Ho’omana Hawai’i: Genealogy

It has been said that we are all branches of the genealogical trees established long ago by our kūpuna who birthed us into existence. Nourished and sustained by the many piko (umbilical cord, center) that connect us to those kūpuna who came before, we, indeed, are the living embodiments of the sacrifices of their labor 

—Leon No’eau Peralto, A Nation Rising: Hawaiian Movements for Life, Land, and Sovereignty

Genealogy is at the cultural center of Kānaka Maoli Ho’omana [ Native Hawaiian spirituality]. Despite the state of Hawai’i’s historical focus on assimilation, land dispossession, and the enforcement of blood quantum laws, the Hawaiian people have persisted through many social movements that have advocated for Hawaiian sovereignty, self-determination, and sovereign spiritual practices on sacred sites. These genealogies connect Kānaka Maoli in the modern day with all of their ancestors, including the fathomless pantheon of gods that exist in Hawai’i. Hawaiian ancestors who honored their kūleana [ responsibility ] to the gods, the ‘āina [ land ], and the lāhui [ Hawaiian people ] had the opportunity to become gods themselves too. Pre-Christian Kanaka Maoli ho’omana dictated that, “man’s immortality was manifest in his bones,” and that humans were defiled by a curse of flesh. As the ‘iwi [ bones ] of the individual survived this curse of decaying flesh, the deceased person could be offered to join their aumakua [ family gods ] and watch over future generations of Hawaiians. 

Marie Alohalani Brown explains that, “Ho’omana Hawai’i is rooted in the particular space and place-based reality of island existence. At the core of the ‘Ōiwi worldview is the belief that the island-world environment (land, sea, sky) is animate and comprises a web of interconnected and genealogically related elements (gods, land, sea, sky, humans, and all therein).” Similar to many indigenous belief systems, Kanaka Maoli spirituality is centered on “harnessing, invoking, and imbuing the world with the mana ‘power’ of the divine,” including any and all responsibilities that are required to meet those ends. 

It is important to note that, “In our language, the general term for history and story is the same: mo’olelo. Mo’olelo weave past into present to help us envision futures,” mo’olelo honor ancestral knowledge, pass down oral traditions, and provide wisdom for a pono [ righteous ] indigenous people. According to prominent Kānaka Maoli scholars from the University of Hawai’i, “Mele and mo’olelo not only explain but also reproduce the lāhui; they provide insights as to how to live as ‘Ōiwi.”. It is for this reason that many Kanaka Maoli stories of ancestors, gods, and the land alike include many instances of supernatural occurrences. And it is for this reason that Wākea exists not only as a Hawaiian ancestor who lived as a man and traveled from Kahiki to Hawai’i, but also as the ever-present Sky God, and also as a physical mountain: Mauna a Wākea, one of the most important piko [ center / umbilical cord ] or connections that Kanaka Maoli have to honor the sacred. 

The Story of Wākea

For Kānaka Maoli, Mauna a Wakea is one of the most sacred sites to Native Hawaiian spirituality as it is the site from which Hawai’i’s people originate according to Davida Malo:

The first son of Wākea was born as a partially-formed foetus, named Hāloanaka. When the foetus died, it was buried under the ground outside the gable end of the house. Afterward, that child grew forth as a kalo plant. The leaf of that kalo was named Laukapalili [trembling leaf]; the stalk of that kalo was named Hāloa [long stalk]. Afterward, another son was born. They named him Hāloa after the stalk of that kalo. From him come all people living today.

