Ke Kaʻao o Kahalaopuna
(The legend of Kahalaopuna)
"Ka ua Kuahine o Mānoa" (He ʻŌlelo Noʻeau)
"The Kuahine rain of Mānoa" (An Hawaiian poetical saying)
Ka Hōʻike Hoʻopōkole:
ʻO Akaaka ka inoa o ka palipaʻa ma hope o ke awāwa o Mānoa a ʻo Nalehuaakaaka ka inoa o ka lehua ʻulaʻula e ulu ma luna o ia palipaʻa. Ua hānau ʻia kekahi māhoe e lāua, ʻo ia hoʻi, ʻo Kaʻaukuahine a me Kahaukani. ʻO Kaʻaukuahine (ka ua o ke kualapa) ka makuakāne a ʻo Kahaukani (ka makani o Mānoa) ka makuahine o Kahalaopuna. Noho ʻo Kahalaopuna i kekahi hale kapu i kapa ʻia ʻo Kahiamano. Ua hoʻopalau ʻo Kahalaopuna iā Kauhi. ʻO Kauhi kekahi mea o kekahi ʻohana ikaika no Koʻolau.
Ua kaena nō ʻelua kāne ʻāpiki i ka moe pū ʻana iā Kahalaopuna, akā naʻe, ʻaʻole kēlā ʻo ka mea ʻoiaʻiʻo. Eia nō naʻe, ua hilinaʻi ʻo Kauhi i kēia mau kāne ʻāpiki. Hoʻoholo ʻo Kauhi i ka pepehi a make iā Kahalaopuna. Ua alakaʻi aku ʻo ia iā Kahalaopuna i uka o Pohakea, ma kahi o ke kuahiwi ʻo Kaala. Pepehi a make a ua kanu paʻa ʻo ia i ke kupapaʻu o Kahalaopuna ma lalo o ke kekahi kumu lehua, ma lalo o kekahi mau lau.
Ua hahai ʻia aku lāua e ka ʻaumakua o ko Kahalaopuna ʻohana, ʻo ia hoʻi, he pueo. Hoʻōla ʻia ʻo Kahalaopuna e ia pueo. Ua hoʻi nō ʻo Kahalaopuna i kāna mea hoʻopalau, akā naʻe, hoʻomake hou ʻia ʻo ia e Kauhi. Ua kanu paʻa ʻia kona kino i kekahi wahi o ka pueo i hoʻōla ʻole ai iā ia. Kūmākena kekahi manu ʻelepaio i kona make a loaʻa ke kupapaʻu o Kahalaopuna i kekahi kāne, ʻo Mahana kona inoa. Ua hoʻōla ʻia ʻo Kahalaopuna e Mahana.
Ua ʻaʻa ʻia nō ʻo Kauhi i kekahi hōʻike e Mahana. E hoʻomake ʻia ka mea i pohō. Lanakila ʻo Mahana a hoʻomake ʻia ʻo Kauhi a me nā mea ʻāpiki he ʻelua. Eia nō naʻe, ʻola mau ka ʻuhane o Kauhi ma loko o kekahi manō. Ua kali ka manō ma kahi o ke kahakai a hopu ʻia nō ʻo Kahalaopuna e ka manō i ka manawa ona e ʻau kai ana. Hoʻopau ʻia ʻo Kahalaopuna e ka manō. ʻAʻole hiki ke hoʻōla ʻia iā ia.
Summary:
The parents of Kahalaopuna are the twin brother and sister Kaaukuahine (The rain of the mountain ridge) and Kahaukani (which names the Manoa wind), children of Akaaka and Nalehuaakaaka, names of a projecting spur of the ridge back of Manoa and the red lehua bushes that grow upon it. She lives under taboo in a house called Kahaimano and was betrothed to Kauhi of a powerful family of Koolau.
Two mischievous men boasted that they had slept together with Kahalaopuna. Kauhi believes them. He decides to kill her. He leads Kahalaopuna to the uplands of Pohakea, close to Kaala mountain, he beats her to death and buries her body beneath a lehua tree under leaves.
The two were followed by the family god of Kahalaopunaʻs family, namely an owl. Kahalaopuna is restored to life by the owl. Kahalaopuna returns to her Fiance, however, she is killed again by Kauhi. Her body was buried in a place that the owl could not restore her. An elepaio bird bewails her death and her corpse is found by a man, Mahana was his name. Kahalopuna is brought back to life by Mahana.
Mahana challenges Kauhi to a test. The loser would be killed. Mahana wins and Kauhi and the two mischievous men are killed. However, the spirit of Kauhi continued living in a shark. The shark waits near the beach and Kahalaopuna is seized by the shark when she was swimming. Kahalaopuna was killed by the shark. She was not able to be restored.
He aha ke ʻano ānuenue ma loko o ke kaʻao?
