Images of Old Hawaiʻi

  • Home
  • About
  • Archive
    • Ali’i / Chiefs / Governance
    • Buildings
    • Economy
    • Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings
    • General
    • Hawaiian Traditions
    • Military
    • Place Names
    • Prominent People
    • Schools
    • Sailing, Shipping & Shipwrecks
  • Contact
  • Subscribe

April 9, 2017 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Ka Huakaʻi o ka Pō

“The first thing you will hear is drums in the distance, then you will smell a foul and musky odor, and you will hear a conch shell being blown, for fair warning to get out of the way, and you will see torches getting brighter and brighter as they get closer.”

“Your best chance is to have an ancestor that recognizes you, they will call out,’Na‘u!’ which means mine. But if you are in the night marchers’ bloodline no one in the procession can harm you.”

“No matter what you build in their path they go straight through it. The night marchers are the vanguard for a sacred chief or chiefess who unusually have a high station in life.” (Kapanui)

Here’s a recount …

“One night just after nightfall about seven or eight in the evening, he was on his way when of a sudden he saw a long line of marchers in the distance coming toward him. He climbed over a stone wall and sat very still.”

“As they drew near he saw that they walked four abreast and were about seven feet tall nor did their feet touch the ground. One of the marchers stepped out of the line and ran back and forth on the other side of the wall behind which he crouched as if to protect him from the others.”

“As each file passed he heard voices call out ‘Strike!’ and his protector answer ‘No! no! he is mine!’ No other sounds were to be heard except the call to strike and the creak of a ma-ne-le (string hammock.) He was not afraid and watched the marchers closely.”

“There were both men and women in the procession. After a long line of marchers four abreast had passed there came the ma-ne-le bearers, two before and two behind. On the litter sat a very big man whom he guessed at once to be a chief. Following the litter were other marchers walking four abreast. After all had passed his protector joined his fellows.”

“A month later the same young man went to call on some friends and was returning home late at night. Not far from the spot where he had met the marchers before was a level flat of ground and drawing near to the spot he heard the sound of an ipu drum and of chanting.”

“He came close enough to see and recognize many of the men and women whom he had seen on the previous march as he had sat behind the stone wall.”

“He was delighted with the chanting and drumming, with the dancing of the ala‘apapa by the women and the mokomoko wrestling and other games of the past by the men.”

“As he sat watching he heard someone say, ‘There is the grandson of Kekuanoi!’ – ‘Never mind! we do not mind him!’ said another. This was the name of a grandfather of his who lived on the beach and he knew that he himself was being discussed.”

“For a couple of hours he sat watching before he went home. His grandfather at home had sun it all; he said, ‘I know that you have been with our people of the night; I saw you sitting by watching the sports.’”

“Then he related to his grandfather what he had seen on the two nights when he met the chiefs and warriors of old.” (Kona resident, as told by Pukui in Kepelino’s Traditions; Beckwith)

The sight of the procession of Ka huaka‘i o ka Pō (‘Marchers of the Night’) “is said to be fatal unless one has a relative among the dead to intercede for him.”

“If a man is found stricken by the roadside a white doctor will pronounce the cause as heart failure, but a Hawaiian will think at once of the fatal night march.” (Pukui, Kepelino’s Traditions; Beckwith)

“The time for the march is between half after seven when the sun has actually set and about two in the morning before the dawn breaks.”

“It may occur on one of the four nights of the gods, on Ku, Akua, Lono, Kane, or on the nights of Kaloa. Those who took part in the march were the chiefs and warriors who had died, the aumakua, and the gods, each of whom had their own march.” (Pukui, Kepelino’s Traditions; Beckwith)

“There are several types of Marchers. The gods may be distinguished by a wind that blows through the forests or shrubbery. The wind snaps off branches of great trees to clear the path for the gods.”

“The march of the gods is led by a row of six who carry blazing red torches. Three of the torch carriers are females and three are males. The sound clearly heard within their ranks is the chanting of their names and chants of praise.”

