Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 1, Number 6, 1 ʻAukake 1984 — Conclusions Drawn on Early Hawaiian Intellectual Activity [ARTICLE]

Conclusions Drawn on Early Hawaiian Intellectual Activity

By Bill Tagupa Cultural Affairs Officer In a day-long series of lecturesgiven on June 30 at the Unitarian Church of Honolulu, Professor Ruby Johnson presented her conclusions on several aspects of early Hawaiian intellectual activity. Entitled "Stones and Stars", Johnson analyzed the classificatory strategies adopted by Hawaiians with respect to various life forms as expressed in the Kumulipo, the Hawaiian chant of creation. According to Johnson, the Kumulipo not only attempts to explain the origin and development of life forms but also to arrange them according to complexity and specialization. There is a progressive movement of life from the sea to land until the gods and men appear as the final statement in evolution. lt is Johnson's belief that the Hawaiian classification scheme followed a logic similar to that employed in modern scientific classification of species, though the early Hawaiians were limited by phenomenon and characteristics visible only to the naked eye. On another though similar topic, Johnson used a variety of methods and theories to explain the Hawaiian method of time-reckoning through the movement of celestial bodies. Johnson's research, in collaboration with others, indicates that Hawaiians used stone structures to determine the occurrence of the early equinoxes and the beginning and end of the ritual Makahiki. The cairns located at Cape Kumukahi, Upolu Point, Honaunau, and Ka Lae marked the rising, setting, and positioning of the sun, stars and moon in relation to eaeh other. Using the heiau Ahua-a-Umi located in the saddle of Hualalai and Mauna Kea as a reference point, Johnson indicates that the Hawaiians devised reference points based upon the construction of stone structures and the use of prominent landmarks. What is an especially important conclusion drawn from Johnson's research is logical methods used by the an-

cient kahuna in ascertaining knowledge about life and natural processes heretofore not addressed by contemporary scholars.