Ali’i / Chiefs / Governance | Page 29

November 29, 2023 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kauwā

At the time of European contact in 1778, Hawaiian society comprised four levels. People were born into specific social classes; social mobility was not unknown, but it was extremely rare.

The kapu system separated people into four groups: Aliʻi, the ruling class of chiefs and nobles (kings, high chiefs, low chiefs); Kahuna, the priests (who conducted religious ceremonies at the heiau and elsewhere) and master craftsmen; Maka‘āinana, commoners (the largest group) those who lived on the land; and Kauwā (or Kauā), social outcasts, “untouchables”.

“[T]he Paramount Chief (Ali’i Nui) fulfilled the role of father to this people … At the other extreme of the social order were the despised kauwā, who were outcasts …”

“… compelled to live in a barren locality apart from the tribesmen or people “belonging to the land” (ma-ka-‘aina-na), and whose only function and destiny was to serve as human sacrifices to the Ali’i’s war god Ku when a Luakini or war temple was dedicated in anticipation of a season of fighting.” (Handy & Pukui)

“The kauwā class were so greatly dreaded and abhorred that they were not allowed to enter any house but that of their master, because they were spoken of as the aumakua of their master.”

“Men and women who were kauwā were said to be people from the wild woods (nahelehele), from the lowest depths (no lalo liio loa).” (Malo) The word kauwā “was used in historic times to mean servant, but originally it meant outcast.”

“There was a landless class of people who were probably the descendants of aborigines found already settled in the Hawaiian Islands when the migrants from the south came and their chiefs established themselves as overlords.”

“In the district of Ka‘u on the island of Hawaii the Kauwā were confined to a small infertile reservation. This reservation was the dry, rocky west half of the ahupua’a named Ninole, which is near Punalu‘u.”

“For a makaainana or ali‘i to walk on kauwā land was forbidden. Whoever did so became defiled and was put to death. However, a kauwā, with head covered under a scarf of tapa and eyes downcast, might go to the chief in case of need.”

“When in need of a victim for human sacrifice at the war temple a priest would go to the boundary of the kauwā reservation and summon a victim. The man summoned could not refuse.”

“If a kauwā woman gave birth to a child sired by an ali’i the child was strangled; and the same was true of a child born to a chiefess whose father was a kauwā.” (Handy, Handy & Pukui)

Kepelino gives a detailed description of kauwā under the title ‘The Slave Class,’ as follows: “The slaves or kauwā were people set apart from the rest and treated like filthy beasts. They could not associate with other men. They were called ‘corpses,’ that is, foul-smelling things.”

“They were not allowed to marry outside their own class. If they were married and bore children to one not a slave, then all those children would have their necks wrung lest disgrace come to the family and the blot be handed down to their descendants.”

“The slaves were considered an evil here in Hawaii. They increased rapidly, – a thousand or more there were. They continued to give birth from the time of their ancestors until the present time, they could not become extinct.”

“They are not a laboring class; they were not selected to serve the chiefs; but on the tabu days of the heiau [anciently] they were killed as offering to the idols.”

“The slaves occupied themselves with their own work. They had a separate piece of land given them by their masters where they built houses and sought a livelihood for themselves by farming and fishing.”

“This land was tabu. Those not slaves could not till there or use its products. The commoner who trespassed on the land was put to death.”

“The slaves were so tabu that they could not bare their heads but must cover themselves with a wide piece of tapa with great humility and never look up.”

“They were so tabu that they were not permitted to enter the house-lot of other men. If they wished for anything they came outside the enclosure and spoke. But to the place of their Chief who was their master they were at liberty to go.”

“The slaves were very different in old times, a humble people, kind and gentle. They worked for a living much like those who work under contract, but they were despised in Hawaii and are so to this day, they are not regarded as like other people.”

