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 old woman had exhausted all her attempts to dispose of her
opponent, Aukelenuiaiku then climbed on to her lap, when she asked:
“Whose conceited child art thou?” Aukelenuiaiku replied: “Your own.”
“Mine by whom?” “I am the child of Kapapaiakea and Iku.” When the
grandaunt heard this, she again asked of Aukelenuiaiku: “Are you, then,
the grandchild of Kapoino and Kamooinanea?” Aukelenuiaiku assented to
this, saying: “Yes.” The grandaunt then asked: “What has brought my
lord here?” “I have come for the water of everlasting life of Kane, for
my nephew and brothers.” The grandaunt then asked him: “Is it not all
gone?” “No.” She then said: “My grandchild, look at me. I have no eyes;
I am blind; I cannot see. I may not be able to give you the water of
everlasting life of Kane.” By these words of his grandaunt,
Aukelenuiaiku began to be doubtful about getting what he wished, and
for a moment he did not know what to do. At last he said to his
grandaunt: “Let us go outside.” When she heard this she assented and
she was led out by Aukelenuiaiku and was made to lie down under a
coconut tree. Aukelenuiaiku then climbed up the coconut tree and picked
off two young shoots of the coconut, and then called to his grandaunt:
“Say, Luahinekaikapu, turn your face toward the sky.” When the old
woman heard this she turned her face up as directed. Aukelenuiaiku then
threw with much force the two young shoots at the eyes of
Luahinekaikapu.
When these struck her in the eyes, she jumped up and cried with a loud
voice: “Oh! I am killed.” Aukelenuiaiku then called out to her: “Don’t
cry, be quiet; rub your eyes, they may open up and you will then be
able to see.” When the old woman heard this call from her grandchild,
she began rubbing her eyes. After doing this her sight was restored and
she was able to see as before. Aukelenuiaiku then called out to her:
“How are your eyes?” “I can see now.” After this Aukelenuiaiku climbed
down the tree.
Luahinekaikapu then said to Aukelenuiaiku: “I want you to go and bring
me some pohuehue and akoko.” Aukelenuiaiku procured these things and
brought them to his grandaunt. She then took and pounded them together
with some charcoal, kukui nut and dirt, until the whole mess became
soft. The old woman then said to her grandchild: “We will now proceed
to fix you up.” By this the old woman meant that she was to paint or
rub the stuff prepared by her on the hands of Aukelenuiaiku so as to
make them look like the hands of Kamohoalii.
After these things the hands of Aukelenuiaiku were painted black so
that they looked like the hands of Kamohoalii, for the guards who had
the keeping of the water of life of Kane knew that the hands of
Kamohoalii were black. The water of life of Kane was being watched by
certain men, and any hands that reached down that were not black would
not be able to receive the water.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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