wakingtimes--2020-03-19--Will Wearing a Mask Protect You Against Coronavirus?

With 101,606 reported COVID-19 cases across 96 countries and territories as of March 6 , 2020 , and no known cure , people are seeking ways to protect themselves against infection .
Logically , many are resorting to wearing face masks when venturing out in public .
However , as face masks are becoming harder to come by , health experts are issuing public statements saying the masks won ’ t protect healthy people against infection .
Is that true ?
Or is it a ploy to ensure an adequate supply for health care workers ?
As reported in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , surgical masks are not designed to provide protection against airborne pathogens and are not considered respiratory protection .
They ’ re only designed to prevent large-particle droplets ( which may contain pathogens ) from reaching your mouth and nose .
Part of the problem is that these kinds of masks won ’ t form a seal around your face .
Most people also have a tendency to touch their face a lot , thus depositing pathogens from their hands to their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams , wearing a mask may actually increase your risk of infection , as most people will touch their face even more frequently when wearing one .
The CDC only recommends surgical masks for : • People who are symptomatic , as the mask will inhibit the spread of the virus if you cough or sneeze into the mask The CDC also does not recommend that the general public wear N95 respirators , which are designed to be tight-fitting and capable of filtering out at least 95 % of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) airborne particles .
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration : You wouldn ’ t think the health risk from COVID-19 was “ considered low ” by looking at or listening to the news though .
Perhaps journalists didn ’ t get the memo ?
Either way , it strikes many as odd that facemasks and N95 respirators are universally considered key instruments for infection control in health care settings , yet the general public is now told they won ’ t protect against respiratory diseases such as COVID-19 .
One @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not use N95 respirator masks either , even though they protect against airborne pathogens , is because they require fit testing to ensure a tight seal around the face .
However , according to the CDC ’ s fit test Q & A document , this is a relatively simple affair .
The qualitative pass/fail test that an individual would conduct to assess whether the mask is properly fitted is a smell test .
If you can smell an odorous substance through the mask , it ’ s not tight-fitting enough .
What @ @ @ @ @ @ @ needs to be done once , when selecting the best-fitting brand , make , model and size of the respirator .
Once you know which model fits your face best , you don ’ t need to do the fit test again until or unless your facial structure changes due to dental or cosmetic surgery , for example , or “ an obvious change in body weight.
” Health care workers , however , must do the fit test once a year regardless , in order to maintain NIOSH compliance .
What Does @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s the real deal on the use of face masks ?
Do they only protect health care workers from getting sick , and sick patients from spreading it to others , or might they prevent healthy lay people from being infected as well ?
A 2009 study in Emerging Infectious Diseases sought to answer this question in the wake of the bird flu ( H5N1 ) outbreak .
According to the authors : In other words , mask use was ineffective due to low adherence , not because they don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fact , were more people to wear masks , infection rates would probably be lower .
Then there ’ s the article “ Disrupting the Transmission of Influenza A : Face Masks and Ultraviolet Light as Control Measures , ” published in Health Policy and Ethics in 2007 , which states : “ In the event of an influenza pandemic , where effective vaccine and antiviral drugs may be lacking , disrupting environmental transmission of the influenza virus will be the only viable strategy to protect the public .
We discuss two such @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and ultraviolet ( UV ) light .
Largely overlooked , the potential utility of each is underappreciated .
The effectiveness of disposable face masks may be increased by sealing the edges of the mask to the face .
Reusable masks should be stockpiled , because the supply of disposable masks will likely prove inadequate … Respirators ( N–95 and N–100 ; both commercially available ) are masks designed to shield the wearer from inhalational hazards , as opposed to surgical masks , which are designed to protect others from contaminants generated by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , use of the word mask refers only to the former … Current respirator filters are typically made of polypropylene wool felt , or fiberglass paper .
Particles collide with and become enmeshed within these nonwoven fibers .
Another mechanism for the filtering media may be the electrostatic charge that these fibers have , which attract and hold oppositely charged particles .
The influenza virus has charges at its hemagglutinin spikes … N95 respirators … have been reported to be protective in preventing transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome ( SARS ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ failed to prevent a cluster of cases in one hospital .
If one assumes that influenza is transmitted by respiratory droplets ( … which immediately fall to the ground ) rather than by aerosols ( … which remain suspended in air for long periods of time ) , the supposition may be that keeping a safe distance may obviate the need for a face mask .
It is stated that the range of such droplets is generally no more than 3 ft. We are unable to locate the basic science behind that assertion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bacteria 6 m ( approximately 20ft ) .
Koeniger … found that even whispering sprayed bacteria … 7.4 m ( approximately 24 ft ) and a mixture of coughing , speaking , and sneezing carried bacteria 12.4 m ( 40 ft ) … From these very old reports , the distinction between respiratory droplets and aerosols may be more apparent than real .
As a respiratory droplet falls to the ground , the aqueous portion quickly evaporates , but the bacterial or viral portion remains .
Theoretically , a viral particle , if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by wind or reaerosolized by ground disturbances.
” The paper does highlight several factors that can render respirator masks unreliable and ineffective .
There ’ s the issue of fit and seal against the face , the fact that they can not be repeatedly reused , the risk of contact contamination when touching or removing the mask , and the fact that your eyes are also a portal for viral infection .
Still , N95 and N100 respirators “ offer the potential of mitigating a potentially uncontrollable pandemic , ” the authors note @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that this brief review … draws the attention of policymakers to allow for wider implementation of their use as public health measures.
” Mask Use May Not Be Effective in Isolation All of that said , studies looking at disease transmission rates among people who use either face masks or N95 respirators have shown conflicting results .
Some conclude they lower the risk of infection while others find they ’ re no more effective than handwashing .
The following excerpt from a systematic review published in 2012 is a case in point : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the following strategies to minimize the spread of infection : • Frequently wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds • If you need to cough , cough into your flexed elbow or disposable tissue .
Discard the tissue in a trash can and wash your hands If you have symptoms of illness such as coughing or sneezing , be sure to wear a surgical mask to contain the spread whenever you ’ re around others .
As for whether or not you should wear a mask to prevent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disease ) , the answer is a bit more elusive .
Based on the published evidence , however , it appears it can be at least moderately helpful provided you ’ re : • Consistent in its use • Using an N95 or N100 respirator mask and putting it on correctly to ensure a proper seal • Not touching the mask while wearing it ( if droplets have landed on the mask , the viruses in the droplets are still infectious and can transfer to your hands .
So , if you touch @ @ @ @ @ @ @ your hands ) • Removing it correctly ( for the same reason as above ) • Using it concomitant with frequent handwashing and other basic hygiene recommendations As reported by The Washington Post , face masks of all kinds are now in such short supply , even hospitals are having a hard time getting enough .
Mike Bowen , executive vice president of Prestige Ameritech , the largest U.S.-based manufacturer of surgical masks , claims he ’ s been warning governments about the coming of this day .
There ’ s still an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about COVID-19 , its origin , infection mechanisms , incubation and transmission rates , and its treatment .
At present , the incubation period appears to be somewhere between two and 14 days , which isn ’ t exactly a precise measurement .
Complicating matters is the finding that you can spread the virus during that incubation period , and may remain contagious for an undetermined time even after you ’ ve recovered .
January 30 , 2020 , German doctors reported a case of transmission from an asymptomatic carrier , saying : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ virus can pass from one person to another through respiratory droplets emitted when talking , coughing or sneezing .
Aside from breathing the virus in , you may be infected by touching a contaminated surface , or when shaking hands or sharing a drink or utensils with an infected person — whether asymptomatic or symptomatic , and possibly for some days after they ’ ve recovered .
Now , if COVID-19 can spread during the incubation period and for some time after recovery , wearing a face mask as a precautionary strategy may @ @ @ @ @ @ @ surgical masks are meant to limit the spread of the virus .
If you don ’ t know whether you ’ ve been exposed , you won ’ t know if you ’ re contagious .
So , limiting the wearing of face masks to people who are already symptomatic means people will be walking around spreading the disease for up to two weeks .
If they ’ re wearing a mask , they limit the spread of the contagion .
While not a short-term solution for the current shortage of protective masks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ increase global production in preparation for these kinds of outbreaks , just like Bowen has suggested for the past 15 years .
Now declared as a pandemic , COVID-19 continues to take its toll on people ’ s health , and thousands have already fallen victim to this mysterious illness .
But as the virus spreads quickly , so does the misinformation surrounding it .
In these trying times , you must learn to separate fact from fiction so you can take the right measures to safeguard your health .
Subscribe to my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Coronavirus Resource Page , so you can get the latest news about this disease .
You ’ ll also learn : • Tried and tested ways to boost your immunity • COVID-19 signs and symptoms to watch out for • 10 top tips to help ward off this virus

Will Wearing a Mask Protect You Against Coronavirus?
Dr. Mercola, Guest
Waking Times
With 101,606 reported COVID-19 cases across 96 countries and territories as of March 6, 2020, and no known cure, people are seeking ways to protect themselves against infection. Logically, many are resorting to wearing face masks when venturing out in public.
However, as face masks are becoming harder to come by, health experts are issuing public statements saying the masks won’t protect healthy people against infection. Is that true? Or is it a ploy to ensure an adequate supply for health care workers? As reported in a March 4, 2020, Time article:
“‘It seems kind of intuitively obvious that if you put something — whether it’s a scarf or a mask — in front of your nose and mouth, that will filter out some of these viruses that are floating around out there,’ says Dr. William Schaffner, professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University. The only problem: that’s not effective against respiratory illnesses like the flu and COVID-19. If it were, ‘the CDC would have recommended it years ago,’ he says. ‘It doesn’t, because it makes science-based recommendations.'”
Do Masks Only Protect Health Care Workers?
