Hawaiian Traditions | Page 55 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

July 5, 2019 by Peter T Young 2 Comments

Kuapā Pond

Kuapā Pond, also known as Keahupuaomaunalua (“the shrine of the baby mullet at Maunalua”) was once the largest loko kuapā on O‘ahu, estimated at approximately 523-acres.

Kuapā Pond was apparently created near the end of the ice age, when the rising sea level caused the shoreline to retreat and partial erosion of the headlands adjacent to the bay formed sediment that accreted to form a barrier beach at the mouth of the pond, creating a lagoon.

Early Hawaiians used the natural lagoon as a fishpond and reinforced the natural sandbar with stone walls.

Kuapā literally means “wall of a fish pond” and a loko kuapā is one type of fishpond made by building a wall on a reef. The wall at this fishpond was about 5,000 feet long.

One of the main harvests was mullet because the combination of freshwater and shallow sand or mud flats that the ponds created were ideal for growing the algae that mullet fed off of.

Hawaiian Historian Kamakau writes of Kamehameha I participating in the restoration of the Maunalua fishpond., “While he (Kamehameha) lived on Oahu he encouraged the chiefs and commoners to raise food and he went fishing and would work himself at carrying rock or timber … He worked at the fishponds at Ka-wai-nui, Ka‘ele-pulu, Uko‘a (in Waialui,) Mauna-lua, and all about O’ahu. (Kamakau 1961:192)

In 1900, the island of Oahu had a total of 100 documented, working fishponds, providing thousands of pounds of fish for the community throughout the year.

Missionary Levi Chamberlain, during his Trip Around Oahu on June 21, 1826, noted: “I descended with my attendant, and near the shares of a large pond containing a surface of many hundred acres I came to a little settlement called Keawaawa and stopped e few moments to enquire the way & to allow my attendant the luxury of a whif of tobacco.”

“Thence I walked on by the side of the pond in a southerly direction about a mile having the eminences Mounalua (Maunalua) on my left- I then came to a narrow strip of land resembling a causeway partly natural and partly constructed extending in a Northwest direction across what appeared to be considerable of a bay forming a barrier between the sea and the pond.”

“At the further end of this causeway sluices are constructed & the waters of the sea unite with the pond and at every flood tide replenish it with a fresh supply of water. Near the middle of this causeway there is a settlement of 18 houses belonging to Kalola called Mounalua (Maunalua.)”

It is said that the pond was partially constructed by Menehune, a legendary race of small people and was connected through an underground tunnel to Kaʻelepulu fishpond in Kailua.

In J. Gilbert McAllister’s 1933 Archaeology of Oahu, he notes: “Keahupua-o-Maunalua Fishpond—The pond is said to connect by means of an underground tunnel with Kaelepulu pond in Kailua.”

“From time to time great schools of mullet disappear from the Maunalua pond and are to be found in the Kailua pond. At the same time the awa, which were in the Kailua pond, appear in the Maunalua pond. When the mullet reappear in the Maunalua pond the awa disappear. Kanane, the fish warden, tells me that this occurs even today, but cannot be explained by the Japanese who leases the pond.”

The ownership of the ‘ili of Maunalua passed to Bernice Pauahi Bishop and thus to the Kamehameha Schools.

To a lot of people, Kuapā is now referred to as “Koko Marina,” the result of development in the 1960s by Henry J Kaiser.

In 1961, Bishop Estate leased a 6,000-acre area, which included Kuapa Pond, to Kaiser Aetna for subdivision development. The development is now known as “Hawaii Kai.”

Kaiser Aetna dredged and filled parts of Kuapa Pond, erected retaining walls and built bridges within the development to create the Hawaii Kai Marina.

They increased the average depth of the channel from two to six feet and also created accommodations for pleasure boats and eliminated the sluice gates.

The East Honolulu region (including Hawaii Kai,) has a population of approximately 49,100 people (2010,) 5.2% of O‘ahu’s population. Hawai‘i Kai is one of O‘ahu’s larger bedroom communities. The pond now serves as a marina for small boats, and is open space in this growing community.

Lots of good stuff is going on to protect and restore the nearshore waters and bring attention to the region by Mālama Maunalua and Maunalua Fishpond Heritage Center.

