Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 39, Number 8, 1 August 2022 — The Storied Places of Lāna'i [ARTICLE]

The Storied Places of Lāna'i

By Adam Keawe Manalo-Camp When most people think about Lāna'i, they think of pineapples - and more recently - luxury resorts. But Lāna'i is so mueh more than that. It is an island deeply rooted within Hawaiian spiritual spaces and history. It is a land full of storied places of where the gods Kāne, Kanaloa and Kāne apua dwelt and where Lono gifted our people the Makahiki ceremonies. It was visited by the Pele elan where they enjoyed themselves on the heaeh. Kings would travel to the island as it was a plaee to retreat and to worship. Lāna'i was settled by our ancestors around 1200 AD - relatively late compared to settlement of the other islands. An early king of both Maui and Lāna'i was Kaulahea. His family originated from Moloka'i but he was born at Kūkaniloko on O'ahu. During his peaceful reign, the island was known as Nāna'i, Nāna'i-a-Kaulahea, or Kaulahea. Some mo'olelo of our kūpuna speak of humans having a hard time living on Lāna'i because of the ancient spirits that dwelled there. According to these accounts, Lāna'i was ruled at one time by a spirit goddess named Pahulu and her 40-mem-ber family. Pahulu established Ke-ala-i-Kahiki that ran from Lāna'i and Kaho'olawe to Tahiti. Lanikaula, a kahuna from Moloka'i battled Pahulu and won. The remnants of Pahulu's family fled to Moloka'i and O'ahu. In honor of its spiritual prowess, Lāna'i would sometimes be referred to as Lāna'ikaula (Lāna'i the prophet). Lanikaula would later battle another kahuna and chief of Lāna'i named Kawelo. Lanikaula grew angry at the people of Lāna'i and decided to curse them. In response, Kawelo lit a fire to shake off the incantations of Lanikaula to save his people, and this resulted in the red landscape of Ke-ahi-a-Kawelo known as the "Garden of the Gods." Using all of his magic, Kawelo saved Lāna'i from the curse of Lanikaula. The wind blowing from the smoke of Kawelo's fire turned the nearby ohi'a lehua blossoms purple. The purple lehua blossoms,unique to Lāna'i, would heeome a symbol of the island for centuries until they heeame extinct in the 1800s. Spirits remained on the island until Kaululā'au, a Maui chief and grandson of Kaulahea, battled the last of the spirits using a supernatural ivory-tipped spear. After his victory, he and 800 of his people from Maui moved to Lāna'i. This event inspired two names for the island: Lāna'i (the day of victory) and Lāna'i-a-Kaulula'au. As time went on, Lāna'i grew into a hub of interisland trade and pilgrimage. Lāna'i heeame ruled by the Mōt of Maui who assigned 11 high-ranking Maui chiefs to steward the island's 13 ahupua'a. Keāliaaupuni was the ceremonial seat of government and the plaee where the two highest points on the island, Pu'u Ali'i and Lāna'i Hale, converge. Keāliakapu was the ceremonial seat of the kahuna and a plaee of refuge.

After the 1500s, Kaunolū would heeome the actual center of both politics and religion on Lāna'i, and was famous for the spring, Pu'u o Miki. Maunalei Valley beeame a major agricultural site around that time and supported over 1,000 people, 71 lo'i kalo, and several heiau. There were also other major settlements on the island including at Mānele, Ka'ā, Pālāwai, and Kamoku. The fishing grounds and fauna of Lāna'i were highly regarded and prized. When Kamehameha I prevailed over Maui, Lāna'i heeame incorporated into the new Hawaiian Kingdom. Kaunolū heeame a favorite retreat of Kamehameha I due to its ancient spiritual connections and its nearby deep-sea fishing grounds. Kaunolū was said to have been where Kāne, Kanaloa, and Kāne apua onee resided and was, therefore, a sacred plaee. Kaunolū had several heiau, a pu'uhonua, and a beautiful petroglyph site. King Kahekili frequented Kaunolū and had a lua (martial arts) training area nearby for his elite warriors called Kihamāniania. To test his warriors, Kahekili would have them cliff jump at a plaee now commonly called "Kahekili's Leap." Kamehameha I would continue to train his warriors at Kohamāniania and is said to have enjoyed jumping ffom that 63-foot drop. When circumstances

allowed, Kamehameha was also said to have personally presided over the opening of the Makahiki at Lāna'i. One of the most important heiau on the island was Halulu Heiau at Kaunolū. Halulu is named after the supernatural bird, Halulu. According to historian Samuel Kamakau, Halulu and Kīwa'a were mythical birds made of water from the orb of the sun that acted as omen bringers to priests. In physical form, Halulu and Kīwa'a appear as giant 'iwa birds. Halulu is mentioned in the Kumulipo, the legends of 'Aukele, and in the Pele mo'olelo as a sibling of Pele. In some stories, Halulu is a protector and guardian while in others, Halulu is a destroyer of men and messenger from the deepest realms of Pō. Halulu Heiau was dedicated to this bird akua and served as an 'aumakua of Lāna'i. It's unclear when the original heiau was built, but Kamehameha I repaired and enlarged it during his time to include a luakini and a pu'uhonua. Halulu was the last heiau that Kamehameha I commissioned and it functioned until 1819. Although the last 200 years have been witness to drastic changes to the island, Lāna'i remains the storied land where gods, prophets and kings dwelt. ■