Hawaiian Ki'i
by Susan Rissi Tregoning
Title
Hawaiian Ki'i
Artist
Susan Rissi Tregoning
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
This image shows the Ki’i (wood carved statues) within the fenced in area of the Hale o Keawe heiau at Pu'uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park.
While widely known as Tiki, the Hawaiian word for these tall vertical menacing figures is Ki’i. They were most often carved to represent gods, with the four main gods being: Kane (god of life & light), Ku (god of war), Kanaloa (god of the sea), and Lono (god of peace & fertility).
Pu'uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park AKA Place of Refuge is on the South Kona Coast in Honaunau on the island of Hawaii.
In old Hawai'i (before 1819), if you broke a law, the penalty was death. In the time of kapu (sacred law) some of these laws included: a woman eating with a man, a maka’ainana (commoner) casting his shadow on an ali’i (royal), someone catching a fish out of season, eating a forbidden food, and entering an area reserved for only the chiefs. There was only one way to receive sanctuary and save yourself; you must elude your pursuers, reach the nearest pu'uhonua (place of refuge) and receive absolution from the kahuna (priest).
Also located here and separated by the Great Wall were royal grounds. The ahupua'a of Hōnaunau, was the original seat of the chiefdom of Kona and the ancestral home of the Kamehameha dynasty. This was a favored residence of Hawaiian chief and the Hale-o-Keawe Heiau (temple) was the royal mausoleum which held the remains of 23 chiefs. The mana (spiritual power) of the remains bestowed sanctity upon this sacred area. The heiau was constructed in honor of Keawe'ikekahiali'i o kamoku, the great-grandfather of Kamehameha I.
Copyright 2017 Susan Rissi Tregoning
Uploaded
October 22nd, 2017
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