The 'Ōlelo No'eau Auwana group's home page on Facebook.

By T. Ilihia Gionson / Ka Wai Ola Loa

There are 2,942 bits of proverbial wisdom in Mary Kawena Pūku'i's 'Ōlelo No'eau, first published in 1983. The knowledge of our kūpuna is definitely impressive, and many of the metaphors are applicable to our lives today.

But when it comes to things like meetings and data loss, a group on Facebook is penning - okay, typing - new 'ōlelo no'eau to guide us through the 21st century.

'Ōlelo No'eau Auwana is the name of the Facebook group assembled by Pauahi Ho'okano and Kalama Niheu.

"Pauahi and I were hanging out, as we usually do, talking about life, love, and nā mea Hawai'i," Niheu said. While talking modern challenges facing our people, Puku'i's travel through Hawai'i to collect mana'o for her 'Ōlelo No'eau book came up.

"We both felt that there was so much more mana'o out there, and with a vehicle like Facebook we could do the gathering in a way that was much more accessible than hoofing it from island to island. Together, we sat down and wrote the introduction and sent out invitations to everyone we knew," Niheu said.

Some of the inspiration for the collaborative nature of the group comes from the Ni'ihau side of Niheu's 'ohana.

"It is based upon an old practice that comes from the Ni'ihau side of my 'ohana called Baibela. Pauahi noted that it is also referred to as Baibala or Wehe Baibala, literally meaning to open the Bible. I think it stems from the concept of hō'ailona, but was modified by the introduction of Christianity. Meditating on a problem, a passage from the Bible would be selected at random and one would then try to find what connection or inspiration could be made to aid their decision," Niheu explained.

"As a non-Christian, I started using 'Ōlelo No'eau in place of the Bible, which taught me to look deeper and more fully at the multiple complexities and kaona in each statement, exploring intensely the question I was asking. Not only was I expanding my vocab, but also getting a deeper understanding of the clever play on words, the cultural context," Niheu said.

So what makes a great 'ōlelo no'eau?

Niheu says it's "something that makes you think on multiple layers, that keeps you coming back to realize that it one sentence can have multiple, deeper meanings that demand more than one look. A resonance that speaks to you in multiple situations, asking you to look at a situation on other level. A naughty humor that speaks obliquely on that which we all desire."

'Ōlelo No'eau Auwana has nearly 200 members, and there are currently 27 posts on the group's wall, the last one posted in May. Niheu isn't sure if the small number of contributions is because folks are shy, unsure of the protocol, or not confident in their 'ōlelo skills.

"One of our goals was to break down barriers to language, try to get rid of the 'ōlelo one-upping and revive the basic idea that our language was fun, clever, and capable of incredible depth," Niheu said.