Aztec Indian legend held that cacao seeds had been brought from Paradise and
that wisdom and power came from eating the fruit of the cacao tree.
Ancient chronicles report that the Aztecs, believing that the god Quetzalcoatl travelled
to earth on a beam of the Morning Star with a cacao tree from Paradise, took his offering
to the people. They learned from Quetzalcoatl how to roast and grind the cacao seeds,
making a nourishing paste that could be dissolved in water. They added spices and
called this drink "chocolatl," or bitter-water, and believed it brought universal wisdom
and knowledge.

Quetzalcoatl was cast out of paradise for the blasphemous act of giving this sacred drink to humans.