KILOHANA HIRANO

Makahiki (part 2)

aahirano — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 17:30:52 +0000

Did you know that the ali‘i served as the gods’ agents on earth?
Also within the procession was the älia, wooden posts used to mark the area of kapu around the Lonoikamakahiki and an akua loa which traveled with the procession. As the procession neared the next ahupua‘a the akua poko of that ahupua‘a would join the procession.
The clockwise circuit of the ali‘i nui and priest carrying the Lonoikamakahiki was always made with the ocean to the left and the mountains to the right. The white kapa hanging from the Lonoikamakahiki would fill with air like the sails of a canoe. It is for this reason that Captain Cook was believed to be Lono as he sailed into the islands with the sails billowing from the masts of his ship.
As the ali‘i nui approached each ahupua‘a the Lonoikamakahiki was raised to enter proudly and majestically. The ali‘i of the ahupua‘a or the ali‘i ‘ai ahupua‘a, more commonly known as konohiki, accepted the ho‘okupu from the maka‘äinana. He would then offer them up to the ali‘i nui as he was the gods representative on earth. The offerings were carefully inspected by the kahuna and he was the one to accept or reject any ho‘okupu. Once all of the ho‘okupu were presented, the kahuna began the hainaki ceremony. This was a kapu lifting ceremony. With this he would pray to Lono and ask that Lono noa all of kapu from the land so that the celebratory festivities could begin.
When he finished he would announce to the assembled crowds to rise and prepare to play. As the prescribed dialogue between the kahuna and the anaina ended so to did the hainaki ceremony. Now all of the offerings were taken by the ali‘i nui and distributed among his ali‘i ‘ai moku. The procession then continued on its clockwise circuit around the island to noa the other ahupua‘a. As the procession left, the Lonoikamakahiki was lowered to face downward and the akua loa faced behind to the lands that have the suspended kapu for the celebration.

Makahiki (part 1)

aahirano — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 01:09:46 +0000

Did you know that Makahiki is more than just the games we’ve come to associate with this time of year?
Makahiki is a four-month season of celebration, games and thanksgiving.
The word makahiki can be translated as year and began with the rising of Nähuihuiamakali‘i or Pleiades in the night sky during the month of ‘Ikuä. When the makahiki season started it marked the new year. Makahiki was also a time of thanksgiving. It was during this time that Lono, the god of agriculture was honored and given thanks for the bounties of the previous year. Coincidentally, makahiki also occurs around the same time of year as the western Thanksgiving and New Year holidays.
Preparations for Makahiki began well before the rising of Makali‘i. Once the makahiki celebrations were begun all work ceased and it was a time to enjoy. Because no work was allowed during this time, in the weeks and month prior to makahiki, the maka‘äinana harvested and gathered food to last the four-month long celebration. Some of the food included mai‘a, kalo, ‘uala, niu, and ‘ulu. Also the lawai‘a repaired nets and fishing lines to prepare to take from the bounty of the ocean as well. The women prepared by making new kapa garments for their families.
The rising of Nähuihuiamakali‘i also marked the change in seasons. Here in Hawai‘i there are two season, Kau and Ho‘oilo. Kau is the warm and dry season most associated to summer and Ho‘oilo the cool and rainy winter season. When the kahuna saw Makali‘i in the sky he announce the change from Kau to Ho‘oilo and the beginning of the Makahiki.
When this announcement was made, everyone made his or her way to the ocean at midnight for a hi‘uwai. This was a cleansing and purification ceremony to clean off the ‘ino of the previous year and start the new year ma‘ema‘e. When they returned they made ready the ho‘okupu to Lono. All of the ho‘okupu were taken to the ahu and the boundary of the ahupua‘a. This ahu of stone would be cleaned or rebuilt in preparation and the image of a pig head made of wood was placed upon it. The ali‘i nui of the island would make his clockwise circuit around the island to accept the ho‘okupu at each ahupua‘a as Lono representative here on earth.
Among his entourage the ali‘i nui had the image known as Lonoikamakahiki. This twelve foot carved pole made of Kauila was the image to which the offerings were made. A cross piece was placed at on the Lonoikamakahiki, also known as Lono Makua. This crosspiece, ke‘a, was clothed with new white kapa, a lei pala, and other signs of Lono like ka‘upu skins.

