Cacao Ceremony

Apart from being a superfood with a wealth of health properties, cacao (or raw “chocolate”) is a powerful plant teacher that has been used for centuries for her spiritual and energetic properties.

What is cacao?

Cacao’s scientific name is Theobroma cacao which translates to ‘food for the Gods’. Historically, cacao has been used in ceremony by the ancestors of Central America and later by the Aztecs and Mayas as a ritualistic medicine. In the mythologies of these people, cacao was often said to be derived from the heavens and gifted to the people.

Today, ceremonial grade cacao is cacao that has been cultivated according to traditional methods with the intention of being used in the ceremony. While most cacao has been hybridised for the chocolate industry and therefore has lost many of its beneficial properties, ceremonial cacao retains healing chemical properties as well as the spirit of cacao.

What is a cacao ceremony?

The ceremony traditionally involves creating a sacred environment, setting an intention and allowing an energetic process to unfold around that intention. Setting an intention is the most important part of cacao ceremony preparation. You could create an intention and ceremony to:

• Begin with a positive note
• Process an old wound
• Call in a new opportunity
• Connect more deeply to a creative outlet.

To identify your intention, answer one of the following questions to yourself:

• What do I want to release?
• What do I want to call in?
• What aspect of my healing journey am I honouring?

Because cacao is a ‘connection facilitator’, she aids in any transformational shift you are working towards. So the side effects of cacao ceremony can be quite powerful if you permit. Sometimes the intention can be as general as ‘open my heart to feel what it needs to feel’. Other times the intention of a cacao ceremony can be catered towards a specific goal such as expressing your soul through movement or healing past trauma.

We will sit in a circle, chanting, meditating, dancing and drinking beautiful pure cacao! Be ready to connect to yourself and others and be part of an amazing experience!

You will be drinking about 40gr of high-quality cacao, one can experience increased blood flow, mood elevation, and a more expanded state of consciousness. Cacao is a vasodilator, meaning your blood vessels and muscular systems relax.

Let the cacao spirit guide and heal you...

The Positive Impacts of Cacao on Mood

Drinking pure cacao has therapeutic health benefits, including creating new neural pathways that change our daily experience to include more joy, love, and connection. Cacao contains beneficial neurotransmitters and neuro-modulators already present in our brain, most notably including:

Norepinephrine - The joy molecule

Serotonin - Helps with wellbeing, and creates resistance to stress. Cacao also has MOA inhibitors, that inhibit re-uptake of serotonin.

Dopamine - Gives feelings of motivation and pleasure. Cacao also has MOA inhibitors, that inhibit re-uptake of dopamine.

Anandamine - The bliss molecule, it moderates pain, and is associated with the "runners high" effect. Cacao also has N-linoleoylethanolamine, the re-uptake inhibitor for anandamine.

Phenylethylamine (PEA) - Helps with excitement, alertness, attention. Gives the perception of time slowing down.

You may feel expansive, blissful, connected to self and/or others, inspired, connected to your intuition & vision, connected to spirit, grounded, emotions arise, and the movement of stuck energy.

Cacao Benefits

Studies have shown support a wide range of health benefits from reducing tiredness and fatigue to improving heart health, cognitive function and regulating blood pressure. Cacao is a natural source of:

• high in flavanols, which have potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects
• great source of polyphenols, helps reduces inflammation and improves cholesterol levels
• fibre, supporting a healthy gut
• protein, required to maintain and grow muscle mass
• potassium, important for muscular and neurological function
• magnesium, essential for energy metabolism and healthy psychological function, bones and teeth
• natural compounds as known to reduce anxiety and lift our moods
• antioxidants, supporting radiant, younger looking skin

Important Health Notes

• Do not consume caffeine or alcohol prior to cacao.
• Drink plenty of water, especially towards the end of your ceremony. If you find you have a headache you may be dehydrated, drank too much cacao, or are detoxing with cacao’s assistance.
• Cacao can’t be digested by dogs and some other pets, so make sure to keep it away from them. It can be fatal.
• Antidepressants with MAOIs contraindicate with cacao and can lead to severe headaches.
• Cacao is a vasodilator and pumps more blood through the heart. Be mindful of your dosage if you have a heart condition.

Looking forward to welcoming you on this sacral space for some deep connection and heart-opening ceremony...

Cacao is a space holder for what you're meant to bring into the world... -Erin Eber.

Love is the answer, all we need is Love... 

Namaste