Hawaiian mythology

Polynesian spiritual practice

thumb|Illustration by Joseph Smit The elepaio are three species of monarch flycatcher in the genus Chasiempis. They are endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, and were formerly considered conspecific. They measure 14 cm long and weigh 12–18 g. One species inhabits the Big Island, another Oahu and the third Kauai. Being one of the most adaptable native birds of Hawaii, no subspecies have yet become extinct, though two have become quite rare.

erebid moth

In Hawaiian religion, the Kumulipo is the creation chant, first recorded in the 18th century. It also includes a genealogy of the members of Hawaiian royalty and was created in honor of Kalaninuiamamao and passed down orally to his daughter Alapaʻiwahine.

ancient Hawaiian code of conduct

In the traditions of ancient Hawaii, Kanaloa is a god symbolized by the squid or by the octopus, and is typically associated with Kāne. It is also an alternative name for the island of Kahoolawe.

In Hawaiian mythology, Nana-Ula or Nanaulu is the hero who led his people from Tahiti to Hawaii. He was the first King of Hawaii, and began the royal dynasty.

thumb|Red lehua blossom (Metrosideros polymorpha). In Hawaiian mythology, Laka is the name of two different popular heroes from Polynesian mythology. (In other parts of Polynesia they are known as Rātā, Rata, Lata, Ata, or Lasa).

In Hawaiian mythology, Nuu was a man who built an ark with which he escaped a Great Flood. He landed his vessel on top of Mauna Kea on the Big Island. Nuu mistakenly attributed his safety to the moon, and made sacrifices to it. Kāne, the creator god, descended to earth on a rainbow and explained Nuu's mistake. The myth has been interpreted as depicting the hazards of the Oceanian environment and local peoples' ability to withstand them. Missionaries to Hawaii in the 19th century considered him analogous to Noah of the Bible. ==References==

In Hawaiian religion, Hiʻiaka is a daughter of Haumea and Kāne.

In Hawaiian Religion, Kumu-Honua ("first on Earth") is the first man.

In Hawaiian mythology, Nāmaka (or Nā-maka-o-Kahai, the eyes of Kahai) appears as a sea goddess in the Pele family. She is an older sister of Pele-honua-mea.

In Hawaiian religion, Lua-o-Milu is the land of the dead, ruled by Milu. Entrance to Lua-o-Milu is from the top of a valley wall or sea cliff where the soul departs via a tree. It is reported that each Hawaiian island has at least one leaping place. According to natives of the land, the entrance located in Waipio Valley has since been covered in sand and is now hidden from the sight of upper areas. Another documented area where souls enter the next world is Leina Kauhane. The spirits of the dead can watch what the living do and turn them to stone by staring at them. ==See also== Nightmarchers