Deeper than the roots of huna are the words from a Kahuna.
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I shed tears reading these pages.  Deep emotionally healing tears.  I love the Hawaiian spiritual knowledge and these pages are rich with it, it is within these pages that I learned that huna is not the teachings of the elders, but a westerner's interpretation of the teachings that are normally not spoken within the Bowl of Silence.  These pages sing with the silent wisdom straight from a Kahuna Chief weaved brilliantly by a Scholar.  I'm only on my first reading, I fore-see many more layers of knowledge unraveling for me on future readings.
2482164
Vi Khi Nao assuages my tattered guts. Silent, static things move and tortuous fulfilments promise nothing. The words are friendly even though they are frustrated and terrified. But they are never desperate. Like Neapolitans. The ancestral poems lead me backwards; there are complex couplings, familial cigarettes, internal bedroom floors that climb walls, and a thriving odor. The rhythm in these poems keeps me in a state of becoming undone. A new set of braces, volanic water and dissolving into air while I walk the streets at midnight. These poems tell me that life is elsewhere. I have to get out of here to where the bougainvillea grows like dry contact lenses.
2831111
Huatay Curi, the son of the mountain spirit Paria Caca, has a name that means both Potato Eater and orphan.  The latter is because although Paria Caca, the spirit of the Andean highlands could make a baby appear on the mountaintops and name him Huatya Curi he could not embrace the son he had made because he was imprisoned inside five enormous eggs balanced on the twin peaks of Condor Coto Mountain.  Paria Caca was imprisoned because his people were divided and until the people of the valley and the wilds of the highland become one family, the great spirit would remain trapped.  Of course it falls to Huatya Curi to bring this about and the young man known as Potato Eater faces a series of challenges that he must pass to win a worthy bride, unite his people and free his father.
As retold by Melind Lilly this Peruvian myth is not just an adventure story but an argument for the political unity of a people.  Before the story begins young readers are told of Paria Caca's Law: "Tucoy hinantin huc yuric canchic" ("We are all one family").  Young readers expecting the five condors of the title to be an important part of the plot will probably be surprised to see the role they actually play.  Huatya Curi has to deal with the obstacle of Kama Chiq, the greedy chief of the great Vauyo village in the valley, who keeps coming up with challenges for our hero to face in his quest to wed the lovely Chaupi Naca.  The story is illustrated by Charles Reasoner, who makes use of rich colors throughout the book.  Reds, browns, oranges, and purples are all just gorgeous to look at.  I especially like the way Reasoner colors all of the different stones that make up a house or each distinctive part of the clothing worn by the characters with different colors and shades.  If you were to think of an artist using every color in a giant box of crayons on virtually every page, then you have an idea of what you will find in the artwork of this volume.
"Huatya Curi and the Five Condors" is based on an unnamed myth from the "Tratado of Huarochirf" manuscript that was written for Francisco de Avila in 1608, and if one of the myths of the Huarochiri (or Quechua Indians) of Peru.  This volume is part of the Latin American Tales and Myth series which also includes "Aletin and the Falling Sky," "Mira and the Stone Tortoise," "The Moon People," "Song of the Sun," and "The Snake's Toothache."  A companion series looks at African Tales and Myths and as far as I know all of the volumes in both series are retold by Lilly and illustrated by Reasoner.
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It was many years ago when I was working at the Bodhi Tree Bookstore in Hollywood where I came across this gem out of the many choices at that store of many metaphysical wonders. Although this translation by Byrom would be best described as an inspiration perhaps, nonetheless, the poetic lines throughout this book struck me deeply. This is no dry, literal translation of the conversation between King Janaka and Ashtavakra, but a luscious devotional fruit extolling the path of jnana, or knowledge. It occupies the few books at my altar today. Truly go deep into these words of these poems and you discover something about your Self most profound.

Janaka Stagnaro
Author of&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Beyond-the-Beyond-Poems-to-My-Beloved-Self/dp/149049362X/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Beyond the Beyond: Poems to My Beloved Self</a>,<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Silent-Ripples-Parables-for-the-Soul/dp/0595130704/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Silent Ripples: Parables for the Soul</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Footprints-Along-the-Shore-of-an-Incoming-Tide-Impressions-of-a-Fellow-Traveler/dp/0595131026/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Footprints Along the Shore of an Incoming Tide: Impressions of a Fellow Traveler</a>
8959
This is a diamond in the rough. I was born and raised in Hawaii and have danced Hula my whole life. When I heard this I had to have it.
3718089
Hawaii fascinates me. While I enjoy the artificial perfection of the beach resorts as much as the next tourist, it's glimpses of the real Hawaii, old Hawaii, that keep me coming back. Hiking at Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island, spending a few days in the Hana area on Maui, visiting upcountry on the slopes of Haleakala, are experiences that let an outsider like me understand the state's culture a little. In KAPOHO: MEMOIR OF A MODERN POMPEII, Kakugawa reveals a whole other side of "real" Hawaii, in a community of quiet, hardworking, tight-knit Japanese-Americans who endured the ignominy of WWII (but unlike their California cousins, were not rounded up and imprisoned in camps) and then carried on as modernity crept up on them as surely as the lava flow from Kilauea which ultimately buried their town.

