He Moʻolelo no ʻUmi: Kekahi Aliʻi Kaulana o Ko Hawaiʻi Nei Pae ʻĀina.

​A Moʻolelo for ʻUmi: A Famous Aliʻi of These Hawaiian Islands.

"After they had remained for some time in Waipiʻo, Kaleiokū said to ʻUmi, the Aliʻi, “It is pono, perhaps, that you should travel in a circuit around the island of Hawaiʻi.” Illustration by Haley Kailiehu, 2016.

E nā hoa makamaka, ke aloha nui iā kākou a pau. I kēia malama nei ʻo Kāʻelo, ua hōʻea mai ka iʻa nui nona ka lā, ka poʻe koholā hoʻi, i ke kai hohonu o Hāmākua nei. Wahi a kahiko, he hōʻailona ka lele ʻana mai o ke koholā i Koholālele no ka hiki ʻana mai o ka ʻino mai ke kai mai. ʻO Kaulua ka malama ana e hiki mai ai i ka ʻāina wakawaka nei ʻo Hāmākua, a wahi a kekahi mele na Kuapakaa ma ka moʻolelo Hawaiʻi kahiko no Pakaa me Kuapakaa, “ʻO Kaulua, ʻo Hinaiaʻeleʻele, ʻO nā malama ʻino o ka moku lā—e. E ala, e ala e Hāmākua, Ka ʻāina iā Wanua.” No laila, e nā hoa hele o ke ala ʻūlili, e noke aku kākou i ke kuamoʻo me ke akahele. Me he ua Kūnihi lā kākou e hele nihi ai i ke ala ʻūlili o ko kākou ʻāina. Ma kēia māhele o ka moʻolelo no ke aliʻi kaulana o Hāmākua, no ʻUmi-a-Līloa hoʻi, e hiki iā kākou ke uhai aku i ka hoʻomaka ʻana o kā ke Aliʻi huakaʻi kaʻapuni i kona Aupuni, mai Waipiʻo aku a i ko Hāmākua Hikina. Ma ke kuamoʻo aliʻi o ko Hawaiʻi nei, ʻo kēia huakaʻi kaʻapuni a ʻUmi paha ka maka mua o ke kaʻapuni ʻana o nā aliʻi o Hawaiʻi i ko lākou Aupuni. He hana maʻamau kēia pili i ka ʻoihana Makahiki a ke aliʻi i kū pono ai i ka moku. Huakaʻi kaʻapuni akula ke aliʻi me kona poʻe kānaka a puni ka mokupuni, a hoʻokupu maila nā makaʻāinana a me nā konohiki o kēlā me kēia ahupuaʻa i ka waiwai o ko lākou ʻāina, a na ke aliʻi e hoʻokupu aku i ke akua no ka pono o ka ʻāina. He kuleana ka hoʻokupu ʻana no nā kānaka a pau, a no ia kumu i ʻōlelo ʻia ai kēia wahi ʻōlelo noʻeau e ka poʻe kahiko, i ka ʻī ʻana mai me kēia, “I ʻāina nō ka ʻāina i ke aliʻi, a i waiwai nō ka ʻāina i ke kanaka.” I kā ke aliʻi huakaʻi kaʻapuni ʻana i kona Aupuni, hōʻike ʻia ka waiwai ponoʻī o ka ʻāina ma o nā hoʻokupu a nā kānaka, nā kama hoʻi a ka ʻāina.
 