“There were slave lands in every district of the islands, as, for example, Ka-lae-mamo in Kona on Hawaii, Makeanehu in Kohala, and so forth.” (Kepelino)

“When the ancient system of kapu was abandoned in Liholiho’s reign, the humiliation of the kauwā ended, and they merged with the maka‘ainana gradually over the years.” (Handy, Handy & Pukui)

November 27, 2023 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Lei Niho Palaoa

The ornaments of the nobility consisted of head-dresses of feathers, palaoas, or charms of bone suspended from the neck, and necklaces and bracelets of shells. (Kalakaua)

The lei niho palaoa were among the most significant symbols of rank in Hawai‘i. (Bishop Museum)

The koholā or whale was formerly called the palaoa. (Malo) “The whale is the largest ocean creature and a majestic manifestation of Kanaloa.

From the ivory of this creature. The highly prized ‘Palaoa’ or whale-tooth pendant is carved. This palaoa wa only worn by ali‘I of highest rank.” (Kanahele)

The scarcity of the palaoa and its connection to Kanaloa brought mana to the carver, to the pendant itself and eventually to the wearer of the pendant.

The aliʻi who possessed this kinolau or body form of the great God would himself/herself acquire the characteristics, intelligence and knowledge of the God. Therefore, it would be advantageous for any aliʻi to secure the ivory whale-tooth of this Kanaloa body form. (KIRC)

The carved hook pendant is strung on thousands of finely braided strands of human hair. These significant lei were worn by Ali‘i of both genders. These whale teeth were collected from carcass that would wash ashore at specific places in the islands. (Bishop Museum)

The carved form of the lei niho palaoa pendant mimics the shape of a protruding tongue. It alludes to the genealogical right of the chiefs to speak for and rule their people.

The pendant is suspended on coils of finely braided human hair. As hair contains mana, or divine power, a chief wearing a lei niho palaoa carried the mana of his or her ancestors, as well as that of the gods.

The term lei niho palaoa has evolved over time to refer to the symbolic representation of the pendant, and not necessarily the material from which they were made.

Many lei niho palaoa worn by members of high rank in Hawaiian society were crafted from materials such as bone or coral. However, lei niho palaoa made of sperm whale ivory were reserved only for the highest of aliʻi, or chiefs. One such Lei Niho Palaoa was Nalukoki. This was Ke‘eaumoku’s – father of Ka‘ahumanu.

Following Kalaniʻōpuʻu’s death in 1782, the chiefdom was inherited by his son Kīwalaʻō; Kamehameha (Kīwalaʻō’s cousin) was given guardianship of the Hawaiian god of war, Kūkaʻilimoku.)

Dissatisfied with subsequent redistricting of the lands by district chiefs, civil war ensued between Kīwalaʻō’s forces and the various chiefs under the leadership of Kamehameha.

At the first major skirmish, the battle of Mokuʻōhai (a fight between Kamehameha and Kiwalaʻo in July, 1782 at Keʻei, south of Kealakekua Bay on the Island of Hawaiʻi).

During the battle, “When Kīwala‘ō saw this high chief of Hawai‘i being thrust at by the men surrounding him, he called out in a hoarse voice: ‘Ea, be careful in thrusting the spear! Take care lest the niho (lei niho palaoa) be smeared with blood.’”

“When Ke‘eaumoku heard Kīwala‘ō’s first words, he thought he was to be saved, because of the command to be careful in thrusting the spears. When Kīwala‘ō uttered the last words, he realized he was in danger since the niho palaoa he was wearing was the source of Kīwala‘ō’s concern, lest it be soiled with blood.”

“This famous lei niho palaoa was named Nalukoki. Kīwala‘ō greatly prized it for it had been skillfully made of the hair of some famous ali‘i of Hawai‘i Nei, and if it had been soiled with blood its excellence would have been impaired.”

“At this moment, Kamanawa, one of the sacred twins of Kekaulike, saw Ke‘eaumoku’s danger. He quickly moved his men to where Ke‘eaumoku lay, and a heated battle was begun between his men and those of Kīwala‘ō.”

“In the midst of this heated battle a stone flew and struck Kīwala‘ō on the temple so that he fell close to where Ke‘eaumoku lay. When some of Kīwala‘ō’s chiefs saw the harm that had befallen their ali‘i ‘ai moku, they were weakened and began to retreat.”

Kīwala‘ō was not killed when struck by the stone, but had been stunned. “Ke‘eaumoku regained his strength and moved to where Kīwala‘ō lay.”