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Hawaii Kai in a 1960 photo as Henry Kaiser was beginning development of the area

July 2, 2019 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Ulupō Heiau

About 6,000 years ago and before the arrival of the Hawaiians, Kawainui (the large [flow of] fresh water) and Ka‘elepulu (the moist blackness) were bays connected to the ocean and extended a mile inland of the present coastline. This saltwater environment is indicated by inland deposits of sand and coral.

A sand bar began forming across Kawainui Bay around 2,500 years ago creating Kawainui Lagoon filled with coral, fish and shellfish. The Hawaiians probably first settled along the fringes of this lagoon.

Gradually, erosion of the hillsides surrounding Kawainui began to fill in the lagoon with sediments.

About 500 years ago, early Hawaiians maintained the freshwater fishpond in Kawainui; the fishpond was surrounded on all sides by a system of canals (‘auwai) bringing water from Maunawili Stream and springs to walled taro lo‘i.

In 1750, Kailua was the political seat of power for the district of Ko‘olaupoko and a favored place of the O‘ahu chiefs for its abundance of fish and good canoe landings.

The houses of the Aliʻi (chiefs), their families, and their attendants surrounded Kailua Bay. Behind the sand beach was the large, fertile expanse of Kawainui which has been converted to a fishpond surrounded by an agricultural field system.

Kawainui was a large, 400 acre fishpond with an abundance of mullet, awa, and o’opu. Ka’elepulu and Nuʻupia fishponds are nearby. The makaʻāinana (commoners) provided support for this chiefly residence.

Farmers grow kalo (taro) in the irrigated lo’i (fields) along the streams from Maunawili and along the edges of the fishponds. Crops of dryland kalo, banana, sweet potato, and sugarcane mark the fringes of the marsh. The fishermen harvest fish from the fishponds and the sea.

The kahuna (priests) oversee the religious ceremonies and rites at several heiau around Kawainui. There is Ulupō Heiau on the east with Pahukini Heiau and Holomakani Heiau on the west side.

Ulupō Heiau measures 140 by 180 feet with walls up to 30 feet in height. The construction of this massive terraced platform required a large work force under the direction of a powerful ali’i.

Several O’ahu chiefs lived at Kailua and probably participated in ceremonies at Ulupō Heiau, including Kākuhihewa and Kualiʻi.

Kualiʻi fought many battles and he may have rededicated Ulupō Heiau as a heiau luakini.

Maui chief Kahekili came to O’ahu in the 1780s and lived in Kailua after defeating O’ahu high chief Kahahana for control of the island.

Kamehameha I worked at Kawainui fishpond and is said to have eaten the edible mud (lepo ai ia) of Kawainui when there was a shortage of kalo. But by 1795, when Kamehameha I conquered O’ahu, it is believed that Ulupō Heiau was already abandoned.

Farmers grew kalo (taro) in the irrigated lo‘i (fields) along the streams from Maunawili and along the edges of the fishponds. Crops of dryland kalo, banana, sweet potato and sugarcane mark the fringes of the marsh. Fishermen harvest fish from the fishponds and the sea.

In the 1880s, Chinese farmers converted the taro fields of Kawainui to rice, but abandoned their farms by 1920. Cattle grazed throughout much of Kawainui.

Ulupō Heiau was transferred from the Territorial Board of Agriculture and Forestry to Territorial Parks in 1954.

In the early 1960s, through a joint effort of State Parks and Kaneohe Ranch, the stone walkway was placed atop the heiau and the stone paving was laid around the springs. The bronze plaque was installed in 1962 by the Commission on Historical Sites.

Ulupo Heiau is listed on the National and Hawaii Registers of Historic Places. At Ulupo Heiau, State Parks seeks to promote preservation of the heiau and heighten public awareness about the cultural history of Kawai Nui.

The Kailua Hawaiian Civic Club and ‘Ahahui Malama I ka Lōkahi are the co-curators at this State Park heiau complex.

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Kailua-(Kawainui)-Aerial-USGS-UH_Manoa-(2519)-1959-noting_Ulupo_Heiau

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June 22, 2019 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Hiki‘au Heiau

After sailing around the island and exploring its northern and eastern sides, Captain Cook landed at Kealakekua Bay early in 1779.

