Polynesian Mythology
Polynesian Creation
“Things born from darkness are darkness;
Things born from light are lightness.”~ Ku (Mythome)
Dust and smoke can be seen in the distance of a cloud less sky. The smoke, coming from the mountain intrigued Pele who had been following the brightest star northeast. Pele, the goddess of fire, lightning, wind, and volcanoes new at that moment she found her new home and she called it Hawaii. As she approached the mountain she noticed a huge crater, she stuck her magical stick Pa’oa into the crater and called it Halema 'uma 'u. Itis said that when the smell of sulfur is in the air, Pele is letting the humans know that she is watching over them.
All cultures have a creation myth. These stories tell us how our culture evolved and began. In doing my research I found that the Polynesian culture has various myths of how the everything began. The most common, is the story of how Pele came to be the main goddess of Hawaii.
We have to acknowledge Ku the “creator” who’s above chant crated Po (the earth) and Ao (the sky). He ruled along with Kanalos the great squid (sea god), and Kane (human) and Hina (earth mother).(Mythome) Then Kane did great wrong. He mated with Hine-titama and as soon as she did learn it she went screaming to her mothers domain Po ( earth, the land of the Dead) Hine-titana cried out "you have broken the cord to the earth", and henceforth Kane could not touch the earth. And so it is that humans live on the earth, and when they die they return to Po, the land of dreams, lovemaking, and spirit, so they can never be touched by Kane.
Many different variations of myths have been passed down generation to generation. What’s important is that we keep these stories alive, as these are our culture and beliefs. Creation myths are narrative symbols of the cultures creation. Usually deriving orally, these myths often have different variations, as u can see by the above examples. A creation myth is usually regarded as conveying profound truths,
“Things born from darkness are darkness;
Things born from light are lightness.”~ Ku (Mythome)
Dust and smoke can be seen in the distance of a cloud less sky. The smoke, coming from the mountain intrigued Pele who had been following the brightest star northeast. Pele, the goddess of fire, lightning, wind, and volcanoes new at that moment she found her new home and she called it Hawaii. As she approached the mountain she noticed a huge crater, she stuck her magical stick Pa’oa into the crater and called it Halema 'uma 'u. Itis said that when the smell of sulfur is in the air, Pele is letting the humans know that she is watching over them.
All cultures have a creation myth. These stories tell us how our culture evolved and began. In doing my research I found that the Polynesian culture has various myths of how the everything began. The most common, is the story of how Pele came to be the main goddess of Hawaii.
We have to acknowledge Ku the “creator” who’s above chant crated Po (the earth) and Ao (the sky). He ruled along with Kanalos the great squid (sea god), and Kane (human) and Hina (earth mother).(Mythome) Then Kane did great wrong. He mated with Hine-titama and as soon as she did learn it she went screaming to her mothers domain Po ( earth, the land of the Dead) Hine-titana cried out "you have broken the cord to the earth", and henceforth Kane could not touch the earth. And so it is that humans live on the earth, and when they die they return to Po, the land of dreams, lovemaking, and spirit, so they can never be touched by Kane.
Many different variations of myths have been passed down generation to generation. What’s important is that we keep these stories alive, as these are our culture and beliefs. Creation myths are narrative symbols of the cultures creation. Usually deriving orally, these myths often have different variations, as u can see by the above examples. A creation myth is usually regarded as conveying profound truths,
References: Warren, Hawaiian Mythologies. Ed. "Mythhome." Hawaiian Mythologies. N.p., 1970. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. <http://www.mythome.org/mythhome.htm>. Sacred texts. N.p., 2011. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. <http://www.sacred-texts.com/pac/hm/hm03.htm>.