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Hawaiian religion refers to the indigenous religious beliefs and practices of native Hawaiians, also known as the kapu system. Hawaiian religion is based largely on the tapu religion common in Polynesia and likely originated among the Tahitians and other Pacific islanders who landed in Hawaiʻi between 500 and 1300 AD. [ 1 ]
18th-century Hawaiian helmet and cloak, signs of royalty. Ancient Hawaiʻi was a caste society developed from ancestral Polynesians. In The overthrow of the kapu system in Hawaii, Stephenie Seto Levin describes the main classes: [27] Aliʻi. This class consisted of the high and lesser chiefs of the realms.
The kapu religion in Hawaii was polytheistic, led by the gods Kāne, Kū, Lono, and Kanaloa. Other notable deities included Laka, Kihawahine, Haumea, Papahānaumoku, and, most famously, Pele. Each Hawaiian family is considered to have one or more guardian spirits or family gods known as ʻaumakua. [26] One such god is Iolani, the god of aliʻi ...
Religion has also directed the response to volcanic eruptions and lava flows. When a volcano erupts, Hawaiians believe this is a sacred process of the Earth being reborn. This is a time to pray, sing, and give offerings to Pele, the goddess of the volcano. [9] The Hawaiian religion is protected under the American Indian Religious Freedom Act. [10]
After the official end of Hawaiian religion in 1819 and with later pressure from Christian missionaries (who first arrived in 1820), many were deliberately destroyed, while others were left into disrepair. Heiau are still considered sacred by many of the inhabitants of Hawaii, and some are not open to the public.
Though many Americans think of a vacation in a tropical paradise when imagining Hawaii, how the 50th state came to be a part of the U.S. is actually a much darker story, generations in the making.
A statue of Hawaiian deity. Hawaiian narrative or mythology, tells stories of nature and life. It is considered a variant of a more general Polynesian narrative, developing its own unique character for several centuries before about 1800. It is associated with the Hawaiian religion. The religion was officially suppressed in the 19th century ...
When will hotels housing Lahaina evacuees end their hospitality? When will longer term housing be built? This uncertainty weighs heavily on the dislocated residents every day.