When Cook arrived at Kealakekua, “they called Captain Cook Lono (after the god Lono who had gone away promising to return).” (Kamakau)

When Cook went ashore, he was taken to Hiki‘au Heiau and was seated above the altar and covered with a cloak of red tapa like that about the images.

Both chiefs and commoners said to each other, “This is indeed Lono, and this is his heiau come across the Sea from Moa-ʻula-nui-akea (land in Raʻiatea in the Society Islands) across Mano-wai-nui-kai-oʻo!” (Kamakau)

There are a number of reasons why the people may have thought Cook was the god Lono:

He arrived during the Makahiki festival, a time when the god Lono symbolically returned from his travels
Like Lono, Cook had come to the Hawaiian people from the sea
The shapes of the English ships were reminiscent of the kapa cloth and upright standards used in the Makahiki parades
Cook’s ships had sailed around Hawai’i clockwise, the same direction followed by Lono’s processions
Kealakekua, where Cook’s ships anchored, was the site of the important Hiki‘au Heiau dedicated to Lono

When Kalani‘ōpu‘u (Ali‘i ʻAimoku (High Chief or King) of the Island of Hawai‘i) met with Cook, he treated him with hospitality, giving him hogs, taro, potatoes, bananas and other provisions.

In addition, he gave feather capes, helmets, kahili, feather lei, wooden bowls, tapa cloths and finely woven mats. Cook gave Kalani’ōpu’u gifts in return.

When Captain Vancouver visited the islands in the 1790s, he provided the following description of Hiki‘au:“Adjoining one side of the Square was the great Morai (heiau,) where there stood a kind of steeple (‘anu‘u) that ran up to the height of 60 or 70 feet, …”

“… it was in square form, narrowing gradually towards the top where it was square and flat; it is built of very slight twigs & laths, placed horizontally and closely, and each lath hung with narrow pieces of white Cloth.”

“… next to this was a House occupied by the Priests, where they performed their religious ceremonies and the whole was enclosed by a high railing on which in many parts were stuck skulls of those people, who had fallen victims to the Wrath of their Deity.. . . In the center of the Morai stood a preposterous figure carved out of wood larger than life representing the . . . supreme deity. . ..”

John Papa I‘i wrote that in ca. 1812-1813, shortly after Kamehameha’s return to Hawai‘i, the king celebrated the Makahiki and in the course of doing so he rededicated Hiki‘au, “the most important heiau in the district of Kona”.

In 1819, Louis de Freycinet also visited Hiki‘au Heiau and stated: “The one [temple] of Riorio (Liholiho) in Kayakakoua (Kealakekua) was surrounded by a simple square palisade in the center of which were twelve hideous idols of gigantic proportions. …”

“Next to them rose the light wooden obelisk-like structure that we mentioned earlier and then a small terrace surrounding a wooden platform, which was supported by two stakes driven into the ground. This platform is where they sacrifice men and animals to these terrible deities.”

“… A rather large number of rocks, piled here and there without any seeming order, covered the ground. … In the center, as well as to the extreme right of the enclosure, stood wooden huts covered with palm leaves. One of these was reserved for the king during certain ceremonies and others for the priests.”

As a side note, you recall that Henry ʻŌpūkahaʻia left Hawai‘i in 1809 and sailed to the continent where he eventually inspired the first missionaries to volunteer to carry the message of Christianity to the islands.

ʻŌpūkahaʻia had wanted to join them in spreading the word of Christianity back home in Hawaiʻi, but died in 1818 of typhus fever before the first company of missionaries sailed to Hawaiʻi in 1819, landing at Kailua-Kona on April 4, 1820.

It is interesting to note that ʻŌpūkahaʻia (prior to leaving the islands) had been under the direction of his uncle, a kahuna (priest) at the Hiki‘au Heiau. It had been the hope of his uncle that Opukahaʻia would take his place as the kahuna at Hiki‘au Heiau.

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Arago_–_Iles_Sandwich_-_Vue_du_Morai_du_Roi_a_Kayakakoua-ceremonial reception of French Naval Officers in Hawaii, 1817 to 1820.