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, surgical masks are not designed to provide protection against airborne pathogens and are not considered respiratory protection. They’re only designed to prevent large-particle droplets (which may contain pathogens) from reaching your mouth and nose.
Part of the problem is that these kinds of masks won’t form a seal around your face. Most people also have a tendency to touch their face a lot, thus depositing pathogens from their hands to their face anyway.
According to U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams, wearing a mask may actually increase your risk of infection, as most people will touch their face even more frequently when wearing one. The CDC only recommends surgical masks for:
People who are symptomatic, as the mask will inhibit the spread of the virus if you cough or sneeze into the mask
Caregivers for infected patients
Mayo Clinic infectious diseases specialist Dr. Nipunie Rajapakse explains:
“The current recommendations regarding masks are that if you yourself are sick with fever and cough, you can wear a surgical mask to prevent transmission to other people. If you are healthy, there is not thought to be any additional benefit to wearing a mask yourself because the mask is not airtight and does not necessarily prevent breathing in of these viral particles, which are very tiny.”
What About N95 Respirators?
The CDC also does not recommend that the general public wear N95 respirators, which are designed to be tight-fitting and capable of filtering out at least 95% of much smaller (0.3 micron in size) airborne particles. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration:
“For the general American public, there is no added health benefit to wear a respiratory protective device (such as an N95 respirator), and the immediate health risk from COVID-19 is considered low.”
You wouldn’t think the health risk from COVID-19 was “considered low” by looking at or listening to the news though. Perhaps journalists didn’t get the memo?
Either way, it strikes many as odd that facemasks and N95 respirators are universally considered key instruments for infection control in health care settings, yet the general public is now told they won’t protect against respiratory diseases such as COVID-19.
The Respirator Fit Test
One reason cited for why the public should not use N95 respirator masks either, even though they protect against airborne pathogens, is because they require fit testing to ensure a tight seal around the face.
However, according to the CDC’s fit test Q & A document, this is a relatively simple affair. The qualitative pass/fail test that an individual would conduct to assess whether the mask is properly fitted is a smell test. If you can smell an odorous substance through the mask, it’s not tight-fitting enough.
What’s more, this test only needs to be done once, when selecting the best-fitting brand, make, model and size of the respirator. Once you know which model fits your face best, you don’t need to do the fit test again until or unless your facial structure changes due to dental or cosmetic surgery, for example, or “an obvious change in body weight.” Health care workers, however, must do the fit test once a year regardless, in order to maintain NIOSH compliance.
What Does the Research Say?
So, what’s the real deal on the use of face masks? Do they only protect health care workers from getting sick, and sick patients from spreading it to others, or might they prevent healthy lay people from being infected as well? A 2009 study in Emerging Infectious Diseases sought to answer this question in the wake of the bird flu (H5N1) outbreak. According to the authors:
“Many countries are stockpiling face masks … to reduce viral transmission during an influenza pandemic. We conducted a prospective cluster-randomized trial comparing surgical masks, non–fit-tested P2 masks, and no masks in prevention of influenza-like illness (ILI) in households. During the 2006 and 2007 winter seasons, 286 exposed adults from 143 households who had been exposed to a child with clinical respiratory illness were recruited … Adherence to mask use was associated with a significantly reduced risk of ILI-associated infection. We concluded that household use of masks is associated with low adherence and is ineffective in controlling seasonal ILI. If adherence were greater, mask use might reduce transmission during a severe influenza pandemic.”
In other words, mask use was ineffective due to low adherence, not because they don’t prevent the transmission of illness. In fact, were more people to wear masks, infection rates would probably be lower.
Face Masks ‘Underappreciated’ for Infectious Control
Then there’s the article “Disrupting the Transmission of Influenza A: Face Masks and Ultraviolet Light as Control Measures,” published in Health Policy and Ethics in 2007, which states:
“In the event of an influenza pandemic, where effective vaccine and antiviral drugs may be lacking, disrupting environmental transmission of the influenza virus will be the only viable strategy to protect the public. We discuss two such modalities, respirators (face masks) and ultraviolet (UV) light. Largely overlooked, the potential utility of each is underappreciated. The effectiveness of disposable face masks may be increased by sealing the edges of the mask to the face. Reusable masks should be stockpiled, because the supply of disposable masks will likely prove inadequate … Respirators (N–95 and N–100; both commercially available) are masks designed to shield the wearer from inhalational hazards, as opposed to surgical masks, which are designed to protect others from contaminants generated by the wearer. In the discussion that follows, use of the word mask refers only to the former … Current respirator filters are typically made of polypropylene wool felt, or fiberglass paper. Particles collide with and become enmeshed within these nonwoven fibers. Another mechanism for the filtering media may be the electrostatic charge that these fibers have, which attract and hold oppositely charged particles. The influenza virus has charges at its hemagglutinin spikes … N95 respirators … have been reported to be protective in preventing transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) virus … but use of these masks failed to prevent a cluster of cases in one hospital. If one assumes that influenza is transmitted by respiratory droplets (… which immediately fall to the ground) rather than by aerosols (… which remain suspended in air for long periods of time), the supposition may be that keeping a safe distance may obviate the need for a face mask. It is stated that the range of such droplets is generally no more than 3 ft. We are unable to locate the basic science behind that assertion … Laschtschenko found that talking sprayed viable bacteria 6 m (approximately 20ft). Koeniger … found that even whispering sprayed bacteria … 7.4 m (approximately 24 ft) and a mixture of coughing, speaking, and sneezing carried bacteria 12.4 m (40 ft) … From these very old reports, the distinction between respiratory droplets and aerosols may be more apparent than real. As a respiratory droplet falls to the ground, the aqueous portion quickly evaporates, but the bacterial or viral portion remains. Theoretically, a viral particle, if it remains viable, could be carried by wind or reaerosolized by ground disturbances.”
The paper does highlight several factors that can render respirator masks unreliable and ineffective. There’s the issue of fit and seal against the face, the fact that they cannot be repeatedly reused, the risk of contact contamination when touching or removing the mask, and the fact that your eyes are also a portal for viral infection.
Still, N95 and N100 respirators “offer the potential of mitigating a potentially uncontrollable pandemic,” the authors note, adding “It is our hope that this brief review … draws the attention of policymakers to allow for wider implementation of their use as public health measures.”
Mask Use May Not Be Effective in Isolation
All of that said, studies looking at disease transmission rates among people who use either face masks or N95 respirators have shown conflicting results. Some conclude they lower the risk of infection while others find they’re no more effective than handwashing. The following excerpt from a systematic review published in 2012 is a case in point:
“There are limited data on the use of masks and respirators to reduce transmission of influenza … Inclusion criteria included randomized controlled trials and quasi‐experimental and observational studies of humans … with an outcome of laboratory‐confirmed or clinically‐diagnosed influenza and other viral respiratory infections. There were 17 eligible studies. Six of eight randomized controlled trials found no significant differences between control and intervention groups (masks with or without hand hygiene; N95/P2 respirators). One household trial found that mask wearing coupled with hand sanitizer use reduced secondary transmission of upper respiratory infection/influenza‐like illness/laboratory‐confirmed influenza … One hospital‐based trial found a lower rate of clinical respiratory illness associated with non‐fit‐tested N95 respirator use compared with medical masks. Eight of nine retrospective observational studies found that mask and/or respirator use was independently associated with a reduced risk of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) … None of the studies established a conclusive relationship between mask/respirator use and protection against influenza infection. Some evidence suggests that mask use is best undertaken as part of a package of personal protection especially hand hygiene. The effectiveness of masks and respirators is likely linked to early, consistent and correct usage.”
A 2015 systematic review came to similar conclusions, stating:
“The concepts of droplet and airborne transmission that are entrenched in clinical practice have recently been shown to be more complex than previously thought. Several randomized clinical trials of facemasks have been conducted in community and healthcare settings, using widely varying interventions, including mixed interventions (such as masks and handwashing), and diverse outcomes. Of the nine trials of facemasks identified in community settings, in all but one, facemasks were used for respiratory protection of well people. They found that facemasks and facemasks plus hand hygiene may prevent infection in community settings, subject to early use and compliance.”
Recommended Infection Prevention Strategies
At present, health authorities recommend using the following strategies to minimize the spread of infection:
Frequently wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth
If you need to cough, cough into your flexed elbow or disposable tissue. Discard the tissue in a trash can and wash your hands
If feeling unwell, stay home and avoid public spaces
If you have symptoms of illness such as coughing or sneezing, be sure to wear a surgical mask to contain the spread whenever you’re around others. As for whether or not you should wear a mask to prevent contracting COVID-19 (or some other infectious disease), the answer is a bit more elusive.
Based on the published evidence, however, it appears it can be at least moderately helpful provided you’re:
Consistent in its use
Using an N95 or N100 respirator mask and putting it on correctly to ensure a proper seal
Not touching the mask while wearing it (if droplets have landed on the mask, the viruses in the droplets are still infectious and can transfer to your hands. So, if you touch the mask, you need to wash your hands)
Removing it correctly (for the same reason as above)
Using it concomitant with frequent handwashing and other basic hygiene recommendations
Global Shortage of Face Masks
As reported by The Washington Post, face masks of all kinds are now in such short supply, even hospitals are having a hard time getting enough. Mike Bowen, executive vice president of Prestige Ameritech, the largest U.S.-based manufacturer of surgical masks, claims he’s been warning governments about the coming of this day.