Pēlā nō hoʻi e ʻike ʻia ai ka waiwai o ke kanaka, ʻo ia hoʻi ka hana kūpono a kāna mau pulapula. Wahi a kūpuna, “I maikaʻi ke kalo i ka ʻohā.” A i kēlā mau mahina aku nei, ua ʻike leʻa ʻia maila ka maikaʻi loa o ke kalo, ʻo ʻUmi-a-Līloa hoʻi, i nā hana aloha ʻāina a kekahi o kāna mau ʻohā. Ma ka moana ʻo Atalanakila, ke hoʻokele mua nei kekahi o kāna mau ʻohā i ka waʻa kaulua ʻo Hōkūleʻa mai Aferika Hema a i Barazila me ka pololei a me ka maikaʻi kū ʻoiʻoi. He huakaʻi kaʻapuni kēia no ke aloha ʻāina a puni ka honua, a kohu like kēia huakaʻi me ka huakaʻi kaʻapuni a ka poʻe aliʻi i ka wā kahiko e hoʻolale ai i ke aloha ʻāina i ko lākou aupuni. Ma Hawaiʻikuauli nei, ke kū kiaʻi nei kekahi o kā ʻUmi mau ʻohā i ka piko kapu o Wākea a pale akula lākou i nā hana pōʻino a hewa hoʻi i luna o ka Mauna a Wākea. I ka pule aku nei, kūpale kekahi o nā ʻohā maikaʻi a ʻUmi, ʻo Kahoʻokahi Kanuha hoʻi, i kāna mau hana aloha ʻāina i mua o ka luna kānāwai o ka ʻaha hoʻokolokolo ma Waimea. Wahi a ka poʻe i hele, i kona hoʻopale ʻana iā ia iho, ua kūʻauhau akula ʻo Kanuha i kona kuamoʻo kupuna mai ʻUmi-a-Līloa mai, he 17 hānauna a hiki aku iā ia iho. Eia kekahi, haʻiʻōlelo maila ʻo Kanuha i kekahi mana o ka moʻolelo no ʻUmi kekahi i mea e hoʻike aku ai i ke kuleana o nā ʻohā a ʻUmi e mālama aku i nā ʻāina mauna o Hawaiʻi nei. I ulu nō ka lālā i ke kumu, a he kumupaʻa nō ʻo ʻUmi-a-Līloa no ka ulu ʻana o kākou, e ka lāhui aloha ʻāina, kāna mau kawowo. No laila, e nā hoa heluhelu, e hoʻomau aku kākou i ka moʻolelo nei o ke aliʻi kaulana o ko kākou ʻāina o Hāmākua, i mea e hoʻomana ai a e hoʻomaikaʻi ai i ko kākou kupuna aloha.
 
Na Noʻeau Peralto, Mea Kākau
Koholālele, Hāmākua, Hawaiʻi
Ianuali 15, 2015

Dear companions, aloha to you all. During this lunar month of Kāʻelo, the great fish for whom is the sun, the koholā (humpback whales) that is, arrived in the deep seas of Hāmākua. According to the traditions of old, the leaping of the whales at Koholālele is a sign of the time when storms come from the sea. The lunar month of Kaulua will be approaching the rugged land of Hāmākua soon, and according to a chant of Kuapakaa in the old Hawaiian moʻolelo of Pakaa and Kuapakaa, “Kaulua and Hinaiaʻeleʻele; These are the stormy months of the district; Awaken and arise, oh Hāmākua; The land of Wanua.” Therefore, dear traveling companions of the steep trails, let us continue along the path with great care. Like the Kūnihi rain, we shall proceed with caution and intention along the steep cliff trails of our ʻāina. In this section of the moʻolelo for the famous chief of Hāmākua, ʻUmi-a-Līloa, we will have the opportunity to follow the beginning of the Aliʻi’s journey to travel around his kingdom, from Waipiʻo to the lands of East Hāmākua. In the chiefly genealogies of Hawaiʻi, this journey of ʻUmi was perhaps the first time that an aliʻi of Hawaiʻi Island made a complete circuit around their kingdom. This eventually became a common practice associated with the Makahiki ceremonies for aliʻi who were pono in their rule of the island. The aliʻi would travel around the entire island, and the makaʻāinana and konohiki of each and every ahupuaʻa would give hoʻokupu (offerings) of the bounty of their ʻāina. It was then up to the aliʻi to offer those hoʻokupu to the akua so that pono would be maintained across the ʻāina. The offering of hoʻokupu was a kuleana of all people, and it is for this reason that these wise words were said by the people of old, “The ʻāina remains the ʻāina because of the chiefs, and the ʻāina is made abundant by the people.” When the aliʻi made their circuit around the kingdom, the great “wealth” and abundance of the ʻāina was displayed in the hoʻokupu of the people, the kamaʻāina, the offspring of the ʻāina.
 