Hikiau_Heiau_illustration-William_Ellis_(Captian_Cook's_Crew)-1782

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June 21, 2019 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kualoa

Kualoa is an ancient Hawaiian land division (ahupua’a) at the north end of Kaneohe Bay, windward, O‘ahu. The ahupua’a extends from the coast to the top of the nearly vertical mountain behind.

The entire ahupua‘a of Kualoa was placed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places in 1973; it is considered one of the two most sacred places on the island of O’ahu (along with Kūkaniloko).

Kualoa is also prominent in Hawaiian folklore and mythology including traditions of Papa and Wākea, Hāloa, Pele, Hi‘iaka, Kamapua‘a and mo‘o (lizard dragons).

Kualoa is important as a symbol of sovereignty and independence for O’ahu, its role as a place of refuge, its role as a place where sacrificial victims for religious rituals were drowned, and its history as a sacred residence of chiefs.

This is most clearly seen in the oral history tradition about the succession of Kahahana to the O‘ahu throne (1770s,) and the attempt by King Kahekili of Maui to con him out of Kualoa and the “palaoa-pae” (washed up whalebone and ivory along the O‘ahu coastline):

“Shortly after his installation, Kahahana called a great council of the Oahu chiefs and the high-priest Kaopulupuli and laid before them the demands of Kahekili regarding the land of Kualoa and the ‘Palaoa-pae.’”

“At first the council was divided, and some thought it was but a fair return for the kindness and protection shown Kahahana from his youth by Kahekili; but the high-priest was strongly opposed to such a measure, and argued that it was a virtual surrender of the sovereignty and independence of O‘ahu.”

“Kualoa being one of the most sacred places on the island, where stood the sacred drums of Kapahuula and Kaahuulapunawai, and also the sacred hill of Kauakahi-a-Kahoowaha; and the surrender of the ‘Palaoa-pae’ would be a disrespect to the gods; in fact, if Kahekili’s demands were complied with, the power of war and of sacrifice would rest with the Maui king and not with Kahahana.”

“He represented strongly, moreover, that if Kahahana had obtained the kingdom by conquest, he might do as he liked, but having been chosen by the O‘ahu chiefs, it would be wrong in him to cede to another the national emblems of sovereignty and independence.”

“Kahahana and all the chiefs admitted the force of Kaopulupulu’s argument, and submitted to this advice not to comply with the demands of Kahekili. ” (Fornander)

Numerous other writers have also reflected the feeling of sacredness for Kualoa. Raphaelson says that Kualoa has always been sacred soil, to which the newborn children of the chiefs were brought to live and be trained in warfare and the ancient traditions of the Hawaiian chiefs.

Kamakau referred to Kualoa as being a very sacred place of refuge (pu‘uhonua) in ancient times where people fled for protection if they had broken a tabu.

Many authors say that all canoes passing seaward of Kualoa lowered their sails in acknowledgement of the nature of Kualoa as a sacred residence of chiefs.

Kualoa is also significant in Hawaiian folklore and mythology. Reportedly, it was considered to be the sacred land of Hāloa, the son of Wākea and Papa, the progenitors of the Hawaiian people. One of the most important chiefly genealogies links through Hāloa and shows the importance of Hāloa, and therefore, of Kualoa.

Kualoa figures in the famous legends of Pele, the Volcano Goddess and her sister, Hi‘iaka, as well as in the legends of Kamapua‘a, the half-man, half-pig of O‘ahu.

Here, Pele’s sister, Hi‘iaka, killed a huge mo‘o, or dragon, and the small island, Mokoli‘i, lying offshore, but part of Kualoa, is his tail. His body became the foothills below the steep Kualoa cliffs.

Kamapua‘a hid from Pele in a hollow at Kualoa, and later made the holes in the Kualoa mountains.

A shark god story exists about the area at Kualoa Point where the son of the shark god was fed by the people of Kualoa until a stingy chief stopped the feeding and claimed the fish that were usually fed him.

The shark god father of the starving son was enraged and created a tidal wave that killed the chief, but the people of Kualoa were saved.