“This is the precise scenario he began warning about almost 15 years ago, when he pleaded with federal agencies and lawmakers to boost U.S. production of medical masks,” The Washington Post writes. “He had predicted an eventual health scare and not enough manufacturers. He was right … ‘What I’ve been saying since 2007 is, ‘guys, I’m warning you, here’s what is going to happen, let’s prepare,’ Bowen said … ‘Because if you call me after it starts, I can’t help everybody.’ The coronavirus outbreak has … exposed major vulnerabilities in the medical supply chain. Many U.S. companies, especially hospitals and pharmaceutical firms, rely on Chinese manufacturers for products … like masks and gloves. Now, much appears upended. There is no global, centralized plan for fast-tracking production of what’s known as personal protective equipment … ‘Prestige Ameritech is presently the lone voice warning of the insecure U.S. mask supply,’ Bowen wrote to President Barack Obama in June 2010 … ‘The U.S. protective mask supply could — and mostly likely would — be disrupted, confiscated or diverted in the event of a pandemic,’ Bowen wrote to President Trump three years ago … ‘A lack of planning on their part is not an emergency on my part,’ Bowen said. ‘They had their chance. I told them over and over.'”
Still Many Unknowns Surrounding COVID-19
There’s still an awful lot we don’t know about COVID-19, its origin, infection mechanisms, incubation and transmission rates, and its treatment. At present, the incubation period appears to be somewhere between two and 14 days, which isn’t exactly a precise measurement.
Complicating matters is the finding that you can spread the virus during that incubation period, and may remain contagious for an undetermined time even after you’ve recovered. January 30, 2020, German doctors reported a case of transmission from an asymptomatic carrier, saying:
“… it is notable that the infection appears to have been transmitted during the incubation period of the index patient, in whom the illness was brief and nonspecific. The fact that asymptomatic persons are potential sources of 2019-nCoV infection may warrant a reassessment of transmission dynamics of the current outbreak. In this context, the detection of 2019-nCoV and a high sputum viral load in a convalescent patient (Patient 1) arouse concern about prolonged shedding of 2019-nCoV after recovery.”
As for how it spreads, the virus can pass from one person to another through respiratory droplets emitted when talking, coughing or sneezing. Aside from breathing the virus in, you may be infected by touching a contaminated surface, or when shaking hands or sharing a drink or utensils with an infected person — whether asymptomatic or symptomatic, and possibly for some days after they’ve recovered.
Now, if COVID-19 can spread during the incubation period and for some time after recovery, wearing a face mask as a precautionary strategy may be rather sensible. After all, surgical masks are meant to limit the spread of the virus.
If you don’t know whether you’ve been exposed, you won’t know if you’re contagious. So, limiting the wearing of face masks to people who are already symptomatic means people will be walking around spreading the disease for up to two weeks. If they’re wearing a mask, they limit the spread of the contagion.
While not a short-term solution for the current shortage of protective masks, perhaps it would be wise to increase global production in preparation for these kinds of outbreaks, just like Bowen has suggested for the past 15 years.
Now declared as a pandemic, COVID-19 continues to take its toll on people’s health, and thousands have already fallen victim to this mysterious illness. But as the virus spreads quickly, so does the misinformation surrounding it. In these trying times, you must learn to separate fact from fiction so you can take the right measures to safeguard your health.
Subscribe to my FREE newsletter and get access to my Coronavirus Resource Page, so you can get the latest news about this disease. You’ll also learn:


wakingtimes--2020-03-19--Cacao – The World Tree and Her Planetary Mission

Imagine a rainforest clothed in rising mist .
A mystical place filled with life and the calls of many types of birds and animals .
Steep verdant hills and valleys , cliff faces drop , splotched in tones of green !
The sun rising over the expanse of the Amazon .
Splashing water , chimera rainbow hues .
Towering ice cap mountain peaks of the Andes stand firm in the west , golden in the morning light .
These mountain slopes have given rise to marvelous biological diversity !
To understand Cacao , we must understand where she comes from—a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day and night are equal in length all year long .
A vastly intricate union of thousands of species of plants , animals , insects , birds , fungi .
Cascading water surges through rocky creeks finding its way to the meandering serenity of the larger rivers below .
Palms , and myriad plants and trees with vastly diverse shaped leaves hug the banks .
Where Cacao comes from , flowering vines delicately hang over the river ’ s shores , releasing densely-sweet dew-like nectarous aromas .
The World Tree and Her Planetary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tree be so pregnant with wholesome goodness , so full of virtues , and so charged with mythologies ?
Why is cacao so revered that it has been used as money , medicine , antioxidant-rich superfood , incense , and for a variety of ceremonial offerings—to invoke responses from supernatural beings ; to celebrate special moments and calendar markers such as the solstice and equinox ; to sanctify weddings and births ; to consecrate times of initiations and rites of passage ; and as funeral offerings to accompany the dead on the afterlife @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to contemplate ancient creation myths that consider cacao not just a gift from the gods to humanity , but an actual component of our identity as humans , we can begin to understand .
In the Popol Vuh , the Quiché Mayan holy book , the gods created humans from Maize and Cacao , along with other foods such as the White Cacao , known as Pataxte , Theobroma bicolor ; the Soap Apple , known as Zapote , Manilkara zapota ; Hog Plum or Jocote , Spondius purpurea ; Golden Spoon , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the White Sapote , that is Matasano , Casimiroa edulis .
These narratives speak to the role of plants as an intimate part of the human fabric .
Many other Central American creation myths postulate human origins in Cacao .
Ancient pottery depicts the Maya great mother Ix Chel , Lady of Translucent Rainbow Light , goddess of medicine , weaving , fertility , and the crescent moon , exchanging Cacao with the rain god Chaac , the patron of agriculture .
Chockablock with history and cultural lore , legends have it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Quetzalcoatle , the Feathered Serpent itself , so that we may remain heart-centered and energetic .
Cacao is a faithful part of the human-fabric , to such an extent that we may say , “ To know thyself , drink Cacao ” This iconography is rooted in the tree ’ s reputation as a conduit between heaven and earth .
To the ancient peoples who grew and adored Cacao , this sacred crop was a Tree of Life uniting the quotidian world with the supernatural realms .
The ceremonial consumption and offering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ powers that govern their existence , with renewal and rebirth , and with the deities of creation .
The bounty of the Cacao tree in Mesoamerica represents abundance , and her rounded fruit symbolize fertility .
The deep spiritual meaning of Cacao crystalized her importance in all pre-Colombian societies that knew her .
Cacao is a blessed , scrumptious elixir that has shaped and formed societies , igniting creation and urging us to evolve .
Cacao represents the fragile and delicately interconnected web of life , the majesty of biological diversity .
She @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
There are many things that she knows… Born at the Summit of Mega Biological Diversity No other region in the world surpasses northwest South America in biodiversity , which peaks in the “ eyebrows ” of the Andes .
Two mountains—Sumaco , known locally as the most beautiful mountain , and Napo-Galeras , an isolated limestone massif—are considered especially sacred by the region ’ s diverse indigenous peoples .
I devoted four years there that , in 1994 , successfully included Napo-Galeras mountain as part of the new Sumaco Napo-Galeras National Park @ @ @ @ @ @ @ book , Rainforest Medicine – Preserving Indigenous Science and Biodiversity in the Upper Amazon .
In 2010 I participated on a botanical expedition in the Tropical Wet Forest on the eastern slopes of Napo-Galeras , east of the Andes , led by Dr. Carlos Cerón , curator of the herbarium at Ecuador ’ s Central University , to learn more about wild Theobroma cacao , its mega-biodiverse rainforest setting , and the Malvaceae botanical family that Cacao belongs to .
Relatives of this family from other regions include fibrous , stimulant , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Kola nut , Durian fruit , Hibiscus and Mallow .
An impressive sight it is to see wild Cacao trees growing in their original setting , surrounded by a remarkably high concentration of related plants : Patas , or White Cacao , Theobroma bicolor , whose edible seeds are used to make chili sauce ; T. subincanum , called Cushillu-cambiac , with deliciously aromatic edible pulp ; and the famed T. grandiflorum , called Cupuassu in Brasil , similarly prized for its nectarous pomace .
As we explored the forest collecting hundreds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into the night , and collecting botanical information , more related species came to light .
These were trees in the genus Matisia and Quararibea , both with fine edible fruits known as Sapote , and Herrania , a close cousin of Cacao , locally known asCambiac , distinguished by saturated maroon flowers with remarkably elongated petal-appendages and fine sweet-flavored pulp held in petite deeply furrowed pods .
Its young leaves are used medicinally , macerated in water to release mucilage , drunk to relieve constipation .
We were not aware yet of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Cacao has a fascinating natural history .
Squirrels , the Tayra , a large , tree-dwelling weasel , and tropical relatives of the Raccoon , such as the Kikanjou , the Bushy-Tailed Olingo , and the elusive Cacomistle all feast on Cacao .
While many mammals disperse Cacao seeds—particularly the Saddleback Tamarin , a species exclusive to the Tropical Wet Forest , the sharp-witted White-Fronted and Brown Capuchin Monkeys , the Squirrel Monkey , the graceful Woolly Monkey , and elegant Spider Monkey all feast on Cacao .
Though thousands of insect @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , few pollinate her .
Due to the evolution of Cacao ’ s complex floral structure , her pollinators are highly restricted to tiny mosquito-like insects called midges , perfectly shaped to enter and pollinate Cacao ’ s small bone-white flowers that appear on the trunk and branches amidst the moist and cool lower level of the rainforest .
The Tropical Wet Forest is a festival of biodiversity , and soon our makeshift collection table overflowed with fruits and seed gathered on jungle forays .
Cacao relatives growing in the region include the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pentandra , known locally as Uchuputu , a tree charged with mythology whose powerful outreaching branches offer habitat for worlds of life above the forest canopy ; Kamotoa , a towering emergent tree with elegant buttress roots that was assigned its botanical name only later , in 2012 , Gryanthera amphibiolepis , that today is sadly vanishing due to unregulated and illegal logging that plagues the area ; and the much-loved Balsa tree , the lightest known wood , Ochroma pyramidale , which contributes to regenerating the rainforest .
At our forest camp @ @ @ @ @ @ @ location of plants is indicated by where a botanical family has the highest concentration of species .
