Pele and HiiakaPolynesian MythologyLegend / Oral TraditionHawaiian and EnglishSharePele and Hiiaka 129Emerson - EnglishMoreVersion - 1 availableEmersonLanguageEnglishEspañol‹Pele and Hiiaka 1Pele and Hiiaka 2Pele and Hiiaka 3Pele and Hiiaka 4Pele and Hiiaka 5Pele and Hiiaka 6Pele and Hiiaka 7Pele and Hiiaka 8Pele and Hiiaka 9Pele and Hiiaka 10Pele and Hiiaka 11Pele and Hiiaka 12Pele and Hiiaka 13Pele and Hiiaka 14Pele and Hiiaka 15Pele and Hiiaka 16Pele and Hiiaka 17Pele and Hiiaka 18Pele and Hiiaka 19Pele and Hiiaka 20Pele and Hiiaka 21Pele and Hiiaka 22Pele and Hiiaka 23Pele and Hiiaka 24Pele and Hiiaka 25Pele and Hiiaka 26Pele and Hiiaka 27Pele and Hiiaka 28Pele and Hiiaka 29Pele and Hiiaka 30Pele and Hiiaka 31Pele and Hiiaka 32Pele and Hiiaka 33Pele and Hiiaka 34Pele and Hiiaka 35Pele and Hiiaka 36Pele and Hiiaka 37Pele and Hiiaka 38Pele and Hiiaka 39Pele and Hiiaka 40Pele and Hiiaka 41Pele and Hiiaka 42Pele and Hiiaka 43Pele and Hiiaka 44Pele and Hiiaka 45Pele and Hiiaka 46Pele and Hiiaka 47Pele and Hiiaka 48Pele and Hiiaka 49Pele and Hiiaka 50Pele and Hiiaka 51Pele and Hiiaka 52Pele and Hiiaka 53Pele and Hiiaka 54Pele and Hiiaka 55Pele and Hiiaka 56Pele and Hiiaka 57Pele and Hiiaka 58Pele and Hiiaka 59Pele and Hiiaka 60Pele and Hiiaka 61Pele and Hiiaka 62Pele and Hiiaka 63Pele and Hiiaka 64Pele and Hiiaka 65Pele and Hiiaka 66Pele and Hiiaka 67Pele and Hiiaka 68Pele and Hiiaka 69Pele and Hiiaka 70Pele and Hiiaka 71Pele and Hiiaka 72Pele and Hiiaka 73Pele and Hiiaka 74Pele and Hiiaka 75Pele and Hiiaka 76Pele and Hiiaka 77Pele and Hiiaka 78Pele and Hiiaka 79Pele and Hiiaka 80Pele and Hiiaka 81Pele and Hiiaka 82Pele and Hiiaka 83Pele and Hiiaka 84Pele and Hiiaka 85Pele and Hiiaka 86Pele and Hiiaka 87Pele and Hiiaka 88Pele and Hiiaka 89Pele and Hiiaka 90Pele and Hiiaka 91Pele and Hiiaka 92Pele and Hiiaka 93Pele and Hiiaka 94Pele and Hiiaka 95Pele and Hiiaka 96Pele and Hiiaka 97Pele and Hiiaka 98Pele and Hiiaka 99Pele and Hiiaka 100Pele and Hiiaka 101Pele and Hiiaka 102Pele and Hiiaka 103Pele and Hiiaka 104Pele and Hiiaka 105Pele and Hiiaka 106Pele and Hiiaka 107Pele and Hiiaka 108Pele and Hiiaka 109Pele and Hiiaka 110Pele and Hiiaka 111Pele and Hiiaka 112Pele and Hiiaka 113Pele and Hiiaka 114Pele and Hiiaka 115Pele and Hiiaka 116Pele and Hiiaka 117Pele and Hiiaka 118Pele and Hiiaka 119Pele and Hiiaka 120Pele and Hiiaka 121Pele and Hiiaka 122Pele and Hiiaka 123Pele and Hiiaka 124Pele and Hiiaka 125Pele and Hiiaka 126Pele and Hiiaka 127Pele and Hiiaka 128Pele and Hiiaka 129Pele and Hiiaka 130Pele and Hiiaka 131Pele and Hiiaka 132Pele and Hiiaka 133Pele and Hiiaka 134Pele and Hiiaka 135Pele and Hiiaka 136Pele and Hiiaka 137Pele and Hiiaka 138Pele and Hiiaka 139Pele and Hiiaka 140Pele and Hiiaka 141Pele and Hiiaka 142Pele and Hiiaka 143Pele and Hiiaka 144Pele and Hiiaka 145Pele and Hiiaka 146Pele and Hiiaka 147Pele and Hiiaka 148Pele and Hiiaka 149Pele and Hiiaka 150Pele and Hiiaka 151Pele and Hiiaka 152Pele and Hiiaka 153Pele and Hiiaka 154Pele and Hiiaka 155Pele and Hiiaka 156Pele and Hiiaka 157Pele and Hiiaka 158Pele and Hiiaka 159Pele and Hiiaka 160Pele and Hiiaka 161Pele and Hiiaka 162Pele and Hiiaka 163Pele and Hiiaka 164Pele and Hiiaka 165Pele and Hiiaka 166Pele and Hiiaka 167Pele and Hiiaka 168Pele and Hiiaka 169Pele and Hiiaka 170Pele and Hiiaka 171Pele and Hiiaka 172Pele and Hiiaka 173Pele and Hiiaka 174Pele and Hiiaka 175Pele and Hiiaka 176Pele and Hiiaka 177Pele and Hiiaka 178Pele and Hiiaka 179Pele and Hiiaka 180Pele and Hiiaka 181Pele and Hiiaka 182Pele