“He then said these words to the people who were listening: ‘I shall care for the body of the ali‘i.’ At the same time he seized the body of the faint Kīwala‘ō who was lying there, and with the leiomano in his hands, he slashed open Kīwala‘ō’s belly so that his entrails gushed forth and he died instantly.” (Desha)

“When Keōua and his chiefs realized that Kīwala‘ō was dead and they saw the slaughter of their men by Kamehameha’s warriors, they ran and leaped into the sea and swam to the canoes which awaited them.” (Desha)

After a struggle of more than ten years, in 1791, Kamehameha succeeded in securing control over that island of Hawaiʻi (and later, the entire Hawaiian Islands chain.)

November 24, 2023 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

‘Maitai – maitai no!’

“I never before saw Kaʻahumanu more excited. She seemed scarce able to command her feelings; and before Mr. Southard’s letter was finished, her eyes were filled with tears.”

“‘Maitai – maitai no!’ ‘good – good indeed!’ uttered with the quick tone in which he usually speaks when pleased, was the hasty comment of the king; while the females, with bright faces, re-echoed the approbation, ‘maitai no — maitai no!’” (Stewart)

Such was the reception upon hearing the kind thoughts of US President John Quincy Adams (6th President of the US,) as written by Samuel Lewis Southard, Secretary of the Navy (January 20, 1829.) (It was delivered by Captain William Compton Bolton Finch, commander of the Vincennes.)

The president “has heard, with interest and admiration, of the rapid progress which has been made by your people, in acquiring a knowledge of letters and of the True Religion-the Religion of the Christian’s Bible.”

“These are the best, and the only means, by which the prosperity and happiness of nations can be advanced and continued; and the president, and all men every where, who wish well to yourself and your people, earnestly hope that you will continue to cultivate them, and to protect and encourage those by whom they are brought to you.”

“The president also anxiously hopes that peace, and kindness, and justice, will prevail between your people and those citizens of the United States who visit your islands; and that the regulations of your government will be such as to enforce them upon all.”

“Our citizens who violate your laws, or interfere with your regulations, violate at the same their duty to their own government and country, and merit censure and punishment. We have heard with pain that this has sometimes been the case; and we have sought to know and to punish those who are guilty.”

“The president salutes you with respect, and wishes you peace, happiness, and prosperity.” (Saml L Southard, Secretary of the Navy, January 20, 1829)

Kauikeaouli (King Kamehameha III) asked Finch to convey his own letter addressed to the President (November 23, 1829,) that said:

“Best affection to you, the chief magistrate of America. This is my sentiment for you; I have joy and gratitude towards you on account of your kind regard for me. I now know the excellence of your communicating to me that which is right and true. I approve with admiration the justness and faultlessness of your word.”

“I now believe that your thoughts and ours are alike, both those countries and these countries, and all large countries. We are the children—the little islands far off in this tropical climate.”

“We have recently had an interview with Captain Finch, with joyfulness and with sentiments of kindness and pleasure towards him. I do now hope there will be a perfect agreement between you and us – as to the rights and duties of both of our governments …”

“… that the peace now subsisting between us may be perpetual, that the seat of our prosperity may be broad, and our union of heart in things that are right such, that the highways of the ocean may not diverge, because there is a oneness of sentiment in our hearts, with those distant countries, these islands, and all lands.”

“May our abiding by justice triumphantly prevail, that all who come hither may be correct in deportment, and all who go thither from this country.”

“This is my desire, that you and we may be of the same mind. Such, too, is my hope that we may pursue the same course, that we may nourish, and that true prosperity may rest perpetually on all the nations of the world, in which we dwell.”

“Look ye on us with charity; we have formerly been extremely dark-minded, and ignorant of the usages of enlightened countries. You are the source of intelligence and light. This is the origin of our minds being a little enlightened—the arrival here of the word of God.”

“This is the foundation of a little mental improvement which we have recently made, that we come to know a little of what is right, and of the customs of civilized nations. On this account do we greatly rejoice at the present time.”

