Theobroma Cacao

Food of the Gods, Theobroma Cacao.

The cacao tree is indigenous to Central and South America, where ancient cultures such as the Aztecs, Mayans, Olmec, and Toltec Indians worshiped this incredible seed, utilizing it often as a form of monetary exchange. Sacred is a word I would use to describe the experience with cacao in its most simple state.

Theobroma Cacao holds an expansive feeling and mysterious energy, in my own mind experience. The pods grow off the tree trunk, and are encased in an almost rainbow colored pod with a sweet, pulp covered, bitter, purple seed. Nothing like it. The heirloom varieties are much more wild looking, with few pods and curving, swirling vine branches. I can see why this energy is in my mind.

Cacao is a potentiator, in other words it can intensify other substances/chemicals/plants, electrifying their effects into a new realm, only when used correctly. Blended with other herbal medicine, a dance with cacao is flowing and steady.

Unprocessed cacao or very minimally processed cacao is a completely different substance than what is found in the food stores as chocolate. It contains high levels of minerals such as magnesium, Antioxidants (because of its high polyphenol content), Theobromine (mild stimulant), Anandamide (bliss chemical), and Phenylethylamine (clarity, focus, wakeful state). A true Superfood!

What are your experiences with Cacao? Have you had it raw, unadulterated from the fresh pod, stone ground into a creamy paste, or have your experiences been with the processed form of chocolate that is all too common in our culture today. Have we lost our reverence for this sacred food? Can we retrieve it if it is lost? How can Cacao alter our mind/body?

My own experiences with cacao have lead me to wonder....what is it that makes a plant sacred? What is it that is so mind altering about the substance that brings it into the classification of sacredness, whereas every thing we consume is mind altering in some form. Do we need someone to tell us it is sacred for it to be so? Where is that line, does it matter?

Cacao is certainly conscious altering, if your mind is in this state of awareness. I suppose mind altering substances and plants, in sacred terms, can only have an effect if they are utilized properly and have this thought that they actually do impact the conscious mind or subconscious mind through it's chemical properties. If someone is asleep in life, will they gain any appreciation of sacredness, if the thought has not yet been planted? They may recognize it as mind altering, but have no reference for it and therefore gain minimal insight into it's properties and what it can teach? I am only speculating, do share your experiences.

Specific experiences on cacao have lead my being into hyper alertness, with endless energy to create and do. I have had days where cacao is almost all I eat, and I find that those days I am challenged to be anywhere but high and blissful. I am not an advocate for continual overuse of cacao by any means, I take breaks, which I believe are essential to the experience. The effects are diminished if you consume day after day. Please use in a loving state.

A RECIPE or two for you:

Honey Cacao Spoonfuls of Bliss:
1 cup honey, unfiltered and raw
1/2 cup cacao paste, shaved (or beans)
1 vanilla bean, (scrape out seeds)
1 T coconut oil
2 T mucuna pruriens
1 T shilajit
1/4 tsp himalayan salt
cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne

after shaving cacao paste with a ceramic knife, mix all other ingredients in a small glass bowl, and eat with a wooden spoon with your creamy beverage of choice. Share please.

Non-sweet Cacao Blend:
1/2 cup cacao paste, shaved
2 1/2 cups warm herbal tea base (yerba mate, nettle, goji berries...)
1 T maca powder
pinch or two of cayenne
pinch of himalayan salt

Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender until creamy and serve.