Nowhere else has he seen such a dense assemblage of plants in the Malvaceae family .
He confirmed , “ We have made a most impressive discovery .
This region undeniably is the origin site of Theobroma cacao , the chocolate tree !
” On the equator , along the eastern foothills of Cordillera Napo-Galeras , a mountain known in local folklore as the “ End-of-the-World-Jaguar Mountain , ” is the origin of the Cacao tree @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Cacao , very little is still known .
She Has Come a Long Way We now know that Cacao originates in the upper Amazon at the base of the Andes in northwestern South America .
How she became such an intricate part of Central America is mostly unknown .
She was carried north , perhaps by nonhuman mammals , or by ancient human traders .
Consider the first option—we know that the isthmus of Panama rose out of the sea between 3 and 7 million years ago , opening a land bridge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impacted Earth ’ s climate .
The flow between oceans was blocked which rerouted currents , creating the Gulf Stream , warming the planet and provoking a surge in biological diversity .
So began the Great American Interchange , where animals and plants migrated between South America and North America .
Cacao may have been steadily moved by monkeys , rodents , and other mammals who adore its sweet pulp but leave behind the bitter seeds , slowly spreading North , East , South and West .
Geneticist Omar E. Cornejo demonstrated that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Central America actually originate in the Amazon .
Central American peoples cultivated strains of Cacao that had been domesticated in the upper Amazon by Mayo-Chinchipe people thousands of years prior .
We know very little about the vanished Mayo-Chinchipe , an elaborate and ceremonial culture that lived for 4000 years at the base of the Andes , along the equator , in the wettest and most biodiverse part of the planet .
At the Santa Ana-La Florida archeological site in southeastern Ecuador , Claire Lanaud and Rey Loor dated residues found in stone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 5500 years—the oldest-known evidence of Cacao use .
Spondylus and Strombus sea shells found at La Florida indicate there was trade between the Mayo-Chinchipe and coastal societies .
Coastal peoples of ancient America were navigators and avid wanderers who traded knowledge and goods such as plant materials , salt , gold , and jade pendants up and down the Pacific coastline .
Recent studies by Smithsonian archeologists of pottery on display at the National Museum of the American Indian reveal that Cacao was consumed as far north as the Pueblo Bonito site in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Over 3800 years ago in Central America , Olmec people began cultivating Cacao , which they called Kakawa in their language that seems to be of the Mixe-Zoque family .
Though far younger than the Amazonian Mayo-Chinchipe people , the Olmecs were one of the Mesoamerican mother cultures , remembered by colossal stone head carvings and less recognized as the Cacao connoisseurs that they were .
From the Olmecs , the Mayas learned skills including jade carving and the cultivation and use of this fascinating plant .
The Mayas adopted the Olmec name @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a head with a fish fin ear looking up , with another fin before the glyph ’ s main features to double accentuate the concept .
The word “ kakawa ” sounds like the Mayan phrase “ two fish.
” Cultural anthropologist Dr. Michael J. Grofe , in his paper “ The Recipe for Rebirth : Cacao as Fish in the Mythology and Symbolism of the Ancient Maya , ” illuminates a parallel between the self-sacrifice of the Hero Twins , depicted in the the Popol Vuh , and the processing of Cacao @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the underworld represents burial and fermentation of Cacao seeds ; their burning is the roasting ; the grinding of their bones is Cacao seeds ground on a metate , a stone mortar ; and their being poured into water represents hydrating the fermented , dried , roasted and ground Cacao into a beverage .
The twins are reborn as two fish , offering a provocative insight into the metaphor of Cacao as a potent symbol for rebirth , movement , and water .
Fins allow a fish to swiftly move through water as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and Cacao grows in the regions of highest rainfall .
The Maya adored Cacao as a primordial element of their way of life , calling it the “ World Tree ” and the “ First Tree.
” The Mayan beverage chocol ’ ha gave rise to the modern word , “ chocolate.
” As full as Cacao is with cultural lore and history , it is with nutrients and minerals .
Containing anandamide , a chemical that has almost identical makeup as THC , known as the “ bliss molecule , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happier , while boosting your energy levels .
Another peculiar alkaloid in Cacao is theobromine , having similar components as caffeine , but working more on relaxing our hearts .
Cacao is also rich in phenethylamine , another alkaloid that our bodies transforms into serotonin , that has been come to be known as the “ good mood hormone , ” that helps alleviate depression .
Cacao ’ s flavonoids make for an ally in the health of the heart , combating heart disease by mending degradation caused by free radicals .
These @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pressure and act as a blood thinner preventing the risk of blood clots .
Studies have also shown that Cacao can help people who have diabetes .
It does this by lowering blood glucose and boosting insulin function , thus stabilizing blood sugar levels .
We all know the virtues of antioxidants .
Studies have shown raw Cacao to have the highest known antioxidant levels of any known food supplement .
Helping rid the body of free radicals that can lead to cancer .
Cacao has also been shown to boost blood flow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the brain equals more oxygen to the brain , thus , people who eat pure raw cacao score better on memory tests .
Ahh Cacao , indeed , the ultimate superfood !
Fallen from Her State of Grace By the mid 17th century , Cacao , introduced to Europe by the Spanish , became a popular beverage .
Plantations were established along tropical coastal regions of Africa .
Today , West Africa is the world-leading producer of Cacao , at no light expense .
In the early 21st century , Cacao production increased @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 50 % .
The story of Cacao production in Africa is sadly not heart-warming , in ironic contrast to the effects of the chocolate that comes from them .
UNICEF estimates that there are over 200,000 children working in cocoa plantations in Ivory Coast .
Others sources state even higher !
Rural exodus in Africa represents more than 60 % of the population , the majority of these refugees being youth who fall as easy prey .
Meanwhile , indigenous farmers producing Cacao live in extreme poverty , obliged to rely on child @ @ @ @ @ @ @ demand .
Despite the 2001 Harkin-Engel Protocol , an agreement signed by major chocolate companies restricting the use of children to harvest cocoa beans , the crisis is still in full swing .
ClassAction.org shares in-depth information on current lawsuits filed against Hershey , Mars and Nestlé , alleging that confectioners have deceived consumers into “ unwittingly supporting child and slave labor themselves through their product purchases.
” In Ecuador , the origin place of Cacao , the tree is cultivated in the wettest regions at the base of the Andes , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Tropical Wet Forest has been almost completely obliterated for Cacao monoculture plantations , that now also suffers from blight .
Two of the finest botanists on earth , Alwyn Gentry and Callaway Dodson , wrote about this in their article , “ Biological Extinction in Western Ecuador.
” In a small protected forest in western Ecuador , at the Rio Palenque Science Center , Dr. Dodson affirms that there are more species of wild Cacao protected there than at any other location on the planet .
Despite the importance of conservation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chocolate companies invest little back into protecting the gene bank of Cacao or improving the quality life of their farmers .
Deforestation of critical hot spots of mega-biodiversity and the crisis of childhood slavery on these plantations marks the dismal state that humanity has fallen in to .
The Tropical Wet Forest is at the mercy of consumers—we must consciously step up and source Cacao appropriately , and not contribute to this nightmare .
Coming Back Around to an Ancient Future Driven by a passion for Cacao as a sacred crop , more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the landscape .
Appropriately-sourced Cacao is filled with the zest of life , rich in antioxidants and minerals , and highly beneficial for human health .
Cacao originates in the most biodiverse environment , not to be grown in monocultural plantations , but rather as a member of a diversified garden system .
Kallari , as a case example , is an Indigenous people ’ s farmer-owned Cacao cooperative in Amazonian Ecuador , whose mission is , “ to sustainably improve the economic conditions of local partners and producers through the production , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ products , called chakras , while urging for the preservation of culture and the environment.
” Cacao calls for an integral restoration and regeneration of humanity ’ s relationship with nature , with the Earth , among people and with our selves .
She lends herself as a conduit for an ancient future , one that reaches forward to heal landscapes and redirects our present course by inspiring unity of ancient wisdom with the best of modern-day science .
Cacao ’ s teaching are clear for all to see .
Born at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that we must reach the peak of consciousness—to feel the joys and sorrows of others and of nature as if they were our very own .
She teaches that without biological and cultural diversity , we parch the earth of her essence .
That the Earth ’ s divine abundance slips between our fingers back into the void , if taken for granted .
This abundance that blesses so many must be cultivated .
She gives and wants us to give back .
In her silent invigorating essence , she whispers a vital @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of reciprocity .
Who does not serve , does not live .
She holds this truth , trembling with humility and compassion , uneased that we risk failing to see things for how they simply are .
That we might fall short in awakening our hearts to universal love and appropriate righteous passion , so needed for us to grow , heal and create solutions .
These are the healing salves allowing us to remedy the economic , socio-cultural , and ecological wounds suppressing humanity and the Earth .
Without diversity , there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; the triad is fluent and indivisible .
Cacao whispers a subtle warning : If we don ’ t evolve , we risk certain catastrophe .
She has witnessed the rise and fall of many societies and cautions of apocalypse .
From the ancient perspective of the animistic worldview that sees all beings as having a sentient and energetic soul , I imagine that the meditation mat of Kakawa is revealed , in its brilliant patterns highlighted in golden yellow and neon blue .
Streaks of richly-saturated sapphire , emerald green , glowing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ swiftly blow around all sides .
And there are people sitting upon this mat reflecting upon all that Kakawa teaches .
And these people are inspired to rise in alignment with universal order , becoming allies to life , being truly human—awake in our fullest potential .
This article was written as a contribution to the soon to be publish book The Mind of Plants .
edited and compiled by PATRICIA VIEIRA , JOHN CHARLES RYAN and MONICA GAGLIANO .
“ The Mind of Plants brings together a collection of short essays , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interaction with humans .