“I give you thanks, too, for your bestowing kindly on me the globes and the map of your country, to be a means of mental improvement for me, and also for your other presents to my friends, who rejoice with me in the reception of the favors which you have granted them.”

“Long life to you in this world, and lasting blessedness to you and us in the world to come.” (Signed) Kauikeaouli Tamehameha III. (Stewart)

John_Quincy_Adams-Kauikeaouli-(Kamehameha_III)-400

November 15, 2023 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Inventions

On November 16, 1836, in High Chief ‘Aikanaka’s compound of many grass structures for cooking, eating, gathering, and retainers’ quarters was one larger hut in which lay Keohokalole, awaiting the birth of her second born. The first child had died at birth.

The great prophetess and High Chiefess Liliha had said it would be a man child, and he would live. “From this child, the bones of our ancestors will have life.” She also said that he would see the demise of the Kamehamehas.

The child about to be born was promised in hānai to Liliha. ʻAikanaka thought Liliha was the perfect hānai for his daughters’ child.

Liliha was particularly pleased with this hānai. She and her husband, Boki, had no sons. Liliha had two daughters; Abigail and Jane Louea. But she had seen great things in her prophesies for the child who was soon to be her hānai.

The chanters began their mele. The child’s ancestry was extolled: His mother was descended from Keawe-a-Heulu and his father was the grandson of Kame‘eiamoku. The two had been trusted warriors and close advisors to Kamehameha l.

The child was born – news traveled quickly, and suddenly the compound was crowded with people, rejoicing, singing, dancing. Kīna’u had come to name the child. It was her privilege.

Children were named by notable historical events, which would date their birth. Kīna’u decreed; Kalakaua, “Battle Day.” History and the ancients give the complete name as Laamea Kamanakapuu Mahinulani Nalolaekalani Lumia-Lani Kalakaua.

Liliha came to collect her hānai child. Then Kīna’u stepped between her and the child. “The child is to go to Ha‘aheo” she decreed. Liliha protested bitterly but knew she could not win, for Kīna’u’s word was law in this matter.

The tiny Kalakaua was wrapped in kapa and taken by his hānai mother, Ha‘aheo, to the royal grounds, followed by the entourage of Kïna‘u.

Kalakaua was given to a kahu [a wet nurse] to be fed and nurtured. His warm infancy was, however, short-lived, for Ha‘aheo died a year later and Kinimaka, her husband, took the baby to live in Lahaina.

However, he lived only a short time on the palace grounds there – as Kinimaka’s high chief linage was less than his late wife’s. Kinimaka moved to a frame house on the outskirts of Lahaina. Within the year he married a Tahitian woman, Pai, who welcomed Kalakaua with love and tenderness.

When Kalakaua was nearly four, his biological mother, who served on the King’s privy council with one of the most powerful woman in Hawaii, Konia, the granddaughter of Kamehameha l, appealed to her to have Kalakaua sent to the High Chiefs’ Children’s School in Honolulu.

Kalakaua was admitted to the school, but not before he was baptized and given the name “David.” Hence, David Kalakaua. In 1839, when Kalakaua entered the school, the three throne-aligned princes were also attending: Moses, twelve; Lot, ten; and Alexander Liholiho, nine.

After Kalakaua left the High Chiefs’ School, he attended the George Beckwith Royal School. At the age of fourteen, Kalakaua returned to his blood father, Kapa‘akea.

In 1853, at the age of seventeen, Kalakaua began his study of Law under Charles Coffin Harris. Enchanted by the young man, Harris took him into his home to live. It was Kalakaua’s years with Harris that formulated his legalistic oratory.

In 1855, life changed considerably for this young man. Kamehameha III died on December 15, 1854, and after a period of mourning, Alexander Liholiho became King as Kamehameha IV.

Kalakaua was attracted to Julia Kapiolani; she was educated in both English and Hawaiian and spoke only Hawaiian and was thoroughly Hawaiian oriented. She was described as lovely, shy and gracious.

Julia Kapiolani was of high chiefly background; she was born December 31, 1834, in Hilo, Hawaii, of High Chief Kūhiō and High Chiefess Kinoiki. She was named in honor of the first High Chiefess to defy the Goddess Pele.