and Hiiaka 183Pele and Hiiaka 184Pele and Hiiaka 185Pele and Hiiaka 186Pele and Hiiaka 187Pele and Hiiaka 188Pele and Hiiaka 189Pele and Hiiaka 190Pele and Hiiaka 191Pele and Hiiaka 192Pele and Hiiaka 193Pele and Hiiaka 194Pele and Hiiaka 195Pele and Hiiaka 196Pele and Hiiaka 197Pele and Hiiaka 198Pele and Hiiaka 199Pele and Hiiaka 200Pele and Hiiaka 201Pele and Hiiaka 202Pele and Hiiaka 203Pele and Hiiaka 204Pele and Hiiaka 205Pele and Hiiaka 206Pele and Hiiaka 207Pele and Hiiaka 208Pele and Hiiaka 209Pele and Hiiaka 210Pele and Hiiaka 211Pele and Hiiaka 212Pele and Hiiaka 213Pele and Hiiaka 214Pele and Hiiaka 215Pele and Hiiaka 216Pele and Hiiaka 217Pele and Hiiaka 218Pele and Hiiaka 219Pele and Hiiaka 220›TranslationPele and Hiiaka 129ListenPlay this chapter in spoken English.Save chapterListen to chapter1Of Pele, her warfare in Kahiki With her sister Na-maka-o-ka-ha'i; Of her flight to the land of Hawaii, A flight like the eye-shot of dawn, A flight like the lightning's flash, That rivals the full of the moon! Wonder and awe possess me! 2For Pele the ocean sleeps afar, For Pele the godlike one! A surge now cradles the islands And breaks on the land Hana-kahi, O'erflooding the sands of Wai-o-lama. 3God's temple is roofed with the fingers, And the thumb is lifted in earnest prayer By the concourse met in the uplands. High piles the surf that sweeps from Kahiki; It breaks at the foot of Kilauea; Is driven back by the hot lava plates. Now calls from the wayside a human voice; Your suitor, Goddess who rifled the bloom From my Ola'an park of lehua That smile in the lap of Heeia And the wreath-goddess Kukuena. 4What a bestial and nondescript mix-up Embroiled our chief in the thickets of Puna! What a passionate mounting! what a stay! Small show of regard for your fellow peers! Wonder and awe possess me! 5Wild the sea-mist at Kohala-loa, Sea roughed by the breeze from the upper hills, Sea that peeps o'er the cliffs of Kupehau, Invading the groves of pandamus; It reaches the lowlands of Maui-- The sea of this Goddess, this Queen. The lehuas are twisted like garlands At the touch of this sea of god Pele; For Pele, indeed, is my god. Wonder and awe possess me! 6Thou mountain wall all swathed in mist, Now groans the mountain-apple tree; I see a fire of blazing rocks; I see an aged dame, who snores On lava plate, now hot, now cold; Now 'tis canoe in shape, well propped, A chock 'neath bow, midships, astern; Needs bail the waist where drains the bilge, Else salt will crust like staring eye-- Gray roving eye of lawless Niheu. Wonder and awe possess me! 7On famed Moloka'i of Hina, At the pali of Unu-ohua. Where burn the lamps of Haupu, Assemble the throng of little gods. Then comes forth Pele, a great god, Haumea and Hiiaka, And Kukuena and Okaoka: If the small fire burns, let it burn! 'Tis the beaming of Pele's eye, The flashing of heavenly fire. Wonder and awe possess me! 8Now to Nana'i of Ka-ula-hea; At Mauna-lei Pele plaits her a wreath; She plaits it of í-e-íe; Hiiaka pelts head with ginger cone; Haumea anoints her body; And Pele eats with zest the flesh From the turtle of Poli-hua-- A young thing, short in the neck, Backed like a crab from the sea, Like a sea-turtle plated and patterned-- Turned into meat for Pele, Food for the heavenly flame. Wonder and awe possess me! 9From the ether above Kaua'i To the blossoms afloat at Wailua Ranges the flight of Pele's gaze. She sees Oahu floating afar; Feels thirst for the wat'ry mirage; Inhales the scent of mokihana-- The bath-water