Authors from the humanities , social sciences and natural sciences write about their connection to a particular plant , reflecting upon their research on plant studies in a style accessible for a general audience.
” Video from The Mind of Plants Web Site Is Criollo Really King ?
The Myth of Cacao ’ s Three Varieties The UWI – University of West Indies Cocoa Research Center : With over 2000 varieties , the cocoa gene bank is the largest in the world .
Cacao : The Mayan “ Food @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of cacao List of plants in the family Malvaceae Nature and Ecology Evolution – The use and domestication of Theobroma cacao during the mid-Holocene in the upper Amazon Child slavery in cocoa plantations in Ivory Coast and other African countries : can we prevent it ?
Jonathon Miller Weisberger is the author or Rainforest Medicine : Preserving Indigenous Science and Biodiversity in the Upper Amazon , and the proprietor of Guaria de Osa EcoLodge in Costa Rica where he hosts sacred ceremonial gatherings with elder plant masters of the Secoya tribe of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ active rainforest and marine turtle conservationist and founder of 4BioDiversity.org .
Please visit GuariadeOsa.com for information on upcoming ayahuasca retreats in the most pristine and sacred part of Costa Rica .
Follow Jonathon at Facebook , here .

Cacao – The World Tree and Her Planetary Mission
Jonathon Miller Weisberger, Contributor
Waking Times
Imagine a rainforest clothed in rising mist. A mystical place filled with life and the calls of many types of birds and animals. Steep verdant hills and valleys, cliff faces drop, splotched in tones of green! The sun rising over the expanse of the Amazon. Splashing water, chimera rainbow hues. Towering ice cap mountain peaks of the Andes stand firm in the west, golden in the morning light. These mountain slopes have given rise to marvelous biological diversity! To understand Cacao, we must understand where she comes from—a place closest to the sun, where day and night are equal in length all year long. A vastly intricate union of thousands of species of plants, animals, insects, birds, fungi.
When I sip Cacao, my heart softens, and I feel a heightened sense of willingness and patience. I can feel how she advocates balance in all my relationships.
Cascading water surges through rocky creeks finding its way to the meandering serenity of the larger rivers below. Palms, and myriad plants and trees with vastly diverse shaped leaves hug the banks. Where Cacao comes from, flowering vines delicately hang over the river’s shores, releasing densely-sweet dew-like nectarous aromas.
The World Tree and Her Planetary Mission
How can a relatively inconspicuous understory tree be so pregnant with wholesome goodness, so full of virtues, and so charged with mythologies? Why is cacao so revered that it has been used as money, medicine, antioxidant-rich superfood, incense, and for a variety of ceremonial offerings—to invoke responses from supernatural beings; to celebrate special moments and calendar markers such as the solstice and equinox; to sanctify weddings and births; to consecrate times of initiations and rites of passage; and as funeral offerings to accompany the dead on the afterlife voyage? When we stretch our imagination to contemplate ancient creation myths that consider cacao not just a gift from the gods to humanity, but an actual component of our identity as humans, we can begin to understand. In the Popol Vuh, the Quiché Mayan holy book, the gods created humans from Maize and Cacao, along with other foods such as the White Cacao, known as Pataxte, Theobroma bicolor; the Soap Apple, known as Zapote, Manilkara zapota; Hog Plum or Jocote, Spondius purpurea; Golden Spoon, known as Nance, Byrsonima crassifolia; and the White Sapote, that is Matasano, Casimiroa edulis. These narratives speak to the role of plants as an intimate part of the human fabric.
Many other Central American creation myths postulate human origins in Cacao. Ancient pottery depicts the Maya great mother Ix Chel, Lady of Translucent Rainbow Light, goddess of medicine, weaving, fertility, and the crescent moon, exchanging Cacao with the rain god Chaac, the patron of agriculture. Chockablock with history and cultural lore, legends have it that Cacao was gifted to early peoples by Quetzalcoatle, the Feathered Serpent itself, so that we may remain heart-centered and energetic. Cacao is a faithful part of the human-fabric, to such an extent that we may say, “To know thyself, drink Cacao”
This iconography is rooted in the tree’s reputation as a conduit between heaven and earth. To the ancient peoples who grew and adored Cacao, this sacred crop was a Tree of Life uniting the quotidian world with the supernatural realms. The ceremonial consumption and offering of Cacao symbolically connected individuals with the powers that govern their existence, with renewal and rebirth, and with the deities of creation. The bounty of the Cacao tree in Mesoamerica represents abundance, and her rounded fruit symbolize fertility. The deep spiritual meaning of Cacao crystalized her importance in all pre-Colombian societies that knew her. Cacao is a blessed, scrumptious elixir that has shaped and formed societies, igniting creation and urging us to evolve.
Cacao represents the fragile and delicately interconnected web of life, the majesty of biological diversity. She is the emblem for many great cultures. There are many things that she knows…
Don Memo Morales, an elder of the Costa Rican Brunka tribe, once shared a story with me. “After the cataclysm, when the earth was burned by fire, heaven had compassion for humanity, and from the sky dropped seeds of Cacao. From these seeds grew the Cacao tree, and from its ripe pregnant fruit was born the first woman, who gave birth to the first man, and from there the first people came.” Softly, Memo continued, “In compassion for humanity, the Creator gave the first people three types of Cacao so they could live well: a sweet variety to share and to enjoy in festivals, a simple variety to eat every day as food, and a bitter variety for healing all illness.”
Born at the Summit of Mega Biological Diversity
No other region in the world surpasses northwest South America in biodiversity, which peaks in the “eyebrows” of the Andes. Two mountains—Sumaco, known locally as the most beautiful mountain, and Napo-Galeras, an isolated limestone massif—are considered especially sacred by the region’s diverse indigenous peoples. I devoted four years there that, in 1994, successfully included Napo-Galeras mountain as part of the new Sumaco Napo-Galeras National Park. This effort is shared in my book, Rainforest Medicine – Preserving Indigenous Science and Biodiversity in the Upper Amazon.
In 2010 I participated on a botanical expedition in the Tropical Wet Forest on the eastern slopes of Napo-Galeras, east of the Andes, led by Dr. Carlos Cerón, curator of the herbarium at Ecuador’s Central University, to learn more about wild Theobroma cacao, its mega-biodiverse rainforest setting, and the Malvaceae botanical family that Cacao belongs to. Relatives of this family from other regions include fibrous, stimulant, and mucilage-bearing plants such as Cotton, Okra, Kola nut, Durian fruit, Hibiscus and Mallow.
An impressive sight it is to see wild Cacao trees growing in their original setting, surrounded by a remarkably high concentration of related plants: Patas, or White Cacao, Theobroma bicolor, whose edible seeds are used to make chili sauce; T. subincanum, called Cushillu-cambiac, with deliciously aromatic edible pulp; and the famed T. grandiflorum, called Cupuassu in Brasil, similarly prized for its nectarous pomace. As we explored the forest collecting hundreds of botanical specimens, pressing plants late into the night, and collecting botanical information, more related species came to light. These were trees in the genus Matisia and Quararibea, both with fine edible fruits known as Sapote, and Herrania, a close cousin of Cacao, locally known asCambiac, distinguished by saturated maroon flowers with remarkably elongated petal-appendages and fine sweet-flavored pulp held in petite deeply furrowed pods. Its young leaves are used medicinally, macerated in water to release mucilage, drunk to relieve constipation. We were not aware yet of the discovery we were about to make.
Cacao and relatives we encountered
Cacao has a fascinating natural history. Squirrels, the Tayra, a large, tree-dwelling weasel, and tropical relatives of the Raccoon, such as the Kikanjou, the Bushy-Tailed Olingo, and the elusive Cacomistle all feast on Cacao. While many mammals disperse Cacao seeds—particularly the Saddleback Tamarin, a species exclusive to the Tropical Wet Forest, the sharp-witted White-Fronted and Brown Capuchin Monkeys, the Squirrel Monkey, the graceful Woolly Monkey, and elegant Spider Monkey all feast on Cacao. Though thousands of insect species live in Cacao’s environment, few pollinate her. Due to the evolution of Cacao’s complex floral structure, her pollinators are highly restricted to tiny mosquito-like insects called midges, perfectly shaped to enter and pollinate Cacao’s small bone-white flowers that appear on the trunk and branches amidst the moist and cool lower level of the rainforest.
The Tropical Wet Forest is a festival of biodiversity, and soon our makeshift collection table overflowed with fruits and seed gathered on jungle forays. Cacao relatives growing in the region include the mighty silk cotton Kapok, the Ceiba pentandra, known locally as Uchuputu, a tree charged with mythology whose powerful outreaching branches offer habitat for worlds of life above the forest canopy; Kamotoa, a towering emergent tree with elegant buttress roots that was assigned its botanical name only later, in 2012, Gryanthera amphibiolepis, that today is sadly vanishing due to unregulated and illegal logging that plagues the area; and the much-loved Balsa tree, the lightest known wood, Ochroma pyramidale, which contributes to regenerating the rainforest.
At our forest camp, Dr. Cerón explained that the origin location of plants is indicated by where a botanical family has the highest concentration of species. Nowhere else has he seen such a dense assemblage of plants in the Malvaceae family. He confirmed, “We have made a most impressive discovery. This region undeniably is the origin site of Theobroma cacao, the chocolate tree!” On the equator, along the eastern foothills of Cordillera Napo-Galeras, a mountain known in local folklore as the “End-of-the-World-Jaguar Mountain,” is the origin of the Cacao tree.
Cacao varieties
There are reportedly over 2000 varieties of Cacao, very little is still known.
