What is Ceremonial Cacao
and what makes it different from regular chocolate
Ceremonial Cacao is the original chocolate. It was used for many centuries by indigenous people in Central and South America: according to chocolate shaman Keith, “the Cacao Spirit was one of the most powerful deities in ancient Mayan cosmology.” It’s prized for its qualities of opening the heart, bringing soft focus, deepening presence and enabling connection.
One of the things that makes Ceremonial Cacao so great to work with is its gentle power. Unlike Ayahuasca and San Pedro, Ceremonial Cacao does not take you on a trip. Instead it creates the conditions for you to open up and experience more depth, intimacy, connection and presence. It can be fierce but it’s always soft, opening the door rather than pushing you through it.
Two factors have impacted on cacao’s popularity as a medicine plant. The first is the rise in popularity of psychedelic medicines, particularly Ayahuasca, and impact this has had on shamanic practices in Central and South America. As swathes of Westerners came to the region seeking wisdom and enlightenment, these plants became the desired ones and cacao got pushed into the background.
The second reason is chocolate’s long history as a luxury food in the Western world. Chocolate has been imported to Europe since the 16th century, and became particularly popular in the 17th century. To satisfy our craving for the brown stuff, the plant was hybridised to produce bigger beans that are easier to grow. Hybridised versions of cacao represent over 90% of what grows around the world. In almost all cases they have considerably less of the qualities that make Ceremonial Cacao so precious.
Not all cacao is created equal. Most of the chocolate you see around is not Ceremonial Cacao. Even the high grade raw cacao you find in health food shops often lacks the key qualities that make Ceremonial Cacao such a powerful and supportive substance.
Thanks to companies like Charmed Chocolates, Ceremonial Cacao is more accessible than ever in Western countries. This feels like a precious gift at a time when the world is out of balance. Keith calls cacao “the food for the shift” — meaning the shift in consciousness that’s needed to take us through the environmental, political and economic crises we face.
Ceremonial Cacao helps us reconnect with the things that make us uniquely human: intimacy, connection, compassion and awareness. I invite you to explore this wondrous medicine and see how it can help you to bring more love into your life.
Ceremonial Cacao is a powerful enabler of embodied rituals. If you’d like to learn more about how to create and perform these rituals, join my online course The Playful Art of Making Magic, starting on the 3rd May.
