all figured out before you begin, that you need external validation to be worthy, or that your work needs to be ✨ groundbreaking ✨ in order to matter or deserve its place.

    We discuss the beautiful contagion of permission — how when you give yourself permission to be imperfect, vulnerable, and fully expressed, you give others permission to do the same. You are here as a cycle breaker, a liberator, a pathfinder. Your expansion creates ripple effects in the collective that you cannot even imagine. We also explore the tension vs. integration between ego and soul, and the practice of unconditional positive self-regard even when external validation isn't pouring in.

    This conversation is especially tender for recovering perfectionists, for creatives who have been waiting for the "right time," and for anyone who has been taught to shrink, apologize, or self-monitor. You are reminded: you don't need to say something groundbreaking to matter. What the world is lacking is not information — it's love, wisdom, and embodiment. Your voice, your expression, your sacred humanity is needed exactly as it is.

    Key Topics Explored:

    ✨ Expanding your circle of permission beyond societal conditioning

    ✨ Permission to show up imperfectly and be seen in your vulnerability

    ✨ Releasing the need to be perfect before you start

    ✨ The contagion of permission: how your expansion liberates others

    ✨ Reclaiming creative identities lost to capitalism and social pressure

    ✨ Unconditional positive self-regard and celebrating your efforts

    ✨ The tension between ego and soul, external validation and inner knowing

    ✨ Why your work doesn't need to be groundbreaking to be worthy

    ✨ Love and wisdom as the ultimate teachings

    ✨ How individual purpose is intrinsically social and collective

    ✨ Breaking free from self-oppression and self-monitoring

    ✨ The ripple effects of your courage to be seen

    Next Steps:

    💖 Get the FREE Soulful Visibility Guide to help you overcome the fear of being SEEN: https://ayandastood.com/

    🎨 Join SoulCraft, the Creative Community, where heart-led visionaries turn creative visions into embodied realities: https://www.skool.com/soulcraft

    🫂 Join the FREE Soul Salon Collective and meet fellow soul siblings from all over the world 🌍: https://www.skool.com/soul-salon-collective-7003

    #permission #perfectionism #spiritualawakening #creativeexpression #fearofbeingseen #takingupspace #innerchildhealing #unconditionalselflove #collectivehealing #cyclebreaker #soulpurpose #ayandastood #soulcraft #imperfection #vulnerability #liberation

    Follow me on socials:

    ✨ TikTok: @ayandastood https://www.tiktok.com/@ayandastood

    ✨ IG: @ayandastood https://www.instagram.com/ayandastood/

    ✨ YouTube: @ayandastood https://www.youtube.com/@ayandastood

    ✨ Website: https://ayandastood.com/

    Soul Session No. 95
  • Soul Salon with Ayandastood

    98: give yourself permission 🌻

    2026/04/13 | 16 mins.
    If you've ever felt like you need to be perfect before you can start, if you've been waiting for permission to take up space, to express yourself fully, or to reclaim a creative identity you lost touch with over time — this Soul Session is a love letter to your expression AND expansion. Today, we're diving deep into the sacred act of giving yourself ALL THE PERMISSION you've been conditioned to withhold from yourself. Permission to show up imperfectly. Permission to try. Permission to be seen in your vulnerability. Permission to take up space in a way that society has conditioned you out of.
    I introduce the concept of the Permission Circle — that invisible boundary around each of us that society has taught us to keep oppressively small. But you are being called to expand that circle, to stretch like a tree reaching toward the sun, to reclaim the fullness of your expression and your divine right to take up space. This Soul Session invites you to reject the myth that you need to have it all figured out before you begin, that you need external validation to be worthy, or that your work needs to be ✨ groundbreaking ✨ in order to matter or deserve its place.
    We discuss the beautiful contagion of permission — how when you give yourself permission to be imperfect, vulnerable, and fully expressed, you give others permission to do the same. You are here as a cycle breaker, a liberator, a pathfinder. Your expansion creates ripple effects in the collective that you cannot even imagine. We also explore the tension vs. integration between ego and soul, and the practice of unconditional positive self-regard even when external validation isn't pouring in.
    This conversation is especially tender for recovering perfectionists, for creatives who have been waiting for the "right time," and for anyone who has been taught to shrink, apologize, or self-monitor. You are reminded: you don't need to say something groundbreaking to matter. What the world is lacking is not information — it's love, wisdom, and embodiment. Your voice, your expression, your sacred humanity is needed exactly as it is.