He Inoa No Pauahi

aahirano — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 22:43:27 +0000

Did you know that Pauahi was a well traveled woman in her time?

In fact one of her favorite mele inoa recalls some her travels across North America. In this mele, the composer makes references to California and the cold that she encountered there, strawberries (probably very uncommon if even available in Hawai‘i at the time) and Niagra Falls. Although a lot of the imagery refers to the cold climate of North America it also, speaks of her resilience and character. Below are the lyrics to “He Inoa No Pauahi”.

Honi ana i ke anu i ke mea hu‘ihu‘i

Hu‘i hewa i ka ‘ili i ka ua Pö‘aihala

Lei ana i ka mokihana i ka wewehi o Kaiona

Lïhau pue i ke anu hau‘oki o Kaleponi

Hia‘ai ka welina, ka nene‘e a ka ‘öhelopapa

Pupua i ka noe möhähä i ke anu

Noho nö me ka ‘ano‘i ka mana‘o ia loko

‘O loko hana nui pau ‘ole i ke ana ‘ia

A ka wailele ‘o Niakala ‘ike i ka wai änuenue

I ka pö‘ai‘ai a ka ‘ohu häli‘i pa‘a i laila

Pue ana i ka ‘ehuwai pupu‘u i ke ko‘eko‘e

Eia iho ka mehana o ka poli o Hi‘ilei

E ö e ka wahine hele lä o Kaiona

Alualua waili‘ulä o ke kaha pua ‘öhai

‘O ka ua lani pölua pö anu o ke Ko‘olau

Ku‘u hoa o ka malu kï malu kukui o Kaho‘iwai

She breathes the cool and refreshing air

Chilled is her skin by the Pö‘aihala Rain

She wears the mokihana, the adornment of Kaiona

She shivers in the cold, the chilly cold of California

She delights and is pleased with the creeping strawberries

And the cold mist that spreads and enfolds her

She remains with great love that comes from within

From her great heart whose depths cannot be measured

At the waterfall of Niagara she saw the rainbow arch

And the mist that spread all around there

She shrank from the water spray, shivered in the cold

And found warmth in the bosom of Hi‘ilei

Answer, O lady who walks in the sunshine of Kaiona

Where mirages dance on the ‘öhai covered plain

In the very foggy rain on the cold night of Ko‘olau

My companion of kï and kukui grove of Kaho‘iwai

Queen of Our Hearts

aahirano — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 20:14:33 +0000

Did you know that this year as we celebrate Founder’s Day on December 19, we are really celebrating Ke Ali‘i Pauahi’s 177th brithday? This year’s Founder’s Day is also the 121st year since the beginning of our school.

Each year the seniors in their last Founder’s Day celebration offer up their voices in the mele “Pauahi Ke Ali‘i”, composed by Kamehameha Schools for Girls music teacher, Cordelia Clymer Yarndley. In this mele she lists the virtures of Pauahi and of the gift ke Akua provided for us through her.

Blest type of womanhood,

So true, so pure, so good

Thy praise we sing,

Thy praise we sing.

For bounteous gifts and free,

In all around we see.

Of what God gave to thee,

Full hearts we bring.

Pauahi Ke Ali‘i,

Loyal we bend to thee.

Queen of our hearts,

Queen of our hearts.

Alohas loud resound,

From all these hill around

Where e’er thy name is found,

Where still thou art.

Ever thy spirit dear,

Dwell in thy people here

Thou lovest so well,

Thou lovest so well.

Ever thine influence grand

In youth of this bright land

A joyous loving band

Most richly dwell.

Pauahi Ke Ali‘i

Stories to Tell

aahirano — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 19:06:52 +0000

Did you know there are is a Micronesian connection to the US Civil War?

This and many more interesting stories about Hawaiian whaling in the Pacific is the focus of a nine part series being created by the Hawai‘i Department of Education’s Teleschool Branch. Check out the link below to see some of the episode of “Stories to Tell”.

