The Circle Preparation Guide 🌕
Welcome to The Circle: Full Moon Ritual & Cacao Intention-Setting Ceremony.
I am deeply grateful for your trust in allowing me to be a part of your journey. Most importantly, I want to acknowledge and celebrate you for showing up for yourself—for investing in your personal and spiritual growth.
These sacred circles are designed to guide you inward, bringing awareness to healing, self-love, and spiritual expansion. Through the energy of the moon, we will embark on a transformative journey of manifestation, releasing what no longer serves us and calling in the best version of ourselves. This space invites you to surrender to the magic of the universe, allowing its flow to guide you effortlessly.
This Full Moon & Cacao Preparation Guide is designed to help you make the most of this sacred experience. A full moon is a powerful time for reflection, release, and renewal, while ceremonial cacao opens the heart and deepens your connection to your intentions.
By reading this guide, you’ll gain insights on how to physically, mentally, and energetically prepare for the ceremony, ensuring you step into the space feeling aligned, open, and ready to receive. Preparation is key to fully experiencing the healing, clarity, and transformation this ritual can offer.
Take a moment to honor this process, and trust that the energy you bring into the ceremony will amplify your journey.
My Journey with Moon Rituals
In 2021, during one of the darkest periods of my life, I stumbled upon the practice of moon rituals. One night, my best friend handed me a white candle and encouraged me to set an intention for the upcoming new moon. Something within me knew I needed this practice, and as I continued, I began creating rituals of my own.
I was in awe as I watched my intentions and releases take shape in my life, guided by the universe in ways I never expected. This practice deepened my self-awareness and strengthened my connection to the divine. Over time, I felt called to share this sacred practice with others—to help them embrace a more intentional, conscious way of living, and thus The Circle came into existence in 2022.
Healing is a journey of transformation, often revealing parts of yourself you never knew existed. It’s not always easy, but the inner peace, clarity, and love you discover make every step worthwhile. If there is anything that this journey has taught me is that sometimes, we must weather the storm to witness the rainbow.
While one moon ritual can spark profound shifts, consistency is key. I hope this ceremony inspires you to integrate more mindful practices into your daily life, allowing you to nurture your soul continuously.
May the energy we cultivate together in this circle amplify your connection to the universe and propel your journey forward.
Love & light,
Derin
Full Moon in Scorpio
The Full Flower Moon will rise on Monday, May 12, 2025, at 12:56 PM Eastern Time, illuminating the sky in the transformative sign of Scorpio. Known for its depth and intensity, Scorpio energy encourages us to delve beneath the surface, confronting hidden truths and embracing profound emotional healing. This event has the potential to catalyze profound awakenings and brings powerful opportunities for emotional alchemy. The Scorpio Full Moon asks us to feel what we have been avoiding and offers us chances to liberate ourselves from patterns, attachments, and paradigms that have been keeping us stuck, stagnant, and small.
The Full Moon in Scorpio is especially relevant for those of us born with planets or angles near the 22Âş of Fixed signs Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius. The individuals personally impacted by this event are being asked to embrace radical emotional honesty. They have opportunities to recognize in what areas of life they need to transform and grow by letting go of security attachments that no longer serve them.
Embracing the transformative power of the Scorpio Full Moon can lead to significant personal growth and a deeper understanding of oneself.
Full Moon Preparation Guide
The full moon is a powerful time for reflection, release, and intention-setting. Preparing yourself and your space properly will allow you to fully embrace the energy of this lunar phase. Below is a step-by-step guide to help you align with the full moon’s energy and prepare for The Circle gathering.
1. Minimize Distractions & Slow Down
Try to avoid having a busy schedule leading up to and after the full moon. Eliminating distractions will help you channel the ongoing energies, allowing you to be clear-minded and intentional about your practice. This is a time for inner reflection, so prioritize stillness and mindfulness.
2. Energy Cleanse
Energy transfer is real, and often, without even realizing it, we may neglect our spiritual hygiene and the need to cleanse our energy. This section is designed to provide deeper insight into a practice I’ve come to understand as essential. At times, we carry energy that isn’t even ours, leaving us feeling anxious, heavy, or depleted. By becoming more aware of this, we can take intentional steps to protect, cleanse, and restore our energetic well-being.