    🎨 [FREE 7 DAY TRIAL] ⁠Join SoulCraft,⁠ the creative community where big dreamers stop saying "someday" 🫣 — and start making creative dreams REAL with accountability, community, and support

    Key Topics Explored:
    ✨ Expanding your circle of permission beyond societal conditioning
    ✨ Permission to show up imperfectly and be seen in your vulnerability
    ✨ Releasing the need to be perfect before you start
    ✨ The contagion of permission: how your expansion liberates others
    ✨ Reclaiming creative identities lost to capitalism and social pressure
    ✨ Unconditional positive self-regard and celebrating your efforts
    ✨ The tension between ego and soul, external validation and inner knowing
    ✨ Why your work doesn't need to be groundbreaking to be worthy
    ✨ Love and wisdom as the ultimate teachings
    ✨ How individual purpose is intrinsically social and collective
    ✨ Breaking free from self-oppression and self-monitoring
    ✨ The ripple effects of your courage to be seen

    Next Steps:💖 Get the ⁠FREE Soulful Visibility Guide⁠ to help you overcome the fear of being SEEN🎨 [START YOUR FREE 7 DAY TRIAL] Join ⁠SoulCraft⁠, the Creative Community, where heart-led visionaries turn creative visions into embodied realities: 🫂 Join the ⁠FREE Soul Salon Collective⁠ and meet fellow soul siblings from all over the world 🌍
    #permission #perfectionism #spiritualawakening #creativeexpression #fearofbeingseen #takingupspace #innerchildhealing #unconditionalselflove #collectivehealing #cyclebreaker #soulpurpose #ayandastood #soulcraft #imperfection #vulnerability #liberation

    Follow me on socials:
    ✨ YouTube: ⁠⁠@ayandastood ⁠✨ TikTok: ⁠@ayandastood⁠ ✨ IG: ⁠@ayandastood⁠ ✨ ⁠Website⁠:

    Soul Session No. 98
  • Soul Salon with Ayandastood

    97: your body is a sacred PORTAL (not a shameful project) Ft. Tamara Josephine

    2026/04/06 | 1h 24 mins.
    [RE-RELEASE] If you've ever felt disconnected from your body, treated it like a project to perfect rather than a portal to divine wisdom, or held shame around movement and self-expression (all due to oppressive systems, conditioning, and trauma) — this Soul Session is a love letter to your body's inherent magic. Dance freedom coach Tamara Josephine guides us through a profound exploration of the sacred relationship between our bodies, movement, and spiritual awakening. We dive deep into how your body is not something to fix, control, or perfect — but rather a portal to joy, vitality, and the deepest wisdom of your soul.
    This conversation invites you to reclaim your body as a sanctuary, a prayer, and a mirror that reflects where you shrink in life, where you apologize for your existence, and where you hold back from the fullness of your expression. We explore how dance becomes meditation, how movement reconnects us to our vitality, and how the rigidity in our bodies often reflects the rigidity in our lives. Tamara shares her personal journey from childhood bullying to spiritual awakening, and how dance became her healing, her prayer, and ultimately her purpose.
    We discuss the beauty of releasing comparison and perfectionism, honoring your unique energetic signature, and allowing yourself to take up space without apology. This episode is especially tender for anyone who has felt like they're "not good enough" at movement, who has experienced shame around their body, or who has been taught that expression must look a certain way. Tamara is here to remind you: “Your body is a portal, not a project”. Your magic is inherent. You don't need to perform it — you get to feel it.

    🎨 [FREE 7 DAY TRIAL] ⁠Join SoulCraft,⁠ the creative community where big dreamers stop saying "someday" 🫣 — and start making creative dreams REAL with accountability, community, and support
    Key Topics Explored:
    ✨ Your body as a portal to divine wisdom, not a project to perfect
    ✨ How dance becomes a mirror for where we shrink in life
    ✨ Releasing comparison and honoring your unique energetic signature
    ✨ Movement as meditation, prayer, and spiritual practice
    ✨ Reconnecting to your body's vitality and joy
    ✨ Dance as play, not performance
    ✨ Spiritual awakening through embodiment

    Follow Tamara on socials:
    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tamara.josephine_/
    💻 Website: https://www.tamarajosephine.com/

    Next Steps:💖 Get the ⁠FREE Soulful Visibility Guide⁠ to help you overcome the fear of being SEEN🎨 [START YOUR FREE 7 DAY TRIAL] Join ⁠SoulCraft⁠, the Creative Community, where heart-led visionaries turn creative visions into embodied realities: 🫂 Join the ⁠FREE Soul Salon Collective⁠ and meet fellow soul siblings from all over the world 🌍

    Learn more about South Africa's rich dance history and diverse dance cultures:
    South African dance culture overview (https://www.southafrica.net/gl/en/travel/article/dance-culture-in-south-africa)

    History of gumboot dancing (https://toothillschool.co.uk/data/files/dept/music/y7_gumboot_history.pdf)

    The History of Pantsula (https://jukeboxcollective.com/news-post/the-history-of-pantsula/)

    Dancing the Other in South Africa (https://open.uct.ac.za/items/36ecdfb9-d420-42bb-9fb0-6c76900131ac)

    South Africa's iconic dance styles (https://iol.co.za/heritage-day/2025-09-05-south-africas-iconic-dance-styles-a-story-of-culture-creativity-and-global-impact/)

    This is Amapiano: Documentary (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou0luMrf1mU)

    #yourbodyisaportal #embodiment #danceasprayer #spiritualawakening #movementismedicine #innerchildhealing #bodyshame #takingupspace #divineexpression #dancemirror #playfulmovement #ayandastood #tamarajosephine #soulcraft #selflove #worthiness #freedom #vitality

