13. The Maya people of Guatemala thought chocolate was the drink of the gods
Similarly to the Aztecs, who believed that the cacao tree originated in paradise, the earlier Mayan Civilisation (which peaked between 420 and 900 AD) also gave chocolate a divine origin. For them, chocolate was the drink of the gods themselves, a belief reflected in the scientific name for the cacao tree, Theobroma cacao, which means ‘cacao, food of the gods’. Specifically, the Mayans believed that the rain god, Kon, was especially fond of the beverage, and that the gods cultivated cacao trees by shedding their own blood on the pods. Ek Chuah was the god of cacao trees.
Once a year, the Mayans would gather to give thanks to Ek Chuah for the gift of chocolate. This festival of course involved the consumption of chocolate, but also the less-savory sacrifice of cacao-colored dogs. The association of chocolate with gods meant that the drink was also used at other religious events and rites, but it was surprisingly consumed by even the poorest members of Mayan society, rather like the Catholic Eucharist. Another desperately unpleasant chocolate-based ritual to honour the gods involved priests drawing blood from their penises and spraying it over cacao pods. The gods must have been delighted.