She Has Come a Long Way
We now know that Cacao originates in the upper Amazon at the base of the Andes in northwestern South America. How she became such an intricate part of Central America is mostly unknown. She was carried north, perhaps by nonhuman mammals, or by ancient human traders. Consider the first option—we know that the isthmus of Panama rose out of the sea between 3 and 7 million years ago, opening a land bridge between Central and South America which greatly impacted Earth’s climate. The flow between oceans was blocked which rerouted currents, creating the Gulf Stream, warming the planet and provoking a surge in biological diversity. So began the Great American Interchange, where animals and plants migrated between South America and North America. Cacao may have been steadily moved by monkeys, rodents, and other mammals who adore its sweet pulp but leave behind the bitter seeds, slowly spreading North, East, South and West.
Geneticist Omar E. Cornejo demonstrated that the oldest known domesticated Cacao strains in Central America actually originate in the Amazon. Central American peoples cultivated strains of Cacao that had been domesticated in the upper Amazon by Mayo-Chinchipe people thousands of years prior. We know very little about the vanished Mayo-Chinchipe, an elaborate and ceremonial culture that lived for 4000 years at the base of the Andes, along the equator, in the wettest and most biodiverse part of the planet. At the Santa Ana-La Florida archeological site in southeastern Ecuador, Claire Lanaud and Rey Loor dated residues found in stone and clay vessels as far back as 5500 years—the oldest-known evidence of Cacao use.
Spondylus and Strombus sea shells found at La Florida indicate there was trade between the Mayo-Chinchipe and coastal societies. Coastal peoples of ancient America were navigators and avid wanderers who traded knowledge and goods such as plant materials, salt, gold, and jade pendants up and down the Pacific coastline.
Recent studies by Smithsonian archeologists of pottery on display at the National Museum of the American Indian reveal that Cacao was consumed as far north as the Pueblo Bonito site in the Chaco Canyon of New Mexico.
Over 3800 years ago in Central America, Olmec people began cultivating Cacao, which they called Kakawa in their language that seems to be of the Mixe-Zoque family. Though far younger than the Amazonian Mayo-Chinchipe people, the Olmecs were one of the Mesoamerican mother cultures, remembered by colossal stone head carvings and less recognized as the Cacao connoisseurs that they were.
From the Olmecs, the Mayas learned skills including jade carving and the cultivation and use of this fascinating plant. The Mayas adopted the Olmec name and glyph of Cacao, which shows a head with a fish fin ear looking up, with another fin before the glyph’s main features to double accentuate the concept. The word “kakawa” sounds like the Mayan phrase “two fish.”
Cultural anthropologist Dr. Michael J. Grofe, in his paper “The Recipe for Rebirth: Cacao as Fish in the Mythology and Symbolism of the Ancient Maya,” illuminates a parallel between the self-sacrifice of the Hero Twins, depicted in the the Popol Vuh, and the processing of Cacao. The Hero Twins’ entrance into the underworld represents burial and fermentation of Cacao seeds; their burning is the roasting; the grinding of their bones is Cacao seeds ground on a metate, a stone mortar; and their being poured into water represents hydrating the fermented, dried, roasted and ground Cacao into a beverage. The twins are reborn as two fish, offering a provocative insight into the metaphor of Cacao as a potent symbol for rebirth, movement, and water. Fins allow a fish to swiftly move through water as Cacao allows a person to swiftly rise, and Cacao grows in the regions of highest rainfall. The Maya adored Cacao as a primordial element of their way of life, calling it the “World Tree” and the “First Tree.” The Mayan beverage chocol’ha gave rise to the modern word, “chocolate.”
As full as Cacao is with cultural lore and history, it is with nutrients and minerals. Containing anandamide, a chemical that has almost identical makeup as THC, known as the “bliss molecule,” is why drinking Cacao makes you feel happier, while boosting your energy levels. Another peculiar alkaloid in Cacao is theobromine, having similar components as caffeine, but working more on relaxing our hearts. Cacao is also rich in phenethylamine, another alkaloid that our bodies transforms into serotonin, that has been come to be known as the “good mood hormone,” that helps alleviate depression. Cacao’s flavonoids make for an ally in the health of the heart, combating heart disease by mending degradation caused by free radicals. These same flavonoids also aid in lowering blood pressure and act as a blood thinner preventing the risk of blood clots.
Studies have also shown that Cacao can help people who have diabetes. It does this by lowering blood glucose and boosting insulin function, thus stabilizing blood sugar levels. We all know the virtues of antioxidants. Studies have shown raw Cacao to have the highest known antioxidant levels of any known food supplement. Helping rid the body of free radicals that can lead to cancer. Cacao has also been shown to boost blood flow to the brain. More blood to the brain equals more oxygen to the brain, thus, people who eat pure raw cacao score better on memory tests. Ahh Cacao, indeed, the ultimate superfood!
Fallen from Her State of Grace
By the mid 17th century, Cacao, introduced to Europe by the Spanish, became a popular beverage. Plantations were established along tropical coastal regions of Africa. Today, West Africa is the world-leading producer of Cacao, at no light expense. In the early 21st century, Cacao production increased both in Africa and Tropical America by 50%. The story of Cacao production in Africa is sadly not heart-warming, in ironic contrast to the effects of the chocolate that comes from them. UNICEF estimates that there are over 200,000 children working in cocoa plantations in Ivory Coast. Others sources state even higher! Rural exodus in Africa represents more than 60% of the population, the majority of these refugees being youth who fall as easy prey. Meanwhile, indigenous farmers producing Cacao live in extreme poverty, obliged to rely on child labor to serve giant corporations supplying Western demand. Despite the 2001 Harkin-Engel Protocol, an agreement signed by major chocolate companies restricting the use of children to harvest cocoa beans, the crisis is still in full swing. ClassAction.org shares in-depth information on current lawsuits filed against Hershey, Mars and Nestlé, alleging that confectioners have deceived consumers into “unwittingly supporting child and slave labor themselves through their product purchases.”
In Ecuador, the origin place of Cacao, the tree is cultivated in the wettest regions at the base of the Andes, the pinnacle of biodiversity. In western Ecuador, the Tropical Wet Forest has been almost completely obliterated for Cacao monoculture plantations, that now also suffers from blight.
Two of the finest botanists on earth, Alwyn Gentry and Callaway Dodson, wrote about this in their article, “Biological Extinction in Western Ecuador.” In a small protected forest in western Ecuador, at the Rio Palenque Science Center, Dr. Dodson affirms that there are more species of wild Cacao protected there than at any other location on the planet. Despite the importance of conservation of the Tropical Wet Forest, big chocolate companies invest little back into protecting the gene bank of Cacao or improving the quality life of their farmers. Deforestation of critical hot spots of mega-biodiversity and the crisis of childhood slavery on these plantations marks the dismal state that humanity has fallen in to. The Tropical Wet Forest is at the mercy of consumers—we must consciously step up and source Cacao appropriately, and not contribute to this nightmare.
Coming Back Around to an Ancient Future
Driven by a passion for Cacao as a sacred crop, more and more small chocolate-producing companies are transforming the landscape. Appropriately-sourced Cacao is filled with the zest of life, rich in antioxidants and minerals, and highly beneficial for human health. Cacao originates in the most biodiverse environment, not to be grown in monocultural plantations, but rather as a member of a diversified garden system. Kallari, as a case example, is an Indigenous people’s farmer-owned Cacao cooperative in Amazonian Ecuador, whose mission is, “to sustainably improve the economic conditions of local partners and producers through the production, transformation and marketing of mixed agricultural garden products, called chakras, while urging for the preservation of culture and the environment.” Cacao calls for an integral restoration and regeneration of humanity’s relationship with nature, with the Earth, among people and with our selves. She lends herself as a conduit for an ancient future, one that reaches forward to heal landscapes and redirects our present course by inspiring unity of ancient wisdom with the best of modern-day science.
Her Cloak of Universal Wisdom
Cacao’s teaching are clear for all to see. Born at the summit of biological megadiversity, she exhorts that we must reach the peak of consciousness—to feel the joys and sorrows of others and of nature as if they were our very own. She teaches that without biological and cultural diversity, we parch the earth of her essence. That the Earth’s divine abundance slips between our fingers back into the void, if taken for granted. This abundance that blesses so many must be cultivated. She gives and wants us to give back. In her silent invigorating essence, she whispers a vital message: Return to a heart-centered way of reciprocity. Who does not serve, does not live. She holds this truth, trembling with humility and compassion, uneased that we risk failing to see things for how they simply are. That we might fall short in awakening our hearts to universal love and appropriate righteous passion, so needed for us to grow, heal and create solutions. These are the healing salves allowing us to remedy the economic, socio-cultural, and ecological wounds suppressing humanity and the Earth. Without diversity, there cannot be fertility, nor stability; the triad is fluent and indivisible.
In The Diversity of Life, ecologist E.O. Wilson stated, “The sixth great extinction spasm of geological time is upon us, grace of mankind. Earth has at last acquired a force that can break the crucible of biodiversity.” We also face tremendous cultural erosion as languages fade from memory.
Cacao whispers a subtle warning: If we don’t evolve, we risk certain catastrophe. She has witnessed the rise and fall of many societies and cautions of apocalypse. From the ancient perspective of the animistic worldview that sees all beings as having a sentient and energetic soul, I imagine that the meditation mat of Kakawa is revealed, in its brilliant patterns highlighted in golden yellow and neon blue. Streaks of richly-saturated sapphire, emerald green, glowing red, yellow and silver white light swiftly blow around all sides. And there are people sitting upon this mat reflecting upon all that Kakawa teaches. And these people are inspired to rise in alignment with universal order, becoming allies to life, being truly human—awake in our fullest potential.
This article was written as a contribution to the soon to be publish book The Mind of Plants. edited and compiled by PATRICIA VIEIRA, JOHN CHARLES RYAN and MONICA GAGLIANO. “The Mind of Plants brings together a collection of short essays, narratives and poetry on plants and their interaction with humans. Authors from the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences write about their connection to a particular plant, reflecting upon their research on plant studies in a style accessible for a general audience.”