Similarly, this is also how the “wealth” of a person is seen—in the merit and integrity of their offspring. According to our kūpuna, “The goodness of the kalo is judged by the ʻohā (young kalo plants) it produces.” And over the past months, the utter goodness of the “kalo,” ʻUmi-a-Līloa that is, has clearly been seen in the actions of aloha ʻāina of many of his “ʻohā.” On the Atlantic Ocean, some of his “ʻohā” are navigating the double-hulled canoe, Hōkūleʻa, from South Africa to Brazil for the very first time in our history, and are doing so with great accuracy and excellent skill. Theirs is a journey to circumnavigate the entire planet, encouraging aloha ʻāina around the world, similar to the circuits traveled by the aliʻi of old around their kingdom to encourage aloha ʻāina around the island. Back here on verdant Hawaiʻi Island, many of ʻUmi’s “ʻohā” are standing firm in protection of the sacred piko of Wākea, and they have successfully warded off the most recent wrongful acts of desecration proposed for the summit of Mauna a Wākea. This past week, one of these brilliant “ʻohā” of ʻUmi, Kahoʻokahi Kanuha, defended his actions of aloha ʻāina before the judge at the courthouse in Waimea. According to those who were present for the hearing, in his defense Kanuha recited his genealogy from ʻUmi-a-Līloa, seventeen generations down to himself. Further, Kanuha also retold a portion the moʻolelo of ʻUmi to demonstrate the kuleana of ʻUmi’s descendants to care for and protect the mountain lands of Hawaiʻi. The branches of a tree grow forth from its trunk, and ʻUmi-a-Līloa is indeed a strong “trunk” from which we as his “branches” and “seedlings,” oh nation of aloha ʻāina, grow forth. Therefore, dear reading companions, let us continue on in this moʻolelo of the famous aliʻi of our ʻāina of Hāmākua, so that we may continue to honor and demonstrate the goodness of this beloved ancestor of ours.
 
By Noʻeau Peralto, Writer
Koholālele, Hāmākua, Hawaiʻi
January 15, 2015

---

Helu VI.
 
Hoi ae la ke Alii ilalo o Waipio, me kona mau kanaka, a hiki lakou ilalo. O ka ke Alii hana, o ka o-o makaihe, me kona mau kanaka ponoi, o Koi, o Omaokamau, o Piimaiwaa, o keia mau kanaka ekolu o ko ke Alii mau koa keia, a ua lilo lakou i mau puu kaua, ke hiki i ka wa kaua mai, e hiki ia lakou ke hele i ke kaua, ua makaukau like no lakou i ka pana laau. O Piimaiwaa nae ka oi o lakou; no ka mea, he pau loa ia Piimaiwaa, ka ikaika o ka uhau ana i ka laau, a me ka hahau ana iluna o ka lima akau, a me ka lima hema, o Koi, he pono ikaika kona ma ka lima hema, o kona lima akau, he nawaliwali iki, o Omaokamau, he pono ikaika kona ma ka lima akau, o kona lima hema, he nawaliwali iki.
 
A liuliu ka lakou noho ana ma Waipio, i aku o Kaleioku, i ke Alii, “E pono paha e kaapuni oe ia Hawaii nei a puni.” Ua oluolu ia i ko ke Alii mau maka, i ka wa i lohe ia‘i ka olelo a Kaleioku, i oluolu ai ka maka o ua Alii nei, kena koke aku la o Piimaiwaa, i kona luna, e hele e hai aku i na Konohiki o luna o ka aina, e auhau aku ia lakou e kalua i puaa, i ai, i i-a, e hookupu mai imua o ke Alii i na waiwai a pau, a hiki i na palena o Hamakua nei, ua oluolu ia i ka manao o kana wahi luna. A pela no hoi o Kaleioku, i kana wahi luna, no Hilo, a pela i ke aikane a ke Alii, no Puna, ia Omaokamau, no Kau, ia Ehu, no Kona, ia Koi, no Kohala, a pau ka hoolale ana a lakou nei i na luna.
 
O ka hoomakaukau iho la no ia o ka hele, i aku ke Alii ia Kaleioku, “Ma Kohala kakou e hele ai, a hiki i Kawaihae.” No ko ke Alii makemake loa e ike ia Kawaihae. Hoole aku o Kaleioku i ko ke Alii manao, “Aole oe e pono e ke Alii ke hele ma ka Hema, eia wale no kahi e hiki ai ia oe ke hele, ma ka Akau. Oiai kou hoomaka ana i ke kaapuni i kou Aupuni, ina hoi he Alii ae malalo loa; nolaila, he pono no ia oe ke hele ma ka Hema.” Ua oluolu keia mau olelo a Kaleioku imua o ko ke Alii mau maka.
 