    Follow me on socials:
    ✨ YouTube: ⁠⁠@ayandastood ⁠✨ TikTok: ⁠@ayandastood⁠ ✨ IG: ⁠@ayandastood⁠ ✨ ⁠Website⁠:

    This Soul Session originally aired on December 22, 2025
  • Soul Salon with Ayandastood

    Your body is a PORTAL, not a PROJECT | Tamara Josephine

    2026/04/06 | 1h 24 mins.
    [RE-RELEASE] If you've ever felt disconnected from your body, treated it like a project to perfect rather than a portal to divine wisdom, or held shame around movement and self-expression (all due to oppressive systems, conditioning, and trauma) — this Soul Session is a love letter to your body's inherent magic. Dance freedom coach Tamara Josephine guides us through a profound exploration of the sacred relationship between our bodies, movement, and spiritual awakening. We dive deep into how your body is not something to fix, control, or perfect — but rather a portal to joy, vitality, and the deepest wisdom of your soul.

    🎨 Craving creative community? Start your FREE 7 Day Trial for SoulCraft today: https://www.skool.com/soulcraft

    This conversation invites you to reclaim your body as a sanctuary, a prayer, and a mirror that reflects where you shrink in life, where you apologize for your existence, and where you hold back from the fullness of your expression. We explore how dance becomes meditation, how movement reconnects us to our vitality, and how the rigidity in our bodies often reflects the rigidity in our lives. Tamara shares her personal journey from childhood bullying to spiritual awakening, and how dance became her healing, her prayer, and ultimately her purpose. Tamara is here to remind you: “Your body is a portal, not a project”. Your magic is inherent. You don't need to perform it — you get to feel it.

    Chapters:

    Chapters

    00:00:00 What the Soul Means
    00:07:44 Dance as Sanctuary and Prayer
    00:11:33 The Download: Blindfolds and Intuition
    00:12:58 Love, Celebrancy and Service
    00:16:36 Comparison: The Biggest Limiting Belief
    00:24:20 "Your Body is a Portal, Not a Project"
    00:29:16 Dance as a Mirror to Your Life
    00:30:20 Joy Over Perfection in Movement
    00:34:52 Embodiment Over Execution
    00:54:35 Sensuality as Deep Presence
    00:50:01 Morning Movement Ritual: Body Mapping
    01:07:07 The Spiritual Awakening Journey
    00:43:48 You Are Love: Returning to Your Truth
    01:14:30 Your Body is a Portal: Closing Wisdom
    01:17:36 Soul Salon Closing Ritual

    Follow Tamara on socials:

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tamara.josephine_/
    💻 Website: https://www.tamarajosephine.com/

    Next Steps:

    💖 Get the FREE Soulful Visibility Guide to help you overcome the fear of being SEEN: https://ayandastood.com/

    🎨 Join SoulCraft, the Creative Community, where heart-led visionaries turn creative visions into embodied realities: https://www.skool.com/soulcraft

    🫂 Join the FREE Soul Salon Collective and meet fellow soul siblings from all over the world 🌍: https://www.skool.com/soul-salon-collective-7003

    Learn more about South Africa's rich dance history and diverse dance cultures:

    South African dance culture overview (https://www.southafrica.net/gl/en/travel/article/dance-culture-in-south-africa)

    History of gumboot dancing (https://toothillschool.co.uk/data/files/dept/music/y7_gumboot_history.pdf)

    The History of Pantsula (https://jukeboxcollective.com/news-post/the-history-of-pantsula/)

    Dancing the Other in South Africa (https://open.uct.ac.za/items/36ecdfb9-d420-42bb-9fb0-6c76900131ac)

    South Africa's iconic dance styles (https://iol.co.za/heritage-day/2025-09-05-south-africas-iconic-dance-styles-a-story-of-culture-creativity-and-global-impact/)

    This is Amapiano: Documentary (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou0luMrf1mU)

    #yourbodyisaportal #embodiment #danceasprayer #spiritualawakening #movementismedicine #innerchildhealing #bodyshame #takingupspace #divineexpression #dancemirror #playfulmovement #ayandastood #tamarajosephine #soulcraft #selflove #worthiness #freedom #vitality

    Follow me on socials:

    ✨ TikTok: @ayandastood https://www.tiktok.com/@ayandastood

    ✨ IG: @ayandastood https://www.instagram.com/ayandastood/

    ✨ YouTube: @ayandastood https://www.youtube.com/@ayandastood

    ✨ Website: https://ayandastood.com/

    This Soul Session originally aired on December 22, 2025

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About Soul Salon with Ayandastood

pov: you're obsessed with paradigm shifts, aha moments, expanding your consciousness, de-colonizing, and seeing beyond the current paradigm. you believe love, community, interdependence, joy, rest & creativity are our birthright, and you are seeking more ways to find y(our) way home. you are the Wise Friend who listens deeply, but often feels unheard or unseen. i am here to walk beside you. let's paradigm shift together, guided by your host, Ayanda, also known as @ayandastood on TikTok and IG. ☎️ seeking advice? submit a Q via voicemail here: https://www.speakpipe.com/ayandastood
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