In the 19th Century, an early Western family owned Kualoa and built a major sugar mill there. A few remains of this sugar mill still exist next to the Kamehameha Highway, remnants of this early industry of O‘ahu which attained so much importance in later times. During WWII an airfield was used at Kualoa.

Few physical remains still exist at Kualoa, in the past however, there were village areas, tapa manufacturing areas, religious, structures and ceremonial centers for hula.

Kualoa remains significant, even without physical remains of ancient sites, because of its central place in O‘ahu traditions and the feeling of the sacredness of the land.

Today, Kualoa is owned and cared for by the Morgan Family who operate a ranch and visitor activity center. In addition, the property has been the site of many television shows and Hollywood films such as Jurassic Park, Windtalkers, Pearl Harbor, Godzilla, Tears of the Sun and 50 First Dates. TV shows including the old and new Hawaii Five-O, Magnum PI and LOST.

They have demonstrated responsible stewardship of the land – and have worked to preserve and protect it from development.

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June 8, 2019 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Ahuʻena Heiau

After uniting the Hawaiian kingdom, King Kamehameha the Great returned from Oʻahu to Historic Kailua Village in 1812 to rule from his compound at Kamakahonu.

Here, he could see the vast upslope crops known as the Kona Field System as well as the strategic positioning of Kailua Bay.

Reconstructed by King Kamehameha the Great between 1812 – 1813, the Ahuʻena Heiau (“red-hot heap” “burning altar”) is on the register of National Historic Landmarks as one of the most important of Hawaii’s historic sites.

This was the center of political power in the Hawaiian kingdom during Kamehameha’s golden years and his highest advisors gathered at Ahuʻena Heiau nightly.

Many descriptions and illustrations of the impressive Ahuʻena Heiau, the religious temple that served Kamehameha, were done by early voyagers. The distinctive anuʻu (oracle tower) indicated a heiau of ruling chiefs.

As Kamehameha rose to power, Ahuʻena was deemed among the most powerful heiau of the island of Hawaiʻi.

Ahuʻena Heiau served his seat of government as he ruled the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi.

It was a luakini or a temple where human sacrifice was conducted. Upon this temple was the Lana Nuʻu Mamao (Oracle Tower) a feature not a part of every heiau of that period.

As the King returned to Kailua in 1812, Kona was suffering from famine. Kamehameha directed his attention towards food production and care of the land.

He dedicated Ahuʻena Heiau to Lono, god of healing and prosperity of the land.

Ahuʻena became a heiau māpele, a thatched temple for the worship of Lono and the increase of food, concerned with success of crops. It was also used for the training of Liholiho as a future heir and for many political purposes.

Three momentous events occurred here that established Ahuʻena Heiau as the most historically significant site in Hawaii:
• In the early morning hours of May 8, 1819 King Kamehameha I died here.
• A few months after the death of his father, in a time of political consternation and threat of civil war, Liholiho (Kamehameha II) broke the ancient kapu system, a highly defined regime of taboos that provided the framework of the traditional Hawaiian government.
• The first Christian missionaries from New England were granted permission to come ashore here on April 4, 1820.

In August of 1823 when the Reverend William Ellis visited the area he observed that Ahu`ena had been converted into a fort:
“Adjacent to the governor’s house stand the ruins of Ahuena, an ancient heiau, where the war-god was often kept, and human sacrifices offered.”

“Since the abolition of idolatry, the governor has converted it into a fort, has widened the stone wall next the sea, and placed upon it a number of cannon.”

“The idols are all destroyed, excepting three, which are planted on the wall, one at each end, and the other in the centre, where they stand like sentinels amidst the guns, as if designed, by their frightful appearance, to terrify an enemy.”

The present Ahuʻena was rebuilt in the 1970s as an accurate 2/3-scale model replica and continues to be restored and maintained.

The current restored Ahuʻena Heiau is more properly a restoration of Ahuʻena House, a personal/residential heiau built by Kamehameha sometime around 1813.

Today, beside the Heiau and the Hale Lua, the King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel holds their nightly lūʻau and Polynesian entertainment. Ahuʻena Heiau Inc., formed in 1993 to permanently guide the restoration and maintenance of the property.

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