Cleansing your own energy is essential for maintaining balance, clarity, and emotional well-being. Just as we cleanse our physical bodies, our energetic field also accumulates stress, negative emotions, and external influences that can weigh us down. Here’s why energy cleansing is so important:
Releases Stagnant & Heavy Energy: Throughout the day, we absorb energy from our surroundings—people, places, and experiences. Unprocessed emotions, negative thoughts, or external energies can create blockages, leaving us feeling drained, overwhelmed, or disconnected. Cleansing helps clear this stagnant energy, restoring flow and vitality.
Enhances Emotional & Mental Clarity: When our energy is clouded, we may experience confusion, anxiety, or difficulty making decisions. Regular energetic cleansing creates space for mental clarity, intuition, and a stronger connection to our inner wisdom.
Strengthens Spiritual Connection: A clear energy field allows us to connect more deeply with our higher self, spirit guides, and the universe. When our energy is aligned, we are more receptive to divine guidance, synchronicities, and intuitive messages.
Protects Against Energetic Drain & Negativity: Interacting with others—especially in emotionally charged situations—can lead to energetic exchanges that leave us feeling depleted. Cleansing helps maintain energetic boundaries, preventing us from carrying emotions or burdens that aren’t ours to hold.
Supports Healing & Manifestation: Energetic blockages can slow down our healing process and interfere with manifestations. By regularly cleansing our energy, we raise our vibration, making it easier to attract abundance, love, and aligned opportunities.
Important practices for cleansing during the full moon:
Cleansing Your Space
Tidy up your home: Cleaning and organizing your space promotes clarity and balance. Changing your bed sheets is also suggested to bring in fresh energy.
Energetic cleansing: After cleaning, use Palo Santo or Sage to clear the energy in your home. As you cleanse, you can recite a mantra or affirmation (examples provided in the workbook).
Cleansing Your Energy
Take a shower, including washing your hair, to cleanse your energy and remove any stagnant emotions or negative vibrations that, you may have picked up from your surroundings.
3. Set Your Intentions & Releases
One of the most important aspects of the full moon is focusing on what you want to release and what you want to manifest. Be very specific about what is holding you back and what you want to bring into your life. Instead of releasing everything at once, focus on a few key aspects to maintain clarity and avoid feeling overwhelmed.
Gratitude List: Write down everything you are grateful for from the past month.
Release List: List habits, negative thoughts, attachments, or relationships that no longer serve your growth.
Intention Setting: Set an intention that focuses on creating better habits, deepening self-awareness, and strengthening your connection with yourself and others.
Additional journaling prompts that can help you to be more specific about your release and intentions:
In what areas of my life am I wanting to create change?
How can I create change without changing everything at once?
How can I surrender my need to control life and allow it to unfold?
During the full moon workshop, a workbook will be provided to guide you through this practice, but in the days leading up you should already begin getting more clarity on this to be a bit prepared for the ritual.
4. Light a White Candle
If you have a white candle (included in the Moon Ritual Kit), light it when setting your intention. You can bring it to the full moon circle or light it after the ritual to enhance your practice.
5. Energy Cleansing Tools
Palo Santo: A sacred wood used for centuries by the Incas and indigenous Andean people. When burned, it is believed to remove stress, emotional trauma, and stagnant energy.
Sage: Over the years, Sage has been used in a wide variety of applications. From protection to spiritual cleansing, sage is most often used for clearing negative energy from an area of space. You can use this as a tool to cleanse your space as well your energy during the full moon.
6. Affirmations for Cleansing & Protection
Recite these affirmations while cleansing your space and setting your intentions:
"Please clear this space of negative and unwanted energy. All negativity be gone forever. Bring love, light, happiness, and protection to this home and myself."
"I release any negativity, density, or attachments into the light. Help me shine with higher vibrations and guide me with a team of Angels and guides."
"I open this space to love and invite all positive energy into my space. Come into it with nurturing energy, compassion, love, and truth."
By preparing for the full moon in a mindful and intentional way, you create the space for deep transformation and alignment with your highest self. Embrace the journey, trust the process, and honor your evolution.