From her early teens she was under the custody of Kamehameha III and had been a member of the court. In 1852, when she was eighteen, she married Benet Namakeha, thirty years her senior. They had both gone on a missionary expedition to Micronesia.

A year later they returned to the court of Kamehameha IV. Shortly after her arrival in Hawaii, Kapiolani become widowed, and her path constantly crossed Kalakaua’s.

On December 8, 1863, Kalakaua’s romance with Julia Kapiolani crystallized, and they were married in a quiet, secret ceremony by an Episcopal minister.

By the 1870s, Kalakaua was beginning to feel the pressure of poverty. The Kalakaua family did not have the riches of the Kamehamehas. Kalakaua’s government salaries were low and his talent for making money was negligible.

But as Queen Emma wrote that with Kalakaua’s “faults we must give him credit for great ambition — he has faltered but keeps on trying. He is not idle, he has stumbled and blundered before the public till actually he really has gained courage amongst the and speak out and write boldly.”

Emma’s reference to Kalakaua’s faults, faltering, stumbling, and blundering referred to Kalakaua’s disastrous tenure as postmaster and his engagement in newspaper work. Along with his political duties, Kalakaua’s dreams and interests were with the arts and in writing.

In the early-1870s, with a young wife to support, Kalakaua reached for a means to support himself beyond his salaries as chamberlain, attorney (he passed the bar in 1871), and as clerk in the Land Office.

He became an inventor. Remembering the wonderful ships he had visited years before, he turned his attention to naval defense. He wrote Dom Pedro, Emperor of Brazil on Sept 19, 1872 for funds to build a torpedo-proof vessel. (Kelley)

“‘I flatter myself,’ Kalakaua wrote, ‘among the inventors of instruments of naval warfare to have invented a submarine torpedo for the destruction of an enemy vessel advancing on a hostile coast …’ and went on to cite its versatility, practicality and effectiveness.”

“‘The important feature of the invention is the direct action of destruction and the sure annihilation of anything crossing its way . . . I may safely assert that there is nothing afloat (with) the thickness of iron armor and carrying a plate of three to four inches thick at the ships bottom, save the invention proposed by me, and submitted to the British Government …’”

“Kalakaua tried to cover all possibilities for funding, it seems, and submitted a request for patronage to Queen Victoria as well. ‘I have refrained from sending a model, as it would be liable to miscarriage.’ Kalakaua did, however, send detailed drawings of his proposed vessel …”

“‘I am, Sire, with the most profound respects,’ Kalakaua closed the letter, ‘your Imperial Majesty’s most obedient and humble Servant. David Kalakaua, chief of staff and aide camp to His Majesty the King of Hawaii. Knight Companion to the Order of Kamehameha I, Knight Commander of the Order of His Imperial Majesty Francis Joseph of Austria.”

“Either the emperor of Brazil was also suffering from a general flatness of the purse or his fancy was not captured by Kalakaua’s flowery descriptions and entreaty because Kalakaua’s Torpedo Proof Vessel and Torpedo apparently never did get off the drawing board.”

“Kalakaua also tried his hand at designing a sort of semi-submerged, steam-propelled ship battering ram, a ‘Fish Ram’ …. It was shaped like a fish with the steam emitting from the half of the tail which protruded above the water. The battering ram was the elongated snout of the fish, and a compass was inset just where the fish’s eye would be.”

“His most practical invention [was] a bottle cap, much like the plastic caps that you can pick up today …. The cap has a loop which fits around the neck of an opened bottle.”

“The cap is attached to the loop and fits snugly over the mouth of the bottle. Kalakaua designed his ‘improved bottle (stopper) cover’ Nov. 16. 1872, at Kaalaa.” (Brown, Star Bulletin)

Kalakaua reigned as King of the Islands from February 12, 1874 until his death in San Francisco, California, on January 20, 1891.

November 3, 2023 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Mo‘o-kahuna

There were two orders of temple priests, known as kahuna (experts), or kahuna pule (experts in praying). These were the priests of Ku, the war god, and the priests of Lono, the rain god who was lord of agriculture and of peace.