Stories to Tell

Pacific Clues

aahirano — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 19:01:39 +0000

Have you ever wondered about the kupuna islands of Papahänaumokuäkea, the remote valleys of Moloka‘i or the ancient heiau of Hawai‘i? Filmmaker Ann Marie Kirk is currently working on pieces that unlock the clues of these marvels of our island home and beyond into the Pacific region. These pieces air on Hawai‘i Public Television and can be viewed on the DOE’s teleschool website after it airs on TV. Check out the link below for the Pacific Clues episodes already on the web.

Pacific Clues

Waiawi decision is tough for OHA

aahirano — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 18:53:20 +0000

Most of us who grew up here in Hawai‘i have at some point used waiawï. I remember eating it off the tree in my grandma’s yard. Picking the rotting fruit from the ground and pelting my friends with it (hoping it would burst on contact and leave the seeds on their clothes). We have now learned that it is an invasive species and are looking at ways of controlling it.

What do you think of this current plan to bring in another alien species to control it? Read the article below from the Hawai’i Tribune-Herald for more information.

by Nancy Cook Lauer
Stephens Honolulu Bureau

Published: Thursday, October 16, 2008 9:18 AM HST

Agency set to endorse strawberry guava control plan, even though some Native Hawaiians oppose it

HONOLULU — The Office of Hawaiian Affairs is set to endorse a plan to release alien insects on the Big Island to control strawberry guava, even as it acknowledges that some Native Hawaiians are in opposition.

OHA’s Joint Committee on Beneficiary Advocacy and Empowerment unanimously approved the plan Wednesday. The full board is expected to give final approval Thursday.

“This is something that needs to be done. It’s a major problem,” said Robert Lindsey Jr., OHA trustee representing Hawaii County. “We’ve got major invasive species issues we’ve got to deal with on the Big Island.”

The U.S. Forest Service has applied for a permit to release a Brazilian scale insect, Tectococcus ovatus, to control strawberry guava, also known as waiawi, beginning with the Olaa Forest Reserve on the Big Island, then moving statewide. The insect has been tested at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park quarantine facility for six years, and observations in Brazil have been ongoing since 1993.

Scientists say the aphid-like insect spreads slowly and will keep the guava from fruiting and spreading, not eliminate it.

But public opposition remains. The Big Island Kanaka Council voted to oppose the release of the insect, and hearings earlier this year in Hilo did little to calm nerves. Opponents worry that the scale insect could go the way of the mongoose, becoming more of a problem than the pest it is imported to control.

The Hawaii Conservation Alliance had asked OHA to get on board to help defray fears, especially around OHA land holdings in Wao Kele o Puna and Waimea Valley. Public hearings will be scheduled on the Big Island sometime in the near future, said Forest Service Research Entomologist Tracy Johnson, who is working to complete a required environmental assessment prior to release of the insect.

“The hunting community on Hawaii Island … there have been objections, certainly the strawberry guava is a food source for pigs,” said OHA Land Management Director Jonathan Likeke Scheuer. “Hunting, because of conservation efforts, has been restricted on Hawaii Island over the last couple of decades, and so folks in the hunting community, even though hunting opportunities have actually remained quite abundant, have felt threatened by various conservation efforts that are going to impact their ability to go hunt. That’s been one source of resistance to this.”

Waiawi is also supported by many of Portuguese ancestry who value the fruit to make jelly and woodworkers who consider it a useful hardwood.

However, it is extremely invasive and detrimental to the native forests, scientists say. It crowds out native species, harbors fruit flies that cost agriculture millions in eradication efforts and creates muddy footprints that interfere with the natural water recharge of the forest floor.

E-mail Nancy Cook Lauer at nclauer@stephensmedia.com.

Protected: Nä Mele Kumu

aahirano — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 17:36:49 +0000

Moena KÜ‘Ë

aahirano — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 18:04:30 +0000

Even in times of oppression our kupuna found ways to support the kingdom. While Lili‘uokalani was imprisoned in the palace, loyalist would give her flowers wrapped in newspaper to keep her informed of the happenings in the community. Here are a few pictures of a woven mat with words of support for the queen woven into the design.

Nüpepa ‘Ölelo Hawai‘i

aahirano — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 00:33:42 +0000

The link below will take you to the online database of Hawaiian Langauge newspapers.

nupepa