Hele aku ke Alii ma ka aoao Akau o Hamakua, me kona Kahuna, a me na hoahele, a me na kanaka makemake e hele pu me ka huakai a ke Alii, he nui wale. I ko lakou hele ana ma ka Akau, he ai wale no ka keia huakai kaapuni, i na mea ai i hoomakaukau ia na ke Alii. A hala na anahulu elua, (oia elua hebedoma [ma ka helu ʻana a ka Hawaiʻi, ʻumi lā o ke anahulu hoʻokahi]) kokoke lakou e hiki aku ma kahi o Paiea, [kela hoa heenalu o Umi, ma Laupāhoehoe].
 
(Aole i pau.)

Kākau ʻia e J. H. Z. Kalunaaina, Mal. 15, 1862
Hoʻopuka hou ʻia a ʻunuhi ʻia e Kealaulili

Chapter VI.
 
The Aliʻi, ʻUmi, then returned to the valley floor of Waipiʻo with his attendants. There the Aliʻi engaged in the art of spear fighting with his closest of personal attendants, Kōī, ʻŌmaʻokāmau, and Piʻimaiwaʻa. These three men were the koa [warriors, courage] of the Aliʻi, and they became leaders in times of battle, as they were well-trained in the tactics of warfare and skilled in the use of various weapons. Piʻimaiwaʻa was the greatest of the three, for his were the most powerful of strikes with a weapon, with both his right hand and his left. Kōī was sufficiently strong with his left hand, but fairly weak, however, with his right. And ʻŌmaʻokāmau was amply strong with his right hand, and fairly weak with his left.
 
After they had remained for some time in Waipiʻo, Kaleiokū said to ʻUmi, the Aliʻi, “It is pono, perhaps, that you should travel in a circuit around the island of Hawaiʻi.” When the Aliʻi heard these words of Kaleiokū, he was very pleased. To further please the eyes of the Aliʻi, Piʻimaiwaʻa instructed his overseer to go and tell the Konohiki on each ʻāina within the boundaries of Hāmākua to prepare tributes of pork, fish, and other foods cooked kālua style, and to present hoʻokupu [offerings] of all the great wealth of their ʻāina to the Aliʻi. And as Piʻimaiwaʻa did this, so too did Kaleiokū send his overseer to do the same in Hilo, and the aikāne of the Aliʻi did the same in Puna, as did ʻŌmaʻokāmau in Kaʻū, ʻEhu in Kona, and Kōī in Kohala. So it was that all of them called their overseers to action.
 
They immediately prepared for the journey, and during their preparations the Aliʻi said to Kaleiokū, “Towards Kohala we shall go, until we reach Kawaihae,” because the Aliʻi greatly desired to see Kawaihae. Kaleiokū, however, disagreed with the Aliʻi’s thoughts. “It would not be pono for you, the Aliʻi, to travel south with your left side facing inland. The proper way for you to travel is towards the north with your right side facing inland. This being the first time you are traveling around your kingdom, only if you were a low ranking chief would it be right for you to travel left towards the south.” These words of Kaleiokū again pleased the eyes of Aliʻi, and he agreed.
 
The Aliʻi traveled forth along the north [east] side of Hāmākua with his Kahuna, his traveling companions, and a great many others who wished to travel along with the Aliʻi on this journey. During their travels on the north side, they were continuously fed. This circuit around the island became one of eating all the foods that had been prepared beforehand for the Aliʻi.  It took them two anahulu (a little over two weeks [in the Hawaiian way of counting, there are ten days in one anahulu]) before they arrived at the place of Paiea, [that surfing companion of ʻUmi in Laupāhoehoe].
 
(To be continued)

Written by J. H. Z. Kalunaaina, Mar. 15, 1862
Republished and translated by Kealaulili

* He wahi leo mahalo kēia no ke kōkua ʻana mai o kahi luna hoʻoponopono keu a ke akamai ma ka ʻōlelo makuahine, ka ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi hoʻi. Mahalo nui iā Maya Kawailanaokeawaiki Saffery no ke kōkua ʻoluʻolu ʻana mai!

---

Read Previous

- 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13 -

Read Next