Kakugawa's writing and sensibilities are poetic in spirit. Her recollections are detailed, alive, melancholy, and loving. Rooted in a unique time and place and culture, the stories in this collection are deeply evocative. They are, in a word, beautiful.
821937
What a compelling story. Wai-nani's journey through the portion of Hawaiian history this book covers is truly an 'epic' tale in every sense of the word. So descriptively rich and sensually involving were the author's words that I found myself proceeding  slowly through the pages, so as to savor, and the better to put myself in the skin of Wai-nani and her gripping transformations. So much of the description of Wai-nani's emotional evolution rang true as the way a woman's heart feels and expresses. Much of the power of this story I attribute to this last observation.

Wai-nani's relationship with her dolphin friends was the cherry on the top for me inasmuch as dolphins are pretty much the center pole of my life. The author added fantastical elements to the human/dolphin relationships but, knowing dolphins as I have come to, what is portrayed in the story about the interactions hints at some very real possibilities as we go back and re-capture what cultures like old Hawaii still have to offer us.

Dolphins aside, anyone who appreciates the Aloha Spirit and all things Hawaiian cannot help but appreciate the opportunity to viciariously experience a version of Hawaiian history written by one who clearly knows her subject matter. The mana flows through the pages. For those of you who read and loved The Clan of Cave Bear as I did, Wai-Nani very much feels like the Hawaiian counterpart to that wonderfully told story, just so you know.

Muriel Lindsay - author of The Chronicles of the Savannah River Dolphins
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Perhaps in a nod to the acclaim which his first version had garnered back in the '70s, Keola Beamer chooses to open this album with the traditional mele Waipi`o Paka`alana. The effect is to make it instantly apparent that not only will this cd bypass any hint of frivolity, but will surely run a path straight into profoundest sacred darkness. Po. The liner notes give a slightly more gentle version of the Waipi`o Paka`alana mana`o, but the music invokes the full sense of mystic tragedy incumbent upon this mele. Carlos Nakai`s flute steps deftly between blues and a traditional sound, Keola's guitar is weighted with a visionary depth. No, this cd will be no lightweight.

The deepest and darkest track may be E Manono, a traditional mele that concerns the last moments of chiefess Manono, Keola's kupuna (ancestor). The liner notes describe well how she led the battle of Kuamo`o after her husband was killed. Not mentioned is how she died. Manono was shot at point blank with a musket. In the face. By her brother. Kou aloha, kou aloha. Malama kou aloha. Mahalo a mau loa e Manono.

The guitar-flute duets engaged in by Beamer and Nakai, in Ka Mano for an excellent example, reveal more than their respective musical mastery. Two disparate musical traditions are not heard. Not only are they not competing, they are not even trying to complement each other. They are playing inside of each others' heads.

And then there is the flute-flute duet. Followers of Keola Beamer's work will know of his affinity for and virtuosity with the `ohe hano ihu, the Hawaiian nose flute. The `ohe shows up often in his music, and one has to believe that this was a catalyst, if not a root cause, for the pairing of Beamer and Nakai. So it was inevitable that this cd should feature a track such as Lapule. The call and response thing seems to be very natural for the `ohe, any time you get a couple of nose flautists together this seems to happen. The result can be an aural intimacy of spirits, so closely entwined and reacting as to make the Westernized mind a little uncomfortable. Lapule blesses us with just this.