Each order or ‘school’ of priests had its distinctive genealogy, the mo‘o-Ku and the mo‘o-Lono. These were priests in charge of temple worship. As a caste, the priests of both gods were the mo‘o-kahuna.

Malo describes the two orders of the priesthood as follows: ‘There were two rituals which the king in his eminent station used in the worship of the gods; one was the ritual of Ku, the other that of Lono.’

‘The Ku ritual was very strict (oolea), the service most arduous (ikaika). The priests of this rite were distinct from others and outranked them.’

‘They were called priests of the order of Ku, because Ku was the highest god whom the king worshipped in following their ritual. They were also called priests of the order of Kanalu, because that was the name of their first priestly ancestor. These two names were their titles of highest distinction.’

‘The Lono ritual was milder, the service more comfortable. Its priests were, however, of a separate order and of an inferior grade. They were said to be of the order of Lono (mo‘o-Lono), because Lono was the chief object of the king’s worship when he followed the ritual. The priests of this ritual were also said to be of the order of Paliku.’ (Malo)

The priesthood of Lono traced its origin to Paliku, the great erect cliff (pali-ku) of the massive promontory named Kane-hoa-lani at the midpoint of the windward coast of Oahu.

The birthplace of Kamapua‘a was on the uplands above Ka-lua-nui Valley, a few miles southeast of Kane-hoa-lani. (Handy and Handy)

Palikū is recognized as the place of the first heiau (traditional Hawaiian religious temple) during the time of Haumea and Wākea and associated with an ancient cultural context that later underwent significant evolution.

When a great tidal wave swept Haumea, Wākea, and all of their followers out to sea, Wākea was instructed, presumably by the god Lono, ‘to cup his hands together to represent a heiau, then he caught a humuhumu-nukunukuapua‘a fish [triggerfish with a pig-like snout] . . . and stuck it head first into the cupped hands to represent a pig’. (Handy and Handy).

The followers repeated Wākea’s actions, and then the sea washed all of them ashore.

In gratitude to Lono, a temple was constructed at Palikū, and an order of priests called Mo‘o-kuauhau-o-Lono (literally “genealogical line of Lono”) was responsible for religious proceedings at this temple. (Malo)

Handy and Handy reported that the priestly order known as Palikū formerly performed rituals at temples called māpele.

Malo explains that any heiau erected by an ali‘i nui who followed the ritual of Lono was termed a mapele. The timber used in constructing the house of worship, the storied tower (lana-nu‘u-mamao) and the enclosure, would be lama wood, a native ebony (lama was selected because the word suggests enlightenment), and ti leaf served as thatching.

Māpele is defined as ‘thatched heiau. (temple) for the worship of Lono and the increase of food’ (Lono was god of abundance as well as of rain and storm). (Handy and Handy)

“The mapele was a thatched heiau in which to ask the gods blessing on the crops. Human sacrifices were not made at this heiau; pigs only were used as offerings.”

“The timber … used in the construction of the house, the fence about the grounds, and that used in constructing the lananuu-mamao was lama, and it was thatched with the leaves of the ti plant. There were also idols.”

“Any chief in rank below the king was at liberty to construct a mapele heiau, an unu o Lono, a kukoae, or an aka, but not a luakini. The right to build a luakini belonged to the king alone. The mapele, however, was the kind of heiau in which the chiefs and the king himself prayed most frequently.”

“The luakini was a war temple, heiau-wai-kaua, which the king, in his capacity as ruler over all, built when he was about to make war upon another independent monarch, or when he heard that some other king was about to make war against him; also when he wished to make the crops flourish he might build a luakini.”

“Luakini (was a) heiau of the highest class, a war-temple, in which human sacrifices were offered; named from a pit, lua, and kini, many; into which the mouldering remains were finally cast.” (Malo)

“When the people and the priests saw that the services of the luakini were well conducted, then they began to have confidence in the stability of the government, and they put up other places of worship, such as the Mapele, the Kukoea, the Hale-o-Lono.”

“These heiaus were of the kind known as hoouluulu (hoouluulu ai = to make food grow), and were to bring rain from heaven and make the crops abundant, bringing wealth to the people, blessing to the government, prosperity to the land.” (Malo)