of Hiiaka. She once had a contest there; She had no tenant to guard the place. Pele spurns with her feet the long waves; They give back a flash like her eye, A flash that's repeated on high. Wonder and awe possess me! 10When Pele came voyaging from the east And landed at Mo'o-kini-- The rain poured down at Ku-malae-- Her people set up an image, And there they made their abode, With the workmen who carve the canoe; And they offered prayers and gave thanks. Then Pele led them in journey To the cape of Lele-iwi, Where they breathed the incense of hala. With Mokau-lele's rich lehua Goddess Pele weaved her a wreath. They built a village at Pu'u-lena, Her bedroom at Papa-lau-ahi, A mighty hall at Kilauea. Wonder and awe possess me! 11When Pele fell through from Kahiki Bitter the rain, lightning and quaking-- The big-dropped rain that shatters the leaves Of the women folk in Mau-kele's wilds. Pele came in the dusk of the night, With toss and sway of the long-backed waves. The ocean heaved at Pele's rush; The great god thundered in heaven; The strata of earth were uptorn; The reef-plates broken, crushed; and rent Was the surf-plank of Kane at Maui. What a piling of portents by the Sun-god Over the Green Lake Ka-hala-loa! Wonder and awe possess me! 12It was Wa'a gazed on the fishing fleet, His watch-tower the cliffs of Kohala; While the witch-ruler, O Pu'u-loa, Entreated the wayfaring one, And the goddess who gilds the lehua Set aglow Maka-noni's sunlit verge. One day for gath'ring and choosing The flowers devoted to worship, The next day in upland frosty Huoï. The earth-creatures glimmer and glow While the eastern sun tops Kumu-kahi. Sidewise the black crab springs from his hole And Kohala spreads out 'neath the orb That fails to give warmth to the night, And the Sun hangs low in the sky, And the clouds, they canopy heaven. Wonder and awe possess me! 13Aua'a-hea meets death, spite of Steam-bath,--a boar unpurged of bristles-- And poultice hot of aheahea, An herb that serves as a dish for the gods, A tidbit for the king's table. Thunder resounds in the heavens; rain falls, Bitter as tears of Ka-ula-hea; Clouds, torn and ragged, fill the sky, A piled-up ominous cloud-pillar, A fabric reared by heaven's rain-god-- A collect of evils was that. The gods were aghast at the scandal: For once Pele found herself duped; For once Pele shifted in bed; For once Pele drank to the dregs-- The cup was the brew of her consort; Her bed the spikes of a-ä. Stone-armored, passion had slaked. Where then was her armor of stone? The prophets, in congress assembled, Consult on the rape of the goddess-- Red-headed Kane, Ku of the Trade-wind, Compeers of Pele, consumers of trees, The women of eight-fold incantations. Wonder and awe possess me! 14They stamp out the fire in the Pit; "Stand shoulder to shoulder," their cry; "Shoulder to shoulder," echoes the throng On the heights of Mauli-ola,-- Where the green leaf distills the water Men search for like hov'ring owls. Chew thou the herb with thy friend, I will offer mine to my god. The fault of Pele's condoned; She lifts herself from her huddle in bed-- A couch far down in the Pit-- It now becomes plates of smooth lava, How like the flight of a swift canoe Is the flow of the pahoehoe, As the mountain melts and rolls away! Hiiaka, the darling of Pele, Then soars aloft to the realms of light, As the crab climbs up Kau-wiki-- The crab retreats from man's shadow-- And when these black ones huddle together They are easily clubbed with a stick; Their