Throughout this disk, Moanalani Beamer articulates a number of traditional instruments, including the rarely-heard `ukeke and oeoe. The kahiko backdrop couldn't be stronger. Layer upon this the chant styles that Keola and Carlos lay down, and you might think that Keola's signature (forgive me) new-age/folk flavor of slack key or the bluesier notes of Carlos' flute might raise a hint of discord. You might think that, until you heard it. Count yourself lucky to be alive now when you can experience this cd.
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Shares the best of the Hawaiian Nation's ideals. A book to be read slowly and thoughtfully. A "coffee-table book" that has real substance within its covers.
1455512
In disclosure let me admit that I picked up this book because Kohala has become a second, adopted home for me. A "hanai home" if you will. It's a place that has adopted me, given me the warm, secure, accepting feelings one associates with home.  So I'm partial to the subject matter. Like another reviewer here I received this book as a gift & despite it not being a traditional "page turner", I carefully went page by page, making notes, looking up references & maps. I treasure this book. Here's why: if you understand life in Hawaii you understand the process of sitting down with "Aunty" or "Uncle" or "Tutu" and "talk story" about old Hawaii. The time spent, the first hand knowledge & perspective, the reverence for tradition, it's a process & a very special one. It's a process not everyone gets the opportunity to enjoy or spends the time to complete. Here was a chance to have the literary equivalent of that process. To share in the tradition & talk-story of an entire community. A community that for me is quiet & humble yet proud & sure, a community that treasures tradition, but shows aloha to a newcomer who finds a home he never knew. Some of this may be a mutual life experience, I having been raised in a place that understands & experienced industrial loss, cultural loss, then renewal & gentrification. But more so I think it's a testament to the very special people of this special place. My "ohana".
1981931
I found Hawaiki Rising a must read for anyone interested in the birth of the Polynesian Voyaging Society and the 'Ohana wa'a.
With the help of Pius Mau Piailug from Satawal the Hawaiians sailed once again using the stars and elements as their guides.
It produced a renewal of Hawaiian pride. A rebirth of the old ways.
Mahalo to Sam Low for this wonderful book.
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This book is over 130 years in the making. A treatise for the awakening of the Hawaiian people.
2983334
This is a thoroughly New Zealand story. Told in various voices this story explores the difficulties of growing up part Maori, part Pakeha and part Moriori. These three cultures were all in conflict with each other in the 1880's which is where part of the story is set. Then it jumps a few generations to the present where descendants of mixed race, Lula and Bigs, are trying to come to terms with the actions of their violent forefathers.

Some of the story takes place in New Zealand and some on the Chatham Islands.

It was very interesting to read of this part of history, I was unfamiliar with the invasion by Maori of the Chathams and of the consequent enslavement of the Moriori and their transferal to the mainland.

Makereti knows her stuff, and has an interesting style, which took me a bit to get used to, but in the end proved a very good vehicle for telling this story.
4697990
Like me, then please steer away from books preaching "Huna" and the efforts of Max Freedom Long. "Huna" is not the real Hawaiian religion, but don't be daunted. As many beautiful, AUTHENTIC concepts can be found in The Seven Dawns of the Aumakua: The Ancestral Spirit Tradition of Hawaii by Moke Kupihea, written by a native Hawaiian. When you see so many books on Huna, you must wonder why 99% are not by Hawaiians...for more info, here is an article about the difference between "huna" and the authentic religion, "hoomana": [...]
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Beyond speaks of merging with a beloved in body, in mind, in heart, and in soul.

Every poem has its own geography into the very depth of connecting as the roots of flowers go into each other.

It is about longing for a union with higher consciousness and being.

It is the cry of every lover wanting their beloved to want them and praying for a miracle to join their path.

As the pages of poetry end in Beyond, the poems linger with a life of their own, filled with intimate sharing of how two beings become intertwined, and how an alignment of purpose can create an opportunity for growth and for full self-expression.

It is a love story of poetry that lifts the hearts of its characters and readers to a higher potential.

The words of Beyond penetrate love's deepest core, go beyond the deepest core of a lover's desire, to the very seed.

Hanan
2228608
I absolutely loved this movie for its deep storyline and highlighting land issues in Hawaii with the outsider speculators and local Kanaka Maoli.
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This book tells the story of a woman in late 19th century HI who contracts leprosy as a young girl and is sent to the leper colony on Molokai. It is sad, heartwarming, and inspirational all at the same time. The author brilliantly shows how the patients were able to live relatively normal lives, find love, hold down jobs, and even have children.  He brings a voice to those long forgotten by most of our country.

Of course there were plenty of hardships, naturally, but this novel tells of the incredible resilience of the human spirit. I highly recommend this book and can't believe I waited so long to read it. I'm from HI and thought the way the author weaved local folklore and myths from old Hawaiian religions was beautiful and accurately captured the superstitious nature of Hawaiian culture.

The one problem I had with this book was the repeated use of the word "Haole". Any one who grew up in HI knows that this doesn't just mean "white foreigner". It may have originally but today it is a mean nasty word that is basically the n-word for white people in HI. Myself and all my siblings were called that numerous times and it still stings to hear it. We were born there and grew up there just like anyone else. It was our home too. Today as an adult I understand the social and political tensions caused by the past but it's still a mean word used to demean someone. Had the author been from HI I know he never would've used it so casually and so often. Even so, that does not detract from the fact that this was a beautiful novel, one of the best I've ever read.