Cacao (ka-kow) is a Sacred and Medicinal plant and an ancient teacher and facilitator that assists you with the journey into your heart. Cacao was known to the Ancient Mayans as a powerful heart opener and potent healer.

Chocolate is widely known as an aphrodisiac and this understanding of how it opens our hearts is by no means new. The Aztecs often spoke of Cacao as ‘yollotl, eztli’, meaning “heart, blood”. Western science reinforced this by giving it the scientific name Theobroma Cacao, which means “The Food of the Gods”. What else would the food of the Gods be but love?

Raw cacao is also the most powerful antioxidant in the world, and is the ONLY known food where you will find therapeutic levels of magnesium and the chemical Anandamide, aka the LOVE chemical. (In Sanskrit, Ananda is translated as ‘bliss’) It results in feelings of pleasure and euphoria and also plays a role in moderating pain perception and memory of pain as well as improving consciousness and creativity as it increases blood flow to the heart and brain by up to 40%.

Cacao, when used with awareness, gives us time and space away from the busyness of the world & an opportunity to go on our own inward journey. Cacao is a gentle plant medicine, acting as a vasodilator on the smooth cardiac tissue, so literally it helps to open our heart. As the anatomical heart space is opened, it creates an opportunity for our energic heart to open as well, offering us an doorway into the places deep within where healing is needed; but it will not push us through until we're ready.

*Note: Antidepressants can be contraindicated when consuming raw cacao. Please contact Jyl to find out if this could be a concern for you (jylmarie@gmail.com)

In order to get the most out of the experience, it is advised to not eat (or eat lightly) several hours before the workshop begins. Cacao is a mild diuretic, so please bring water as well as a journal or any writing materials you might want to use during the ceremony