HIIAKA CONSENTS TO PELE’S PROPOSITION
Project Gutenberg EPUB3 edition
Emerson, Nathaniel Bright
O kakou no keia ho-akua—
Akua Mo’o-lau, e!
O Mo’o-lau ke ala, e!
TRANSLATION
From the crest of Tremble5 Hill
I look on the concourse of gods,
At ease on the gossip-ground,
The seat of Wahine-kapu,
Rest-station to Kilauea,
Its pavement of lava-plate:
Such plates Pele spreads in Puna—
Hot shards, gray sands at Maláma.
Succor and life for small and great!
Be it ours to play the god; our way
Beset by demons four hundred!
The communication between Hiiaka and her sisters had, on their part, been carried on mostly by means of gesture and sign-language. But on this return of Hiiaka the whole family of brothers and sisters were so moved at the thought of the danger to Hiiaka that they spoke out at last and frankly advised Hiiaka to go before Pele and demand of her the gift of spiritual power, mana, that she might be able to meet her enemies on equal terms at least, so that she need not feel powerless in their presence. But nothing came of this move at the time, for at this moment out came Pele from her cave, and, seeing Hiiaka standing with the others, she addressed her sharply and said: “What! You still here? Why are you not on the way to fetch our man?”
Face to face with Pele, Hiiaka’s courage oozed away and she promised to make another start in the morning. When on this new start she had come near the top of the ascent, she turned about and sang:
Punohunohu i ka lani
Ka uahi o ka lua;
He la’i ilalo o Kilauea;
Maniania ’luna o Wahine-kapu.
I kapu, la, i ke aha ka leo, e?
TRANSLATION
The pit-smoke blankets the heavens;
Clear is the air in Kilauea,
Tranquil Wahine-kapu’s plain—
The Woman, why silent her voice?
Hiiaka now made common cause with the group of sisters and relatives who were bent on securing for her justice and fair treatment. Among them, taking council together, sat Ka-moho-alii, Kane-milo-hai, Kapo and Pohakau6. By this action Hiiaka took a new attitude: while not coming out in open defiance to her sister, she virtually declared her determination no longer to be domineered over by Pele.
In the council that took place it was determined that Ka-moho-alii, who stood high in Pele’s regards and whose authority was second only to hers, was the proper one to approach Pele in the matter of conferring upon Hiiaka the necessary mana. When, therefore, Pele put to Hiiaka the question why she had returned, why she was not on her journey, Ka-moho-alii spoke up and said, “It is because of fear she has returned. She sees danger by the way. You have not given her the mana to protect her from the dragons and monsters that infest the road. O Mo’o-lau ke ala, e: The way is beset by dragons four hundred.”
“Ah, that is the trouble?” said Pele. Then she called upon the Sun, the Moon, the Stars, Wind, Rain, Thunder, Lightning—all the heavenly powers—to aid and safeguard Hiiaka and she authorized her to exercise the powers of these heavenly beings. The gods, thereupon, ratified this act of Pele; and at last the way was made clear for Hiiaka’s departure.
Source notes
1Ua, rain. It is suggested this may refer—sarcastically—to the watery secretion in Pele’s eyes, as found in old people. ↑
2Ina, here means consider. ↑
3Loiloi. If a chief was not pleased or satisfied with a gift, loiloi would express his state of mind. ↑
4Elua oiwi, literally, two shapes. Pele had many metamorphoses. ↑
5 The wavering of indecision. ↑
6 This Pohakau was the friend, previously mentioned, who had brought to Pele the faithful dog that lay fasting and mourning at Lohiau’s grave. Pohakau remained at Pele’s court; the dog Pele hid away in her own secret place. ↑