Ma loko o kēia kaʻao e ʻōʻili wale ai hoʻokahi ʻano ānuenue. ʻO ia hoʻi, ka Piʻo ānuenue. Aia he hoʻokahi ʻōuli o kēia mau ānuenue e hōʻike ʻia ma loko o kēia kaʻao.
Ma loko o ka paukū o lalo iho nei i hōʻike ʻano ʻia ai ke alo o ke ānuenue ma loko o ke awāwa ʻo Mānoa ma ka mokupuni o Oʻahu. E laʻa me kēia:
“ Ma ka nānā aku nō hoʻi i kēia awāwa, me he mea lā, i loko o nā lā a pau o ka makahiki, e kāhiko mau ʻia ana kēia awāwa e ke ānuenue, a e kilihune mau ana nō hoʻi ka ua i ka hapanui o ka manawa ma laila. A i kekahi manawa, e hāliʻi paʻa ʻia iho ana ua awāwa lā e ka ʻohu hāliʻi i ke pili. E kū iho ana paha kāu nīnau, e ka makamaka heluhelu, a ʻī iho, “Pehea lā i kāhiko mau ʻia ai kēia awāwa e ka ua a me ke ānuenue e hoʻohaehae mau ana i ka Nāulu, ʻoiai hoʻi kona uʻi e hāliʻi iho ana i luna o ka lau lāʻau a hāliʻi iho i nā lau nahele uliuli lipolipo?” He ʻoluʻolu maoli nō ka maka ke nānā aku a makahehi nō hoʻi.”
Ma loko o ka paukū o lalo iho nei i aʻo ʻia mai ai ka mea heluhelu, ʻo ke ānuenue, he hōʻailona no ka poʻe ʻeʻepa (ʻo Kahaukani lāua ʻo Kauakuahine).
“No laila, e kuʻu makamaka heluhelu, ma kēia hoʻāo ʻana o Kahaukani me Kauakuahine, pēlā i noho paʻa mau ai ka ua a me ka piʻo mau o ke ānuenue ma ke awāwa ʻo Mānoa i hōʻailona ʻoiaʻiʻo no nā ʻōlelo i hōʻike mua ʻia aʻe nei e pili ana i kēia poʻe ʻeʻepa.”
What are the rainbow types in this Legend?
In this legend just one type of rainbow appears. Namely the arching rainbow.
There is one omen of this rainbow that was shown in this legend. In the paragraph below the presence of the rainbow in the valley of Mānoa on the island of Oʻahu was described:
In looking also at this valley, it seems as like, within all the days of the year, this valley is being adorned by the rainbow, and the rain continues lightly drizzling the majority of the time there. And sometimes, the sunlit valley rain is firmly covered by the spreading mist in the grass. Your question is perhaps rising, oh dear reader, and to say,
how was this valley continually adorned by the rain and the rainbow that tantalizes the sudden shower, while her beauty spreads above the forest leaves a spreads down to the deep dark forest? A truly pleasant thing when the eye observes and also admires.
In the paragraph below the reader is taught, as for the rainbow, a sign for the people with miraculous powers (Kahaukani and Kauakuahine).
Therefore, dear reader, in this marrying of Kahaukani with Kauakuahine, like that the firm residence of rain and the continual arching of the rainbow in the valley called Mānoa was a true sign for the saying that was first reported here by the coming together of these miraculous people
Hiki ke loaʻa kekahi mau mana ʻē aʻe o kēia kaʻao. I kekahi mana ʻē aʻe i ʻōʻili aʻe ai ka pūnohu, ka uakoko, a me ka ʻōnohi ma loko o kēia kaʻao. Hiki ke ʻike ʻia kēia i loko o ka paukū o lalo iho nei:
"I ka aneane ana aku i na la hanau keiki, aia hoi, ua ike ia kekahi hoailona kamahao iloko o ka ua liilii, he wahi punohu onohi ua koko e ku mau ma luna o kaupoku o ka hale o ka mea e hapai nei, ua ku mau keia punohu onohi iloko o ka wa ua a me ka wa ua ole, a ua lilo ia i mea haohao nui ia e kekahi poe kanaka...".
One can find other versions of this legend. In one other version the pūnohu, the uakoko, and the ʻōnohi appear in this legend. This can be seen in the paragraph below:
When it was close to the childʻs birthday, there indeed, a wonderous sign was seen in the small rain, a little punohu onohi ua koko that continually stood above the roof of the house of the pregnant one, this puhohu onohi continually stood in the time of rain and no rain, and was changed into a wondrous thing by certain people...".
References:
1. Pukui, M. K. (1983). ʻŌlelo Noʻeau. Honolulu, HI: Bishop Museum Press.
2. Ka Hale Kuamoʻo (1997). Lehua ʻĀhihi. Kahalaopuna. Hilo, HI. Na ka Hale Kuamoʻo.
3. Unknown author. (1889, 26 August). He Moolelo Kaao no Kahalaopuna. Ka Leo o ka Lahui, page 4.
Photo by: Tianne Alegnani