Subjective Configurations in Cacao Ceremonies: A Theoretical Analysis from a Latin American Cultural–Historical Psychology Perspective
Rodolfo Bastián Valle-Kendall, Carlos Piñones Rivera
Religions October 20, 2025 DOI: 10.3390/rel16101322 via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractCacao ceremonies, a neo-shamanic ritual growing in popularity, can foster well-being by enabling participants to reconfigure their subjectivity. Drawing on González-Rey's theory, the article argues that cacao acts as a symbolic mediator generating new subjective senses, while rituals stabilize dynamic subjective configurations. Shamans guide this process through discourse, materials, and emotions. These transformations are not mechanically determined by social context but arise as historically situated singular productions. However, the ritual is ambivalent: it can both foster genuine subjective change and reproduce neoliberal logics.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Situated Perspective graphical Context archaeology Popularity Ambivalence |
| Key finding | Cacao ceremonies can facilitate subjective reconfiguration through symbolic mediation, ritual stabilization, and shamanic guidance, but they also risk reproducing neoliberal logics. |
Abstract
This article explores the heuristic potential of González-Rey’s theory of subjectivity and its use in theorizing neo-shamanic rituals, focusing on the case of the cacao ceremony. In the context of the growing popularity of contemporary spiritual practices, it examines how these rituals may contribute to the well-being of participants, serving as spaces for subjective reconfiguration. Through a theoretical-interpretive analysis and a critical review of the existing literature, the concepts of subjective configuration and subjective sense are explored as analytical tools. It is argued that (1) cacao functions as a symbolic mediator that facilitates the production of new subjective senses; (2) ritual practices allow for both the emergence and the dynamic stabilization of subjective configurations; (3) shamans act as mediators of subjectivation through discursive, material, and emotional practices; and (4) these processes are not mechanically determined by the social context but rather emerge as singular productions, which are historically situated and liable to indetermination. Finally, the article reflects on the ambivalence of this ritual, which is capable of fostering subjective transformations as well as reproducing neoliberal logics.