Cacao Intention Setting Ceremony
We will begin the ceremony by setting a personal intention for our journey. For some, this may be the start of a new spiritual path; for others, it may be a moment of healing from past experiences or an opportunity to invite more peace and happiness into their lives. Whatever your intention, this practice is a sacred space to align with your heart’s deepest desires.
To anchor our intentions, we will engage in a cacao ceremony, a sacred ritual that honors the heart-opening properties of cacao—a natural plant medicine known for its ability to enhance emotional clarity, connection, and inner transformation.
What is a Cacao Ceremony?
A cacao ceremony is a deeply immersive experience that blends ancient traditions with modern spiritual practices. It is designed to create a space for personal growth, healing, and connection—both with yourself and the universe.
At the heart of the ceremony is the mindful consumption of cacao in its purest form. Unlike processed chocolate, ceremonial cacao retains its potent medicinal properties and is revered for its ability to open the heart, deepen meditation, and elevate consciousness.
Before drinking, participants are encouraged to set a personal intention, infusing their cacao with purpose and gratitude. The cacao is then consumed slowly, allowing its warmth and richness to be fully experienced while meditating on one’s intention.
The Benefits of Cacao
Cacao is more than just a delicious drink—it is a powerful plant ally that supports emotional and physical well-being:
Heart-Opening & Emotional Release – Cacao stimulates the release of endorphins, serotonin, and oxytocin, helping to foster feelings of joy, love, and deep emotional connection.
Enhances Mindfulness & Meditation – The active compounds in cacao promote mental clarity and relaxation, making it easier to enter a meditative state and access intuitive wisdom.
Rich in Antioxidants & Nutrients – Cacao supports cardiovascular health, increases circulation, and boosts overall vitality, helping both body and mind feel more energized and balanced.
By engaging in this ceremony with openness and intention, you invite the magic of cacao to guide you toward healing, transformation, and alignment with your highest self.
Preparation Guide for a Cacao Intention-Setting Ceremony
To fully embrace the transformative energy of this cacao ceremony, it’s important to prepare your mind, body, and spirit. Here’s how you can set yourself up for a deeply enriching experience:
1.Set Your Intention
Before the ceremony, take some time to reflect on what you’d like to invite into your life. Your intention can be anything—from embarking on a new spiritual journey to healing from a past experience or simply finding inner peace. Journaling about your intention beforehand can help bring clarity.
2. Prepare Your Body & Mind
To enhance your receptivity to cacao’s heart-opening properties, it’s best to prepare your body beforehand.
Fasting or Light Eating – Avoid heavy meals at least 2-3 hours before the ceremony. A light, plant-based meal earlier in the day can support a smoother experience.
Hydration – Drink plenty of water before and after the ceremony to assist the body in absorbing cacao’s nutrients.
Avoid Stimulants – Reduce caffeine or alcohol intake before the ceremony, as they may interfere with the natural effects of cacao.
3. Open Your Heart & Mind
Cacao is a powerful plant medicine that works gently but profoundly. Approaching the ceremony with an open heart and a sense of presence will allow you to fully experience its effects.
Practice Deep Breathing – Before drinking cacao, take a few deep, grounding breaths.
Sip with Awareness – Drink slowly, savoring the warmth, texture, and taste while holding your intention in mind.
Embrace the Journey – Allow emotions, insights, or sensations to arise without judgment. Cacao may bring clarity, peace, or deep emotional release.
4. After the Ceremony: Integration & Reflection
The effects of cacao can continue long after the ceremony ends. Honor your experience by taking time for reflection and self-care.
5. Post-Ceremony Practices:
Journaling – Write about any emotions, thoughts, or visions that surfaced.
Gentle Movement – Stretch, do yoga, or dance intuitively to move the energy through your body.
Stay Hydrated & Nourished – Drink water and eat a grounding meal.
Be Gentle with Yourself – Give yourself permission to rest or spend time in nature.
This ceremony is an opportunity to connect deeply with yourself, the universe, and the energy of your intention. Trust that whatever arises is exactly what you need at this moment. May this sacred space guide you toward healing, clarity, and alignment with your highest self.