Hāloanakalaukapalili, the first kalo being the common link of all Native Hawaiians emphasizes the importance of Aloha ‘Āina [ land stewardship ] no matter one’s genealogy, all Kānaka are descendants of the kalo, the islands, and the natural elements of Hawai’i. Kalo is one of the most reliable food sources that Kanaka Maoli have, its importance spiritually is also tied to kalo’s ability to feed the Kanaka Maoli through famine, disease, and drought. Etymologically, Hāloanaka has had a profound effect on the language of Hawai’i as well. The basic family unit of precontact Hawai’i, the ‘Ohana can be directly translated as, “many taro stalks,” referencing Hāloanaka and each individual Hawaiian’s connection to the land. Those non-related by blood could hold the status of being within one’s ‘Ohana, both socially and spiritually,  through hānai [ adoption ] allowing for one’s genealogy to extend far beyond bloodlines alone. The final note of Hāloanaka’s story lies in birthright. Ho’omana Hawai’i heavily emphasizes seniority in the ‘Ohana and other social units. Hāloa, who is named after the long stalk of his eldest brother who became that first kalo, symbolizes the importance of this relationship. Once it is extended outside of the immediate ‘Ohana or social hierarchies, it also applies to the relationship all Kanaka Maoli hold to care for the land — that which made it possible for man to live in the first place.

Wākea is the sky god and father to all of the people of Hawai’i and Papahānaumoku, his wife and mother of earth exist at Mauna a Wākea, Kanaka Maoli have believed for centuries that at its summit is the only place where they meet. Many water forms of the island of Hawai’i reside at Mauna a Wākea’s summit as well: Kāneikawaiola, Poliahu, Lilinoe, and Waiau who care for and nourish Hawai’i island’s underground aquifers. US military drills that damage the water table, damage these gods as well. The stories of Wākea are numerous, but to explore them is necessary to understand his influence and the many reasons why he became deified in the spiritual consciousness of Kanaka Maoli. According to the Kumulipo or “creation chant” Wākea and Papahānaumoku created a world of opposites. Their arrival to Hawai’i and how they took the chiefdom is illustrated in Davida Malo’s Mo’olelo Hawai’i: 

Here is what has been passed down about Wākea. Wākea was a later-born child of Kahiko, Līhau’ula being his older brother. Līhau’ula, Kahiko’s firstborn received the land that Kahiko bequeathed. Wākea was left a transient, without land.

After the death of Kahiko, Līhau’ula went to war with Wākea. The [sky-gazing] diviner of Līhau’ula tried to hold him back, saying, “Don’t go to battle with Wākea today, or we will both be killed by him because there is a mist veiling the sun; it is a sun that indicates defeat.”

Līhau’ula saw the great number of his men and the small number of Wākea’s. He defied [the omens] and did battle. In the battle Līhau’ula died due to [the omen of] the mist, and his chiefdom went to Wākea.

Hāloanaka and Hāloa the first Hawaiian’s birth follows chronologically, but Wākea’s immense influence on Hawaiian spirituality cannot be questioned. As the link between Hawai’i and the original homeland of Kahiki, Wākea and Papahānaumoku begin the story of the Kanaka Maoli and honoring those lineages is central to Ho’omana Hawai’i.

As of today, a total of 13 telescopes have been built upon Wākea’s sacred and once pristine summit since the University of Hawai’i 2.2-meter telescope was finished in 1970. When it was announced in 2015 that the State of Hawai’i would begin construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT), it immediately drew the attention of Kānaka Maoli kupuna [ elders ], cultural practitioners, and activists alike. Since this would be the 14th telescope, and the largest by far — taking up the space of three football fields — kia’i [ protectors ] responded immediately to prevent TMT from becoming, “the tallest building on Hawai’i Island, imposing itself on over eight acres of undisturbed ‘āina, and creating yet another permanent scar upon the mountain’s sacred summit.” Pu’uhonua o Pu’uhuluhulu [ the sanctuary of Pu’uhuluhulu ], located directly across from the Mauna a Wakea access road was the meeting place, where traditional Kanaka Maoli practices would be exercised openly to halt any further desecration of one of Hawai’i’s most sacred sites.

Learn more about Kānaka Maoli and Mauna a Wākea from Pu’uhonua o Pu’uhuluhulu.