There are two types of chocolate people: those who pop a square in the mouth, swirl it around, let it melt, and savor and those who devour an entire bar within minutes and without much attention to the experience. I’d always fallen into the latter category and, with that being the case, it was a bit life-altering for me once I finally experienced the former. To budge from a long-held operating mode felt unfamiliar, maybe even traitorous — as if it were to concede that this way of indulging was a better way, one that was more joyful and mindful.

It happened a few months ago, as part of a chocolate-tasting assignment (it’s hard work, but someone has to do it) at Manam Chocolate in the South Indian city of Hyderabad, where the words chocolate meditation were bandied about. I was skeptical.

Hear the snap when you break a piece. Smell it. Close your eyes. Let it sit on your tongue and melt. Find the flavors and feel the textures. Swirl it around. Feel it slide off the tongue. Observe how long the taste lingers in the mouth.

The sentences weren’t as staccato. Instead, it was tempting to channel the mellifluous voice of David Attenborough or dulcet tones of Morgan Freeman. It was a revelation. More than being mindful, I couldn’t remember ever enjoying chocolate as much as I did at that session.

Back home, with the experience still fresh, I began digging in to learn more. “Cacao is rich in antioxidants, particularly flavonoids, and therefore can be beneficial for health,” Goa-based nutrition and wellness consultant Sheela Krishnaswamy said, but was quick to add, “On the other hand, when cacao turns into a rich creamy chocolate, it can contribute to ill health, especially if taken in excess. The culprits in chocolate are fat and sugar.”

More validation came from a 2017 study which concluded that “participants who were instructed to mindfully eat chocolate had a greater increase in positive mood compared with participants who were instructed to eat chocolate non-mindfully or crackers either mindfully or non-mindfully.” Another 2018 study, strewn with a lot of scientific terms, found that dark chocolate (with 70 percent cacao) increased the brain’s EEG power spectral density and gamma wave frequency and this was significant because both these were associated with enhanced cognitive processing, learning, memory, recall, neural synchrony, and mindfulness meditation, according to the researchers.

To understand a bit more, I asked Mandar Bhosale, chocolate expert who leads chocolate meditation sessions with Pune-based Trove Experiences to explain what happens during the process. “The science behind chocolate meditation primarily relates to mindfulness and sensory perception,” he said, and added context: “It can activate specific regions in the brain associated with attention and sensory processing. This heightened awareness can lead to a deeper and more enjoyable experience of flavors and aromas. Additionally, focusing on the present moment and sensory details during chocolate meditation may trigger the relaxation response in the body, leading to reduced stress and enhanced well-being.”

Bhosale went a bit further and said the benefits of chocolate meditation could be both neurological and psychological. “Neurologically, it can enhance sensory perception and engage specific brain regions associated with attention and sensory processing, leading to a heightened and enjoyable sensory experience. Psychologically, it promotes mindfulness, which is linked to reduced stress, improved focus, and overall well-being. Additionally, the act of savoring chocolate mindfully can elicit pleasurable and positive emotions, which have psychological benefits,” he said.

All this took me back to the day before the chocolate-tasting session. Prior to tasting the end product, it was deemed appropriate to get a measure of its origins. So in the searing tropical heat and humidity of July, I felt thankful for small mercies of being under the thick shade of cacao trees that stretched out for acres near Gangannagudem village in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh state on India’s East coast. A few ripe and bright yellow pods still hung off the trunks.

Chaitanya Muppala, India’s first and only Level 3 Chocolate Taster and the brain behind Manam, hacked off one, shook it to produce a muffled rattling and opened it. Inside was a cluster of beans enmeshed in a slightly sticky white pulp. It was fruity, sweet and a bit tangy, and very close to custard apple (also called sugar apple or sweetsop). I loved it. It was also an exercise in patience and mindfulness. Each bean was covered in a very thin layer, so getting to it involved advanced gymnastics in the mouth and spitting out the bean. But because the flesh was just a thin film, even after eating several pods worth of flesh, it felt insubstantial. It was so enjoyable and so addictive that I stopped only when I felt I was in danger of overdosing, if that’s at all possible.

Researching for the article revealed a related aspect: even certain kinds of chocolate videos had an ASMR quality. I inevitably went down a rabbit hole, visually gorging on chocolate tempering clips while watching an hour-long chocolate-making film with soothing meditative music. A bar of chocolate was on hand, and each square lasted a long time. Astonishingly, I had become the other kind of chocolate person.

Chocolate meditation: a delicious invitation to the present moment

Somatic mindfulness: hot chocolate

How we media: South Africa