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Scrying is the practice of looking into a reflective surface, such as a bowl of water or a crystal sphere, and allowing images, sensations, or intuitive messages to arise.
Throughout history, seers, wise women, oracles, and shamans have used scrying as a tool of ancestral communion. A way of opening the inner eye to what the outer eye cannot perceive.
Long before modern distractions, our ancestors sat with the elements and listened. They gazed into water, polished stone, crystals and the flicker of firelight. Not to predict the future, but to receive insight and wisdom.
When we release the need to see something specific, we can create space for something deeper to emerge . At Samhain this practice becomes especially potent.
Cacao has long been considered a magical conduit:
Ceremonial Cacao might just be the perfect medium to help us open to receive guidance and insight from within and beyond.
Ceremonial Cacao is also a deeply grounding companion for ancestral work. The presence of theobromine, which increases blood flow and opens the heart, brings us into a state of calm focused awareness. It helps us move out of the "thinking" mind and into the "feeling" body - the perfect state for scrying. When we drink cacao with the intention of connecting to our lineage, we create a safe container to open and listen. The energy at Samhain can feel a little ethereal and otherworldly. But cacao can help us stay rooted in our bodies, whilst simultaneously expanding our awareness. Grounded and connected!
So, to help us gaze through the thinning veils at this time, let us turn to the magical potency of Ceremonial Cacao. We can harness both its grounding and cosmic energy to scry, to listen deeply and to welcome the wisdom of our ancestors.
As one of the 4 cross quarter fire festivals, Samhain is a time of liminality where the veils between the worlds are thin. It’s a time for honouring those who have walked before us, our beloved ancestors, as well as a time for showing love and paying our respect to those who have passed in the previous year.
Samhain is the final harvest festival, where we find ourselves standing between worlds. Between the seen and unseen, the past and the present, the living and those who came before us.
At its core, Samhain is a festival of remembrance. A reminder that we are the living embodiment of the thousands of ancestors who have come before us, their stories literally etched in our blood and bones.
There are 2 parts to our ritual; scrying with the warm cacao liquid, and then with what remains in the mug (like reading tea leaves)
Doing this powerful ritual at Samhain will be super potent. You can also use cacao to scry at any time you are seeking some deeper insight or guidance.
Start by creating a seasonal Samhain altar (placing photos of your ancestors and anything else that calls you) or a simple sacred space where you can drop deeply into the ritual and won’t be disturbed. Include a candle, and if you like, place a bowl of earth on your altar to represent the grounding of your lineage.
Now sit comfortably and light the candle to welcome your luminous ancestors. Feel the weight of your mug and gaze into the smooth, dark surface of the cacao. Whisper a loved one’s name - a grandmother, an uncle, or simply “my ancestors whose names have been forgotten”.
Look into the liquid, not focusing on the cacao itself, but on the reflections on its surface. Watch how the candlelight dances there and imagine you are looking into a well that plunges deep into the earth.
Notice the first sensation that hits your body. Do you feel a sudden warmth in your chest, a heaviness in your shoulders, or a sadness in your heart? This felt sense is your ancestors stepping into the space with you, and the liquid surface is the threshold they stand at. Stay here for a few minutes, welcoming all that may arise, trusting anything you receive, in whatever form you receive it.
Next, begin to drink your cacao slowly. With every sip, visualise the medicine and wisdom of your ancestors travelling down your throat, into your blood, and settling in your bones.
Say internally to yourself: "I honour your teachings. I drink of your strength. I take in your wisdom. I am grateful”
Stop drinking when there is only the natural sediment left at the bottom.
When only around a teaspoon of cacao remains, swirl the remaining liquid a few times in a clockwise direction. Then tilt the cup slightly so the sediment coats the sides. Turn the cup upside down onto a saucer for a moment, then turn it back over.
Let your gaze soften again and look at the patterns left behind by the cacao. Trust your own intuition here and stay open to all that wants to come through. There is no right or wrong way to do this.
The bottom of the cup may represent the distant past or deep rooted ancestral traits. The sides of the cup may represent the immediate future or messages from ancestors who were close to you. Near the top or rim of the cup may represent the external world and how you should act upon the wisdom received.
Stay here scrying for as long as it feels good. To complete, dip your finger into the dregs and press that finger into your bowl of soil, effectively earthing the messages received.
Blow out the candle and take the very last dregs of the cacao outside, offering them back to the earth to honour the insight shared and those who came before.
As far as we know scrying with Cacao is not a traditional cultural practice (although its not entirely unplausible). This is not something we have learnt or come across in our research, but an idea or inner urge that came to me at the approach of Samhain. Being obsessed with all things Cacao, plus following a Priestess path of ceremony and ritual, and having explored other forms of scrying, this was a merger I was curious to try. When my intuition calls, I’ve learnt to follow it. I am glad I did and I trust you will be too.
We invite you to share what arose for you during your cacao scrying journey. Feel free to leave your reflections in the comments below.
For more inspiration this Samhain, try our Ancestor Honouring Ritual.
May you continue to honour your ancestors, today and always. Wishing you a soulful and deeply rooted Samhain.
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