Ix Balam as a name for our sacred Cacao work, comes from deep remembering of our times in the Ancient Mayalands. In Mayan, Ix means Jaguar, Seer, Shaman, while also being a prefix before a female’s name. Balam is the word for Jaguar as well, yet this word holds Origin Story connotations. In the Popol Vuh, the Maya origin story, the four Balams came to Earth from the Pleiades, to create a harmonic, heart-centered humanity.
Duane and Maria discovered the power of ceremonial cacao while traveling in the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico in 2018. While leading a spiritual retreat they discovered the village of Ek Balam and a family of heirloom cacao growers there. This Mayan village had been growing cacao for many generations and a matriarch, Guadalupe, showed them how to create the invigorating beverage of the Maya, from bean to cup.
After that, Maria and Duane were hooked. They began reaching out to Mayan villages and gathering heirloom ceremonial grade cacao to bring home. Yet, it wasn’t until 2020, on Big Island of Hawai’i, where they lived for six years, that they invited others to partake in this ancient tradition of ceremonially drinking cacao, with them.
Now living in Northern California, Maria and Duane hold regular Solstice and Equinox ceremonies, and through the interweaving of wisdom and frequency learned from their regular intimate work with Mayan Daykeepers, Teachers and Traditionalists, these ceremonies have turned into profound portals for healing and transformation.
By the end of 2026, we hope to have our own line of heirloom ceremonial cacao to share!
STAY CONNECTED!
WINTER SOLSTICE
CACAO CEREMONY & MAYAN CHANTING
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 19, 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Join us for another special gathering to commune with the plant spirit of Cacao.
“WHAT TRUTH IS YOUR HEART CARRYING?”
WITH SOUND BATH & POT LUCK!
LOCATION: PRIVATE RESIDENCE, BODEGA, SONOMA COUNTY
$55
JOIN US IN 2027
For a Committed Medicine Journey to Awaken Your Heart
This circle is for those who hear the call of Cacao to go deeper…
Deeper into awakening the heart, reclaiming the mind, and healing the body.
Come with a desire to birth something new in your life or move towards something you’re passionate about, and let Cacao support you!
March 15 – September 18, 2027
Equinox to Equinox
With Guides Maria Owl & Duane Vos
~ Third Saturday In-Person Ceremonies at private residence & in Wild Nature
~ One Cacao Adventure to a local cacao-making facility
~ 20-day Cacao Awakening personal ritual, to deepen with the Mayan Calendar
We will be gathering monthly in ceremony over a span of 7-months, from Spring Equinox to Autumn Equinox.
- Three of these ceremonies will be open to the public and are held at the Bodega Temple home of Maria & Duane.
- Three of these ceremonies are just for our small circle of Cacao Xamans, and these are the deep dives. We will be spending 5-hours together, which will include preparing the ceremonial cacao together, adding different complimentary herbs, flowers and spices each time. Each ceremony will invite you to spiral both within your infinite heart to melt contractions, and stretch out wider into the cosmic expression of Who You Truly Are.
- One of these two private ceremonies will take place during the Mayan New Year – WAYEB. Cacao Xamans will participate in a special Fire Ceremony inspired by Mayan elders Maria & Duane have worked with in Guatemala.
- The remaining ceremony, just for our Xaman circle, will be day-long excursion which will include visiting a chocolate making facility and learning the stories of the owner who was called by cacao! Then, with our ceremonial cacao thermoses, we will venture out onto the land for communion with the elementals, to make offerings, drink, drum and chant
COMMUNING WITH ANCIENT MEDICINES
Besides the many heirloom varieties of Cacao, we will also be communing with some other allies, including:
- The sacred Bal’che tree bark tea,
- Melipona Honey,
- The ancient Mayan language,
- The living wisdom of the Mayan Dieties & Creator Source, Hunab Ku
THE FIVE DAYS OUT-OF-TIME :: WAYEB
For our July Cacao Ceremony, journeyers will participate in a Mayan-inspired Sacred Fire Ritual to honor the closing of one solar year, according to the Mayan calendar, and setting clear, strong intentions for the New Year.
The Mayan Culture still exists on Natural Time, having tracked Earth’s cycles from the beginning of their people’s history, post Great Flood. Their calendar is embedded in a long-count of time, at a cosmic scale, and is also a daily guidepost with unique qualities for each day. During our Cacao Deep Dive, we will be opening to the wisdom of the Mayan Astrology and Calendars, and on July 18th we will make a conscious step into the Mayan New Year.
THE XAMAN CACAO AWAKENING JOURNEY
Also, during our 7-month journey, journeyers will be participating in a 20-day Cacao Awakening process guided by Maria Owl, a personal daily ritual of working with cacao and chanting the names of the twenty Mayan Nahuales (cosmic creation forces).
Maria Owl has prepared daily meditations of drumming and chanting of the names of the twenty Day Lords of the Yucatec Mayan Lunar Calendar for you to follow and journey with. This experience alone will be powerful and life-changing, as a stand-alone practice!
XAMAN CACAO
ALL THE POSITIVE INFLUENCES IN YOUR LIFE…
Meet others who are equally as called and passionate about journeying with Cacao for health, healing, and transformation
Discover the ways Cacao speaks to your heart and strengthen this friendship for beautiful support throughout your life
Use each ceremony to deepen into your true nature and your life’s purpose, with support from a highly integrous circle
Explore the journey of this medicine, from tree to cup – botanically, historically, and spiritually
Work with the ancient Mayan language to open, awaken and activate your body, mind and spirit
Meet herbal allies and nectars, such as the Balch’e Tree and Melipona Honey and explore their compliment with Cacao!
Walk the Xaman Cacao road right into the Chickaban, New Fire Ceremony, in November 2027 – (the return of the Pleiades constellation to its midnight zenith point every 52 years)
THIS IS A PERSONAL JOURNEY OF TRANSFORMATION WITH THE STRENGTH OF MENTORSHIP AND GROUP FOCUS, AS WELL AS ENCOURAGEMENT TO DO YOUR OWN MEANINGFUL RITUALS AT HOME
XAMAN CACAO CIRCLE – SCHEDULE
Monday, March 15 Xaman Cacao Welcome – Online Webcast
Saturday, March 20 Spring Equinox Cacao Ceremony – public
Saturday, April 17 Xaman Cacao Ceremony with Communal Preparation of Medicine
Monday, May 10 Cacao Adventure Preparation Call
Saturday, May 15 Visit to local Chocolate-maker, then Kortum Trail Coastal Ceremony
Saturday, June 19 Summer Solstice Cacao Ceremony & Sound Bath with Bal’che and Mayan Chanting – public
Monday, July 12 Mayan Wisdom – Wayeb Prep Call
Saturday, July 17 Wayeb (5 Days Out of Time) – Fire Ceremony with Cacao
Sunday, July 18 – Aug 6 20-Day Cacao Awakening Experience (9 Ik to 2 Imix)
Saturday, Aug 21 Xaman Cacao Ceremony with Communal Preparation of Medicine
Saturday, Sept 18 Autumn Equinox Cacao Ceremony & XAMAN CIRCLE CELEBRATION – public
XAMAN CACAO
March 15 to September 18, 2027
Step In
Reciprocity for this Experience is $756
When you use the link below you will begin your monthly payments of $126 per month for six months.
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