“Kane is the night on which the Marchers in the Night most often consist of dead chiefs, chiefesses, priests and their close attendants. Again, a Hawaiian conceals himself for it is death to be seen by the Marchers.”

“The chief’s procession are lighted by torches, but the light of the torches is not as great as that of the gods. A warlike chief is apt to march in the procession between two warriors.”

“In all these processions, a man who had held a similar position in life, marches at the head of the column calling kapu to warn the living to get out of the way. It is his duty to execute any living being caught in the path.”

“Many Hawaiians have never seen the processions but they have heard the music of the flute, the beating of the drums and the chanting which goes on at the heiau at the end of a procession.”

“Sometimes the procession of chiefs will end on a level piece of ground which in ancient days served as a place for sports tourneys. There the chiefs and attendants play their favorite old games to the loud sound of laughing and cheering.”

“Ancient Hawaiians knew just where the paths were located which were the favorite courses of the Marchers in the Night.” (Taylor)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook 

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn  

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

© 2017 Hoʻokuleana LLC

night-marchers-mansson
night-marchers-mansson

Filed Under: Hawaiian Traditions Tagged With: Hawaii, Ka Huakai o ka Po, Night Marchers

August 22, 2013 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kīpapa Gulch

Place names help tell the stories of the place.

During the reign of Māʻilikūkahi, who ruled in the 1400-1500s (at about the same time Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic,), invaders from Hawai‘i and Maui arrived on O‘ahu.

In the battles, the O‘ahu forces met the opposing forces in the uplands of Waipi‘o, and a great battle occurred.

Māʻilikūkahi was raised partly in Waialua and is said to have maintained a kulanakauhale (village) there.

Fornander writes, “He (Māʻilikūkahi) caused the island to be thoroughly surveyed, and boundaries between differing divisions and lands be definitely and permanently marked out, thus obviating future disputes between neighboring chiefs and landholders.”

Kamakau tells a similar story, “When the kingdom passed to Māʻilikūkahi, the land divisions were in a state of confusion; the ahupuaʻa, the ku, the ʻili ʻāina, the moʻo ʻāina, the pauku ʻāina, and the kihāpai were not clearly defined.”

“Therefore, Māʻilikūkahi ordered the chiefs, aliʻi, the lesser chiefs, kaukau aliʻi, the warrior chiefs, puʻali aliʻi, and the overseers (luna) to divide all of Oʻahu into moku, ahupuaʻa, ʻili kupono, ʻili ʻāina, and moʻo ʻāina.”

What is commonly referred to as the “ahupuaʻa system” is a result of the firm establishment of palena (boundaries.)  This system of land divisions and boundaries enabled a konohiki (land/resource manager) to know the limits and productivity of the resources that they managed – and increase its productivity.

Māʻilikūkahi is also known for a benevolent reign that was followed by generations of peace.   He prohibited the chiefs from plundering the makaʻāinana, with punishment of death. His reign “ushered in an era of benign rule lasting for several generations.”

Thrum notes that while Māʻilikūkahi was peacefully disposed, he proved to be a brave defender of his realm in thoroughly defeating the invading forces.

Fornander suggests it was not considered a war between the two islands, but, rather, it was a raid by some restless and turbulent chiefs.  The invading force first landed at Waikīkī and proceeded to ʻEwa and marched inland.

At Waikakalaua (an upland ʻili of Waikele) they met Māʻilikūkahi and his forces, and a bloody battle ensued. The fight continued from there to the Kīpapa gulch – stretching across Kīpapa (an ʻili of Waipiʻo,) Waikakalaua and the place known as Punaluʻu.

Tradition has it that the body count from the invaders was so great that it is said the area was paved (kīpapa “placed prone”) with their bodies.

Punaluʻu, an upland ʻili, was named for one of the invading warrior-chiefs killed during the battle. Another warrior-chief, Hilo, was also killed in the battle.

Poʻohilo (an ʻili of Honouliuli) is named from events following a battle in the Kīpapa-Waikakalaua region in which the head of Hilo was placed on a stake at this site and displayed.

