Fornander collection of Hawaiian antiquities and folk-lore, Volume 1 (of 3) : $b The Hawaiians' account of the formation of their islands and origin of their race, with the traditions of their migrations, etc., as gathered from original sources
History
Fornander collection of Hawaiian antiquities and folk-lore, Volume 1 (of 3) : $b The Hawaiians' account of the formation of their islands and origin of their race, with the traditions of their migrations, etc., as gathered from original sources
Folklore -- Hawaii; Hawaii -- Social life and customs; Hawaiian language -- Texts; Legends -- Hawaii
After the brothers had gone, Kila remained the rest of the night in
meditation, trying to comprehend the object of his brothers’ actions.
Toward morning he fell into a deep sleep after sitting up most of the
night. While he was asleep and the sun was rising higher and higher, he
was seen by the people, who came to admire this handsome young man who
was fast asleep on the sand. At last the people woke him up and asked
him where he had come from and the circumstances of his arrival at this
place. He then told them the whole history of his treatment by his
brothers. He was then taken to the home of one of the men.
During the first part of Kila’s life in Waipio he lived under the
people as a servant, doing everything he was told to do. His constant
labors consisted of farming and the cooking and the preparation of the
food for his masters. He lived in this lowly life for a period of about
three years. At times he was told by the people with whom he was living
to bring firewood from the top of the cliff, when he would climb to the
top of Puaahuku. During one of his climbs to the top of this cliff, he
was seen by a priest who was living in the temple of Pakaalana, by
means of the constant appearance of a rainbow [119] that hung over this
cliff. Upon seeing this sign, the priest determined to find out if this
sign was indeed the sign of a high chief. But he was not able to see
the sign every day, however, as Kila did not always go to the top of
the cliff, only doing this at certain times, when he was in quest of
firewood.
Shortly after this Kila was accused by his masters of breaking certain
kapus. It was reported to his masters that he had eaten certain food
that was kapued, being reserved for the gods. But Kila was entirely
innocent of the charge, so in order to save himself he ran and entered
the place of refuge within the temple of Pakaalana, [120] a place where
the violators of any kapu could be saved from punishment. As he entered
the temple the priest again noticed the sign he saw on the cliff of
Puaahuku. Upon seeing this the priest spoke to Kunaka, who was king of
Waipio at this time and who had reigned ever since Olopana sailed for
Tahiti, saying: “You must take that boy as our son. That boy is no
commoner, he is a high chief.” In accordance with the words of the
priest, the king obeyed and he took Kila to be his son, and gave him
the name of Lena.
After he had become Kunaka’s son he was given charge of the whole of
Waipio, both as to the regulations of land matters and the people,
whereupon he issued a proclamation ordering the people to be engaged in
farming. (It was he who started the system of working so many days for
the landlords out of every month, and this system has been kept up ever
since, even up to the present day.) Kunaka grew very fond of his son
for his industrious qualities.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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