I often participate to cacao ceremonies in different events, but the one I attended at BaliSpirit Festival 2019 was definitely the best life experience! Hundreds of people reunited with outstanding artists in the main pavilion to drink lots of cacao. I can still feel the huge energy and emotion that arise when uniting such a big group of people.
Ceremonial cacao is raw chocolate, which when consumed leads to a release of endorphins and an opening of our hearts. The Spirit of the Cacao is a Master Plant Teacher and is also known as the Cacao Goddess. She is gentle and nurturing, but at the same time very powerful. When we use Cacao we are often invited to work with forgiveness and acceptance, leading us to increased love for ourselves and others.
The main stimulant found in high grade ceremonial cacao is Theobromine (which means ‘the food of the gods’). The amount of caffeine in good ceremonial grade Cacao should be very low. You will find that cacao will give you a great burst of energy, and will at the same time help you focus and do deep inner works such as meditation and shamanic journeying. If you drink Cacao regularly, it will improve your memory, increase your serotonin levels and therefore help with low level depression, and it can help you if you suffer from high blood pressure.
Cacao is also considered to be the best creativity enhancer and is used by authors, artists, yoga and meditation teachers, dance therapists, tantric practitioners. The list goes on. It is a super food that contains a wide range of vitamins, minerals and 40 times more antioxidants than blueberries. It is especially high in iron, magnesium and calcium, and is wonderful for women to drink during their moon time.
Cacao is gentle in a way that it lets YOU decide if you are ready to let go. Maybe just listening to other peoples’ stories will help you make the necessary changes in your lives. The aim of a Cacao Ceremony is to empower you to release what doesn’t serve you any longer, and helps you see and re-connect with what is truly important in your life.
Cacao compared to other medicinal plant is easy to integrate. With Cacao we can laugh, sing, dance, be creative, think, do yoga, and most importantly, share our love and joy with each other. In Mayan culture, Cacao was used ceremonially to commune with the Gods. Today, we continue this sacred traditional by drinking Cacao to reconnect with the deep wisdom of our own precious beings. In fact, this ceremony invokes guided meditation, breath work, sacred song, creativity, joy and release.
At BaliSpirit Festival 2019, Cacao was not the only component, though quite powerful in itself. The main power was coming from the people: a big group of yogi, artists, healers and common people with a great heart and energy. A mix of music and dance which connected all together and created a positive vibration. Thank you BaliSpirit Festival, you have the power to let people touch the greatest and most powerful feeling of unconditioned love.