Kanupo‘o (an ʻili of Waikele) may be translated as meaning, “planted skull” and seems to imply an event of some importance – it may be tied to events of the battle at Kīpapa and the naming of Po‘ohilo at Honouliuli.

Today, people suggest the gulch is ruled by the spirits of fallen warriors; there are reports that this is one of the paths of the Huakaiʻpo (night marchers) and other reports suggest a woman dressed in white hitchhiking.

The area was also a temporary home to the Naval Air Station Kipapa Field / Kipapa Army Airfield.  It was used because it could accommodate two 5,000′ runways free from obstructions (however, concerns were raised about increased air congestion due to its proximity between Pearl Harbor and Wheeler Field.)

The airfield site is located south the Mililani Golf Course between Meheula Parkway and Hokuala Streets – the runways extended out to the edge of the gulch.  Mililani District Park is located near the intersection of the 2 main runways.

The use of this site by the Navy would permit the concentration of carrier-group training for Naval aviation on the south side of the island of Oahu including Barber’s Point, Kīpapa Gulch, and Ford Island.

But it was not until sometime after the United States entered World War II that Kipapa Airfield was developed; the exact start date is not clear, but 1943 maps note the facility.

During the war it apparently saw little use by the Navy due to the fact that carrier aircraft were constantly deployed during the war.  The Army Air Corps became the principal user of the airfield by default.

Aircraft from this airfield searched & patrolled over the surrounding Pacific area, maintaining a 24-hour vigil to avert any attack with a large number and variety of squadrons are documented to have been stationed at Kipapa Airfield during World War II.

Kipapa Field was evidently closed at some point between 1959 and 1961 (it was no longer depicted on the 1961 and later mapping.)

The image shows Kipapa Gulch.   In addition, I have added other related images in a folder of like name in the Photos section on my Facebook and Google+ pages.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook  

Follow Peter T Young on Google+  

© 2013 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Place Names Tagged With: Ahupuaa, Ewa, Hawaii, Huakaipo, Kipapa, Mailikukahi, Mililani, Night Marchers, Oahu, Waikele

Images of Old Hawaiʻi

People, places, and events in Hawaiʻi’s past come alive through text and media in “Images of Old Hawaiʻi.” These posts are informal historic summaries presented for personal, non-commercial, and educational purposes.

Info@Hookuleana.com

Connect with Us

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

  • Pau …
  • Missionary Period
  • Transformation of Waimea, South Kohala, Hawaiʻi
  • St. Andrew’s Priory
  • Kewalo Basin
  • Kamehameha’s Haoles
  • Kolo Wharf

Categories

  • Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance
  • Buildings
  • Economy
  • General
  • Hawaiian Traditions
  • Military
  • Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings
  • Place Names
  • Prominent People
  • Sailing, Shipping & Shipwrecks
  • Schools
  • Voyage of the Thaddeus

Tags

American Board of Commissioners of Foreign Missions American Board of Commissioners of Foreign Missions American Protestant Missionaries Bernice Pauahi Bishop Captain Cook Downtown Honolulu Hawaii Hawaii Island Henry Opukahaia Hilo Hiram Bingham Hiram Bingham Honolulu Honolulu Harbor Iolani Palace Kaahumanu Kailua Kailua-Kona Kalakaua Kalanimoku Kamehameha Kamehameha Kamehameha III Kamehameha IV Kauai Kauikeaouli Keopuolani King Kalakaua Kona Lahaina Lahainaluna Lanai Liholiho Liliuokalani Maui Missionaries Oahu Pearl Harbor Punahou Queen Emma Queen Liliuokalani Sugar thevoyageofthethaddeus Volcano Waikiki

Hoʻokuleana LLC

Hoʻokuleana LLC is a Planning and Consulting firm assisting property owners with Land Use Planning efforts, including Environmental Review, Entitlement Process, Permitting, Community Outreach, etc. We are uniquely positioned to assist you in a variety of needs.

Info@Hookuleana.com

Never miss a post

Get future posts straight to your inbox by subscribing below.

Copyright © 2012-2016 Peter T Young, Hoʻokuleana LLC