Ho'oku'ikahi: To Unify As One
Rent from DeepDyveWhen asked by our Polynesian cousins from Aotearoa in the late 1970s where our meeting houses were, we could only answer that we had our heiau, but many hadn't been used for generations. That changed in August of 1991 as Hawaiians from across the state gathered at Pu'ukoholā Heiau to celebrate the bicentennial observance of its consecration by Kamehameha the Great, the first ali'i who unified the Hawaiian islands.
For Hawaiians, this celebration was a time of Ho'oku'ikahi, of reconciling and reuniting the descendants of the great Hawaiian chiefs who stood at the ramparts of this last great temple estate. It was an ancient murmur whispering. It was a shout to assemble, for in retelling our past, we honor our forefathers. They live through us—in our songs and our stories, and in who we are.
The celebration intended to bring two clans together who historically had been torn apart, to support those in search of their cultural roots, to honor and affirm those who continue the practices of their kūpuna, and to invite all Hawaiians searching for a united voice to come together as one at this place.
Polynesians from across the Pacific journeyed to Pu'ukoholā to support their kin, as Hawaiians came together there to honor and reclaim certain traditional protocols for the first time in seven generations.
The gods of our ancestors took many forms. From Kū is invoked the manifestation of Kūnuiakea. It was under his watch that the construction of the mighty heiau began. The heiau was erected to house another manifestation of Kū—Kūkā'ilimoku, Kū the grabber of lands.
This temple of state was to be called Pu'ukoholā: the Hill of the Whale. Rocks were passed hand to hand along human chains stretching for miles, from sources great distances away, and brought to the Hill of the Whale.
Kamehameha and the great chiefs labored until the heiau at Pu'ukoholā was completed. The walls rose up and the paehumu, the kapu enclosure; the 'anu'u, the tower; the haku 'ōhi'a, the main sacred image; and the hale mana, the largest house of the luakini heiau, were put in place. All that remained to fulfill the prophecy was to consecrate the great heiau. [End Page 190]
Click for larger view | When Keōuakū'ahu'ula's descendants voyaged to Pu'ukoholā from Ka'ū in August 1991 on the sailing canoe Hōkūle'a, they retraced their chiefly ancestor's route. "It is really important that we renew ourselves at the seventh generation, because the lord of makani, the lord of the wind, is waiting to erase your memories and everything you hold dear, at the eighth generation. And who are you? You are the eighth generation. You can choose to be anything you want. You can let your legacy be blown away. You can forget things that are Hawaiian. You have been eating from the buffet of the world. And neglect the plate of your 'ohana. Something's lost. Something can be gained—it is just right there. You have family who know how." SAM KA'AI Ka Lae, Ka'ū, Hawai'i Photograph by Franco Salmoiraghi, 1991 |
Click for larger view | En route to Pu'ukoholā, Keōuakū'ahu'ula and his escorts landed at Hōnaunau for prayer and offering at Hale o Keawe, the house where the sacred bones of high chiefs once lay. Hōnaunau, Hawai'i Photograph by Franco Salmoiraghi, 1991 |
Click for larger view | Hōnaunau, Hawai'i Photograph by Franco Salmoiraghi, 1991 |
Click for larger view | Kawaihae, Hawai'i Photograph by Franco Salmoiraghi, 1991 |
Among Kamehameha's Hawai'i rivals was his cousin from the Ka'ū district, Keōuakū'ahu'ula. He had been warring with Kamehameha for nine years, seeking absolute rule over the same lands and people of the island of...
