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Editor's note: Alika Poe Silva is Kahu Kulaiwi, Koa Mana, kupuka'āina o Wai'anae, wahi pana, O'ahu, Hawaiian National. The views expressed in this community forum do not necessarily reflect the views of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.
Aloha no 'ohana, remember the sacred rock canoe connects us to our ancestor. And from U-Kane-Po Heiau in Mākua Valley facing east is where the sun of the son of I 'O rises, and in March it stands in its equal station! What our kūpuna knew, practiced and taught us about this canoe having two hulls and how the pola, ties the two hulls together. Our kūpuna taught us from in the seat of the pola this phenomenon of Kāne would appear and signal to all life that seasonal change is in the weather, ground, ocean and river of stars in the sky. Mahea Keale, a kahuna of Kaua'i and O'ahu lineage, also honored our traditions at Kūkaniloko, the piko of O'ahu. 'Ohana asked him to sit in the pola and record the events as the sunlight over the Ko'olau at Ka'aumakua begins the timely sacred ceremony. Mahea described the source of light in its equal station as Kumanomano, the teeth of the sun cutting through the morning darkness on top of Ka'aumakua-Ko'olau Mountains.
When Mahea was at Kūkaniloko, we were at U-Kāne-Po Heiau in Mākua. We saw the shadow on the ridgeline appear on both sides of Mākua Valley, and then it reached down to our sacred sites and 'āina. Showing us where Kāne reaches out in action to embrace Papa (Earth, his Mother)! This is our alignment places, sacred portals. The ground shakes here from the heavens and this is where the three streams of Kanenuiakea are seen. These signal spots mark the phenomena of fertility and/or wisdom, accurately predicted for more than a hundred generations. These sacred sites are among many aligned in the world equinox and solstice events. The March equinox connected these sites visually and profoundly! A powerful feeling our 'ōpio experience again. Our kūpuna gave us ike and a'o pono, it endures and prevails!
The U.S. Army erroneously created an advisory council called the U-Kani-Po Advisory Council. Known lineal descendants of the U-Kāne-Po Heiau protested setting up an advisory council for people not of our Kāne religion. The Army is now allowing this malihini group (Hui Mālama) control and intrusion on our temples and religion. Obviously these violations by the Army of our Kāne religion and sites must end soon!
We are always faced with deliberate failures and lackadaisical attitudes regarding our comments, concerns and agreements (Aug. 10, 2006) with the Army. We ask that OHA do its own Traditional Cultural Property (TCP) Model Studies for preservation of our national treasures. We know we cannot count on the U.S. Army to correct their lack of ethics and unrelenting terrorism under this prolonged military occupation since 1893. Also as pathetic, the Army named their Mākua Firing Range after our Uncle Herbert Pililā'au, a Medal of Honor recipient who was killed in Korea, calling it the Herbert Pililā'au Mākua Firing Range. Yet, how they treat his/our family burial sites and temples is shameful! We remember with regret how an Army commanding officer participated in worship and setting up new altars for the god Lono led by the malihini political group Hui Mālama, who used this ceremony to further its political goals. This worshipping of Lono and this type of malihini ceremony is not historical to this TCP and it violates the Kāne religion and 'ohana!
Note: 1) If the malihini group's primary interest were in practicing the their religion, they would celebrate makahiki on lands traditionally associated with Lono, 2) their primary goal in celebrating makahiki in Mākua Valley, a place that is solely associated with Kāne, is to get public recognition and make it a political rather than a religious or even cultural, statement, 3) the Army is responsible for these violations, we ask for accountability!
Again it's a mistake to presume that Hawaiian culture or any other culture is a single unified culture. The religion of Kāne is a distinct cosmology and consequently a separate culture from the cosmology and culture of the Lono religion and culture. Kamehameha brilliantly recognized the difference between these two cosmologies and cultures. Kamehameha mistakenly altered several Kāne temples in Mākua, however, after launching two failed attacks against Kaua'i from Wai'anae/Mākua
he retreated to Waikīkī. His own younger brother was a priest of I'O and through his younger brother who was next to him in the pola. He sincerely pleaded to spare his life and to end all wars and unite the sacred islands of the gods. And if his life was spared he promised to his younger brother to take Kaua'i and Wai'anae by diplomacy and without further sacrifices or bloodshed. Before he accepted Kaumuali'i's ceding of Kaua'i, he ordered to protect the lives and knowledge of the Kāne chiefs, kahuna and temples, Kamehameha kept his promise and restored Kāne's prominence!
'Ohana, we understand that there is not a single Hawaiian culture or religion. And we ask the Army to respect our national treasure and independent Hawaiian Kingdom State! As stated in our signed and ratified treaties! 'Ike-maka-'ohana, www.HawaiianKingdom.org.
Finally, 'ohana, send your aloha and prayers to OHA for they need help to do a better job in protecting our history and cultural character of Kānehunamoku, and our Independent Hawaiian Kingdom State! We must ensure its protection for generations to come! Mahalo no and aloha, I 'O lako 'ohana, ua mau ke ea o ka 'āina i ka pono.
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