bodies then are thrust in the bag. As the gray crab tugs at the malo's fold; As he stands mid the heaped-up coral, While round him wave the pods of rough moss, Or he rests on the flat coral plate; As, ta'en from the bag, he's chewed into bait, So men spit forth their bitter words. How many guests at awa, Sir Crab? Four gods, is the answer returned, Tortoise, and Turtle, and Kukuau, And Hinalea, and with them are Apu-hihi and Hihi-wai, along with Loli-pua and Loli-koko, And Loli-ka'e and Lele-á. Lele-a-makua fathered The fisherman's god, Kahi-kona. When he breathed, red as blood poured the rain, A sign of the power and wrath of the god. Wonder and awe possess me! 15The heavens were turmoiled with rain clouds, The firmament sealed, earth black as midnight, At the birth of the princely ones: The heaven-urging princess was born; Then came forth a man-child, a prince, And the blood-red rain poured down. Then was born Ku-walu and her lord, Mala-nai, the far-breathing Trade-wind; And thou, O Pele, then ate of thy land, Consuming the groves of ohi'a And Lele-iwi's palms by the sea. Pana-ewa still was a park; Ka-ú was made a cinder-patch; By her might Pele threw up a mountain. Overwhelm your lands, O Pele; Let your fire-streams flow! Wonder and awe possess me! 16Her lover's house-post stands in Wai-lua; There Pele hears a call that appeals; 'Tis a song voiced by Ulu-pó. She utters no word to answer This pleading babel of voices, Now comes the first thrill to virgin flesh; Impatient, the princeling crawls on his knees; There's plenteous downfall of tears, as when Rain-columns fall, or men leap and dive, Head-first, feet-first, into the flood. These symbols will tell the tale, Hiiaka. For whom do I make this offering of song? For the ancient stock of Haumea. God Kane planted the coral reefs; A work that done in Pele's time; For Pele, for Hiiaka the land-- This solid ground that swings and floats Beneath the o'erhanging arch of heaven. 17At Ana-kú once met the gods; the road Thither lay through Ha-ámo;--but now, Its drum is dismantled, its fence o'erleaped; The terrace trampled, a litter of straw, Champed sugar-cane, heaped odds and ends; A spread for mats; a clutter of dishes; There's dipping of water, serving of food.-- What a desecration of the house! The house is degraded and trodden; Its tabu place entered, deflowered-- Now stands a hall of common resort Where once stood the house of Pele. Now come the Pigmy Gods on a visit. Be off! be gone from the place! A prayerless priest, a prayerless king is yours: Enter not prayerless the house of Pele. For Pele, I swear it, is my god! Wonder and awe possess me! 18The tabu flags fluttered in place, just now; And now, the flags are removed by you. Men parcel the hills in the taro patch; They parcel the clumps in the taro ditch: The land goes free, the children secure; Unvexed be the people; the waters run free; Food-bundles shall bulk in the patch; Kuli-pe'e shall keep to the Pit; The princes of clamor shall fly away. Give place to Ku, the smoother of lands, The planter of forest and field. I go in peace from your presence forth; I came to you in my nakedness. Wonder and awe possess me! ‹Previous chapterPele and Hiiaka 128Next chapterPele and Hiiaka 130›Similar passagesBy tradition and source labelFind similarCompare selectedCompare with similarAsk Deep ThoughtSelect passages to search for parallels.Tap any verse to select it, then compare selected passages or ask Deep Thought. Public domain in the United States via Project Gutenberg