Video from The Mind of Plants Web Site
Cacao Flash
Links a references
Cacao Mama – History and Spirit of Cacao
National Geographic – Chocolate to Save Forests?
Is Criollo Really King? The Myth of Cacao’s Three Varieties
The UWI – University of West Indies Cocoa Research Center: With over 2000 varieties, the cocoa gene bank is the largest in the world.
Cacao varieties and its climatic requirements
The Criollo cacao tree (Theobroma cacao L.): a review
Cacao: The Mayan “Food of the Gods”
History and uses of cacao
10 Reasons to Eat Raw Cacao
Experience Cacao Ceremony – Firefly Chocolate
List of plants in the family Malvaceae
UNESCO – Mayo Chinchipe – Marañón archaeological landscape
Nature and Ecology Evolution – The use and domestication of Theobroma cacao during the mid-Holocene in the upper Amazon
Cocoa Pest & Disease Management – Best Known Practice
Chocolate with a warning label
Ek Chuah (God M) – Mayan Cacao God
Child slavery in cocoa plantations in Ivory Coast and other African countries: can we prevent it?
About the Author
Jonathon Miller Weisberger is the author or Rainforest Medicine: Preserving Indigenous Science and Biodiversity in the Upper Amazon, and the proprietor of Ocean Forest EcoLodge in Costa Rica where he hosts sacred ceremonial gatherings with elder plant masters of the Secoya tribe of the upper Amazon basin. Jonathon is an active rainforest and marine turtle conservationist and founder of 4BioDiversity.org.
Please visit GuariadeOsa.com for information on upcoming ayahuasca retreats in the most pristine and sacred part of Costa Rica. Follow Jonathon at Facebook, here.


wakingtimes--2020-03-19--Pandemic – The Invention of a Disease Called Fear

The word ‘ pandemic ’ bears a similarity to the word ‘ panic ’ and indeed ‘ pandemonium ’ .
In fact ‘ pandemic ’ evokes an almost instant flush of fear in those easily manipulated by mass media , before any details have even touched the surface or context in which the word is being used .
Those who plan the major moves on the chess-board of covert human control know that by leading with the word ‘ pandemic ’ they have an instantly effective weapon at their disposal to psychologically weaken the resistance of individuals vulnerable to irrational @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a world heavily conditioned by the proclamations of the mass media , the fear weapon has a huge psychological power .
As we have all witnessed over the past months , the Coronavirus story has been unleashed with barely contained lascivious delight by news media under orders from the purveyors of malevolent missions against mankind .
Pumped-up to maximum volume and dispersed globally , the deliberately designed fear message has the instant effect of making the majority of people feel powerless .
The Big problem is at large – and we the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ beginning of an entrapment which colours every aspect of daily life .
Most of humanity has undergone a process of education which depends for its effectiveness on the perceived power of some ‘ authority ’ to exert an unquestioned controlling influence over the general direction of the life .
A source of influence that depends for its continuing effectiveness on never being subjected to rational scrutiny , or genuine examination of any kind .
Such is the beguiling power of full-on indoctrination .
In the battle now raging for ‘ who controls the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hidden or disguised controlling agents of planetary life – are now appearing on the surface .
And that ’ s why chaos and fear are very much ‘ flavour of the month ’ .
The Corona Contagion is chock full of idiosyncrasies ; in fact there are so many nonsensical factors associated with media attempts to report on what ’ s going on , that one can only feel dazed and confused should one try and follow the script in real time .
However , what has become all too clear is the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being herded – and are not resisting .
The scare tactics being employed are more dangerous than the virus that is the excuse for deploying them .
Under this induced state of psychosis all manner of tricks can be perpetrated on mankind – and that is precisely what we are witnessing at this time .
Many reading this will already be familiar with the ambitions of the controlling deep state ‘ elite ’ and will know that a pre-planned phase of social and economic chaos is a key factor in their attempted roll-out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are now in this phase .
It ’ s success depends upon a large body of people following the instructions passed down by the political puppets of the deep state and by the cowardly repetition of these instructions by the main stream media .
Once again , the fear card plays a key role .
This time , in keeping a constant level of anxiety and hysteria on the boil , while working to ensure that those able to recognise the true nature of the scam are coerced into not stepping out of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ security or status within the rigidly enforced master/slave relationship of the status quo .
The whole sick edifice maintains its momentum based upon pure top-down deception and exploitation .
Yet those at the receiving end largely choose to remain oblivious of the fact that they are being used and abused for the benefit of a fascist ideal .
By not rebelling in the face of such treatment – but instead by complying with it – a mute populace establishes the basis of its own debasement and slavery .
These methods have been practised @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the world , and each time hind-sight reveals the motivation to have been an obsession with power and control , and the perpetrators to be a small number of psychopathic despots .
Whether taking the form of military might , religious dogma or modern day corporate and banking control freaks , provided the drama has been well stage-managed and the ‘ might has produced fright ’ , the hegemons get their way .
How well is the roll-out being stage-managed on this occasion – and what is the plan ?
Owing to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the ‘ master plan ’ is no longer a regional or national affair , but a global one .
The main players have hatched the plot long before any of us get to know about it and gatherings like the Davos Economic Summit and Bildergerger meetings are used to gain consensus on the timing and methods to be deployed .
In the case of Covid-19 , its appearance on the scene – or at least the spreading of the story about something nasty going under this name – is timed to divert @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of what are deemed to be important spokes in the creation of a totalitarian New World Order .
For example , the roll-out of 5G microwave modulated WiFi ; a digitalised smart grid and ‘ internet of things ’ ; a robotic transport system ; facial recognition population surveillance programmes ; new strains of genetically modified organisms and vaccines , and so forth .
However , the predominant game plan is to ‘ re-set ’ global finance so as to appear to be supporting the euphemistically named Green New Deal with its holy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fact that China has likely been the initial bio-weapon target , does not detract from a more widespread aim to disrupt the world economy as a whole .
The effectiveness of this disruption depends upon the greater part of the populus being swept along in a bubble of blind belief in the authenticity of the ‘ virtual ’ story line .
A line which disguises the very actual imposition of a fascist state .
I would say that the stage-management is pretty poor this time around .
The plethora of contradictory and irrational @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of containing the bogey bug stretches the credibility of the operation to the braking point .
In point of fact it ’ s a farce ; but a farce which involves actual deaths and the support of a police state , can not simply be laughed-off .
Instead , it can be put under the spotlight and be seen for what it is , a planned manipulation of the people and resources of this planet , whose main goading-tool consists of the well rehearsed art of spreading fear and panic .
And this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rational and common sense based gift which we have all been blessed with from birth , and which – when in good order – can clearly see through the facade and hold the line of reason and truth .
Many have seen this ‘ order out of chaos ’ drama coming for years .
The chaos bit is with us right now and very visible .
The ‘ order ’ is to follow and consists in the emergence of a peace maker – or peace plan – that involves the lead croupiers raking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cashing them in to their temporary satisfaction .
Thus allowing for a little holiday period in which the weak kneed can rejoice at their survival and bless the emergence of the ‘ new order ’ , under the authority of no matter who or what , so long as they can believe that the world has been saved from anarchy and ruin .
Every one of us whose knees have not turned to jelly and whose brains have not turned to mind controlled pulp , must take this moment to declare ourselves , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We do not consent ” .
There ’ s a surprise in store for the cowardly imposers of chaos – it is our time that ’ s coming and – not theirs .
For ours is the True World Order which aligns with Universal Law , not the false laws of a manipulated status quo .
It is our re-emergent marriage with Universal Truth that is going to oust this scare loaded pandemic and all similar manifestations of dark-side deception that have gripped this planet for far too long .
Our true-world-order @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and demonic dynasty , so that it stumbles , falls and fails to rise again .
Seize this auspicious moment – and let us be joined as one in an unwavering commitment to get off our knees and stand firm in the cause of defeating the ghosts of chaos and fear .
Julian Rose is an international activist , writer , organic farming pioneer and actor .
In 1987 and 1998 , he led a campaign that saved unpasteurised milk from being banned in the UK ; and , with Jadwiga Lopata , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ campaign in Poland which led to a national ban of GM seeds and plants in that country in 2006 .
Julian is currently campaigning to ‘ Stop 5G ’ WiFi .
He is the author of two acclaimed titles : Changing Course for Life and In Defence of Life .
His latest book Overcoming the Robotic Mind is now available from Amazon and Dixi Books .
Julian is a long time exponent of yoga/meditation .
See his web site for more information www.julianrose.info

Pandemic – The Invention of a Disease Called Fear
Julian Rose, Contributor
Waking Times
The word ‘pandemic’ bears a similarity to the word ‘panic’ and indeed ‘pandemonium’. In fact ‘pandemic’ evokes an almost instant flush of fear in those easily manipulated by mass media, before any details have even touched the surface or context in which the word is being used.
Those who plan the major moves on the chess-board of covert human control know that by leading with the word ‘pandemic’ they have an instantly effective weapon at their disposal to psychologically weaken the resistance of individuals vulnerable to irrational and impressionistic mind sets.
So, in a world heavily conditioned by the proclamations of the mass media, the fear weapon has a huge psychological power.
As we have all witnessed over the past months, the Coronavirus story has been unleashed with barely contained lascivious delight by news media under orders from the purveyors of malevolent missions against mankind. Pumped-up to maximum volume and dispersed globally, the deliberately designed fear message has the instant effect of making the majority of people feel powerless. The Big problem is at large – and we the people feel small. This is the beginning of an entrapment which colours every aspect of daily life.
Most of humanity has undergone a process of education which depends for its effectiveness on the perceived power of some ‘authority’ to exert an unquestioned controlling influence over the general direction of the life. A source of influence that depends for its continuing effectiveness on never being subjected to rational scrutiny, or genuine examination of any kind. Such is the beguiling power of full-on indoctrination.
