'Olelo No'eau

"He wa'a, he moku; he moku, he wa'a" - P. Lincoln, Makali'i Capt.

A canoe is an island; an island is a canoe. This is a mana'o we should remember of our kupuna that they did whatever they could to survive in any situation. They navigated from Kahiki to Hawai'i nei and their wa'a was their home, their 'aina, for months. Today, we only have enough imported goods to last the State of Hawai'i four days! E mana'o pu kakou!

Monday, July 12, 2010

No Hea Mai ʻOe? (Where are you from?)

I am part-Hawaiian.  I am Hawaiian.

Since 2007, I began dancing for Ka Pā Hula o Ka Lei Lehua under the direction of Kumu Hula Snowbird Puananiopaoakalani Bento.  It was one of the greatest decisions I made in my life.  I appreciate my kumu's desire to humble our hālau and to remind us of who we are, where we come from, and why we do what we do.

(Photo: Honolulu Star-Bulletin Archives/October 16, 1998/Tom Lenchanko of Wahiawā Civic Club at the entrance to Kūkaniloko)

For the second time, we went to Kūkaniloko as a hālau.  If you don't know what Kūkaniloko is, here is the abbreviated Reader's Digest version.  Kūkaniloko is the birthplace of over 500 hundreds years of the highest chiefs of the Island of Oʻahu from as far back as possibly 1100 A.D. (in some accounts)  Kūkaniloko is the piko, the center, of not just Oʻahu, but the Paeʻāina Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian Islands).  With so much kuleana and kapu upon Kūkaniloko, this wahi is indeed sacred.

Why is it that I am in this hālau hula?  Why is it that I am fortunate to be taken to such a sacred place?  And why is it that I am given this knowledge first hand?  Either way, the point is what I, all of us for that matter, will do with the knowledge.

I hope there is someway that for those who don't know their own culture to make the effort to go in search for it.  As it is asked in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, "No hea mai ʻoe?" or "Where do you come from?" does not only mean what place you hail from, but this place you were born and raised also defines what kind of person you are.  And it doesn't matter if you were born in Honolulu, Los Angeles, or Tokyo, what matters is how you have grown and matured from your humble beginnings.  I guarantee you, from personal experience, if you make that effort to understand who you are and who your ancestors are, you will feel that much better inside and life clears up so much more.  For me, it finally felt like I have a purpose in life.  And for being only twenty-four years old, I think that is really darn good!

For further reading on Kūkaniloko:



Me ka haʻahaʻa,
Kaipo
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1 comment:

  1. AnonymousJuly 12, 2010 at 4:56 PM

    No hea la mai kakou, ea? He waiwai no kau manao i kikokiko ai maanei, a he wahi mahalo keia. E hoi no kakou i ka ano o ka hanai ana ia kakou, a he aha la ka ike e upu mai ana? Aia no au ma Iapana nei a nui no ka ike a`u e ao mai nei e pili ana me ka po`e a ko`u kupunahine, a mahalo `ia kona manao iau.

    Mahalo hou.

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