In the battle now raging for ‘who controls the world’, some of the largely hidden or disguised controlling agents of planetary life – are now appearing on the surface. And that’s why chaos and fear are very much ‘flavour of the month’. The Corona Contagion is chock full of idiosyncrasies; in fact there are so many nonsensical factors associated with media attempts to report on what’s going on, that one can only feel dazed and confused should one try and follow the script in real time.
However, what has become all too clear is the fact that large numbers of people are being herded – and are not resisting. The scare tactics being employed are more dangerous than the virus that is the excuse for deploying them. Under this induced state of psychosis all manner of tricks can be perpetrated on mankind – and that is precisely what we are witnessing at this time.
Many reading this will already be familiar with the ambitions of the controlling deep state ‘elite’ and will know that a pre-planned phase of social and economic chaos is a key factor in their attempted roll-out of totalitarian New World Order. We are now in this phase. It’s success depends upon a large body of people following the instructions passed down by the political puppets of the deep state and by the cowardly repetition of these instructions by the main stream media.
Once again, the fear card plays a key role. This time, in keeping a constant level of anxiety and hysteria on the boil, while working to ensure that those able to recognise the true nature of the scam are coerced into not stepping out of line, thereby risking their job, security or status within the rigidly enforced master/slave relationship of the status quo.
The whole sick edifice maintains its momentum based upon pure top-down deception and exploitation. Yet those at the receiving end largely choose to remain oblivious of the fact that they are being used and abused for the benefit of a fascist ideal. By not rebelling in the face of such treatment – but instead by complying with it – a mute populace establishes the basis of its own debasement and slavery.
These methods have been practised over and over again in the history of the world, and each time hind-sight reveals the motivation to have been an obsession with power and control, and the perpetrators to be a small number of psychopathic despots. Whether taking the form of military might, religious dogma or modern day corporate and banking control freaks, provided the drama has been well stage-managed and the ‘might has produced fright’, the hegemons get their way.
How well is the roll-out being stage-managed on this occasion – and what is the plan?
Owing to the trans-planetary link-ups that take place today, the ‘master plan’ is no longer a regional or national affair, but a global one. The main players have hatched the plot long before any of us get to know about it and gatherings like the Davos Economic Summit and Bildergerger meetings are used to gain consensus on the timing and methods to be deployed.
In the case of Covid-19, its appearance on the scene – or at least the spreading of the story about something nasty going under this name – is timed to divert attention from the speeding-up of the installation of what are deemed to be important spokes in the creation of a totalitarian New World Order. For example, the roll-out of 5G microwave modulated WiFi; a digitalised smart grid and ‘internet of things’; a robotic transport system; facial recognition population surveillance programmes; new strains of genetically modified organisms and vaccines, and so forth. However, the predominant game plan is to ‘re-set’ global finance so as to appear to be supporting the euphemistically named Green New Deal with its holy grail ‘Zero Carbon’.
The fact that China has likely been the initial bio-weapon target, does not detract from a more widespread aim to disrupt the world economy as a whole.
The effectiveness of this disruption depends upon the greater part of the populus being swept along in a bubble of blind belief in the authenticity of the ‘virtual’ story line. A line which disguises the very actual imposition of a fascist state.
I would say that the stage-management is pretty poor this time around. The plethora of contradictory and irrational clamp-down actions being imposed in the name of containing the bogey bug stretches the credibility of the operation to the braking point. In point of fact it’s a farce; but a farce which involves actual deaths and the support of a police state, cannot simply be laughed-off.
Instead, it can be put under the spotlight and be seen for what it is, a planned manipulation of the people and resources of this planet, whose main goading-tool consists of the well rehearsed art of spreading fear and panic. And this, in turn, to undermine the rational and common sense based gift which we have all been blessed with from birth, and which – when in good order – can clearly see through the facade and hold the line of reason and truth.
Many have seen this ‘order out of chaos’ drama coming for years. The chaos bit is with us right now and very visible. The ‘order’ is to follow and consists in the emergence of a peace maker – or peace plan – that involves the lead croupiers raking the chips off the roulette board and cashing them in to their temporary satisfaction. Thus allowing for a little holiday period in which the weak kneed can rejoice at their survival and bless the emergence of the ‘new order’, under the authority of no matter who or what, so long as they can believe that the world has been saved from anarchy and ruin.
Every one of us whose knees have not turned to jelly and whose brains have not turned to mind controlled pulp, must take this moment to declare ourselves, boldly and resolutely with these four words “We do not consent”.
There’s a surprise in store for the cowardly imposers of chaos – it is our time that’s coming and – not theirs. For ours is the True World Order which aligns with Universal Law, not the false laws of a manipulated status quo.
It is our re-emergent marriage with Universal Truth that is going to oust this scare loaded pandemic and all similar manifestations of dark-side deception that have gripped this planet for far too long. Our true-world-order is going to take on this obsessed and demonic dynasty, so that it stumbles, falls and fails to rise again.
Seize this auspicious moment – and let us be joined as one in an unwavering commitment to get off our knees and stand firm in the cause of defeating the ghosts of chaos and fear.
About the Author
Julian Rose is an international activist, writer, organic farming pioneer and actor. In 1987 and 1998, he led a campaign that saved unpasteurised milk from being banned in the UK; and, with Jadwiga Lopata, a ‘Say No to GMO’ campaign in Poland which led to a national ban of GM seeds and plants in that country in 2006. Julian is currently campaigning to ‘Stop 5G’ WiFi. He is the author of two acclaimed titles: Changing Course for Life and In Defence of Life. His latest book Overcoming the Robotic Mind is now available from Amazon and Dixi Books. Julian is a long time exponent of yoga/meditation. See his web site for more information www.julianrose.info


wakingtimes--2020-03-20--David Icke Explains How the Elite are Using Coronavirus to Reshape the Global Economy

On Wednesday , David Icke appeared as a guest on London Real to discuss his perspective on the coronavirus and the global lockdown happening right now .
The greater implication , he says , is that while people are in a state of fear , they are passively allowing increasing authoritarian controls over their lives , and that this new power grab will not be rolled out when the crisis ends .
The types of government totalitarianism that are being pushed amid the coronavirus outbreak include the encouragement of going cashless , mandatory vaccinations , and most importantly , vast @ @ @ @ @ @ @ before this event .
In most US states , local governments have closed down restaurants , bars , hair salons , and coffee houses against the interests of business owners as a means to stop the spread of the coronavirus .
As a result , millions of people have already lost their jobs and are unsure about whether they will be able to pay rent .
Governments claim that without extreme measures , many more will die , and hospital beds will overfill .
David has argued for years that the financial elite @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the “ Hunger Games society , ” where most people live in poverty while a few at the top enjoy vast wealth and are protected by a police state which enforces strict controls on most people .
It ’ s hard to disagree that the biggest impact of the virus will be economic , and David ’ s explanation fits in with the globalist agenda that so many patriots and concerned citizens have been working to expose for several decades .
You can watch the full interview here : Phillip Schneider is a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and assistant editor for Waking Times .
If you would like to see more of his work , you can visit his website , or follow him on the free speech social network Minds .
This article ( David Icke Explains How the Elite are Using Coronavirus to Reshape the Global Economy ) as originally created and published by Waking Times and is published here under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Phillip Schneider and WakingTimes.com .
It may be re-posted freely with proper attribution , author bio , and this copyright @ @

David Icke Explains How the Elite are Using Coronavirus to Reshape the Global Economy
Phillip Schneider, Staff Writer
Waking Times
“This coronavirus hysteria gives them an excuse to do what they’re doing, and the consequences of what they’re doing is to dismantle the world economic system.” – David Icke
On Wednesday, David Icke appeared as a guest on London Real to discuss his perspective on the coronavirus and the global lockdown happening right now. The greater implication, he says, is that while people are in a state of fear, they are passively allowing increasing authoritarian controls over their lives, and that this new power grab will not be rolled out when the crisis ends.
The types of government totalitarianism that are being pushed amid the coronavirus outbreak include the encouragement of going cashless, mandatory vaccinations, and most importantly, vast economic controls which we have never seen before this event.
“The way the whole economic system is being shut down is suicide. What happens when it reaches a point where in its present state it cannot survive?” – David Icke
In most US states, local governments have closed down restaurants, bars, hair salons, and coffee houses against the interests of business owners as a means to stop the spread of the coronavirus. As a result, millions of people have already lost their jobs and are unsure about whether they will be able to pay rent. Governments claim that without extreme measures, many more will die, and hospital beds will overfill.
“You have to keep the reaction in proportion to the problem,” David says. “so maybe more needs doing in parts of Italy.”
David has argued for years that the financial elite are attempting to create what he dubs the “Hunger Games society,” where most people live in poverty while a few at the top enjoy vast wealth and are protected by a police state which enforces strict controls on most people.
“This ‘hunger games’ society is designed to have no small business, no medium-sized business globally, just gigantic corporations that control and produce everything…What this coronavirus hysteria is creating is a situation unfolding by the hour worldwide that is destroying small business, family business, [and] even medium-sized business.” ~David Icke
It’s hard to disagree that the biggest impact of the virus will be economic, and David’s explanation fits in with the globalist agenda that so many patriots and concerned citizens have been working to expose for several decades.
You can watch the full interview here:
http://youtu.be/gMTZu6_TjU8
Read more articles by Phillip Schneider.
About the Author
Phillip Schneider is a student as well as a staff writer and assistant editor for Waking Times. If you would like to see more of his work, you can visit his website, or follow him on the free speech social network Minds.
This article (David Icke Explains How the Elite are Using Coronavirus to Reshape the Global Economy) as originally created and published by Waking Times and is published here under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Phillip Schneider and WakingTimes.com. It may be re-posted freely with proper attribution, author bio, and this copyright statement.