For many Hawaiians, lava flows are a time to honor, reflect - The Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) — When Willette Kalaokahaku Akima-Akau looks retired astatine the the lava flowing from Mauna Loa volcano and makes an offering of gin, baccy and coins, she volition beryllium taking portion successful a contented passed down from her gramps and different Native Hawaiians arsenic a mode to grant some the earthy and spiritual worlds.

Akima-Akau said she plans to instrumentality her grandchildren with her and unneurotic they volition marque their offerings and chant to Pele, the Hawaiian deity of volcanoes and fire, who her gramps utilized to wage reverence to arsenic a kupuna, a connection that tin mean ancestor.

“This is the clip for our kupuna, for our people, and for our children to travel and witnesser what is happening arsenic past is being made each day,” she said, adding that today’s experiences volition beryllium added to the adjacent generation’s stories, songs, dances and chants.

For galore Native Hawaiians, an eruption of a volcano similar Mauna Loa has a heavy yet precise idiosyncratic taste significance. For galore it tin beryllium an accidental to consciousness a transportation with instauration itself done the mode lava gives commencement to caller land, arsenic good arsenic a clip to bespeak connected their ain spot successful the satellite and the radical who came earlier them.

“A volcanic eruption is simply a carnal manifestation of truthful galore earthy and spiritual forces for Hawaiians,” said Ilihia Gionson, a Hawaii Tourism Authority spokesperson who is Native Hawaiian and lives connected the Big Island. “People who are unfamiliar with that should recognize that it’s a precise personal, precise important thing.”

To beryllium sure, not each Native Hawaiians volition consciousness the request to marque a trek to spot the lava, but among those who do, immoderate whitethorn chant, immoderate whitethorn commune to ancestors and immoderate whitethorn grant the infinitesimal with hula, oregon dance.

“Some radical whitethorn beryllium moved to conscionable benignant of observe successful silence, meditate, you know, commune with their higher powerfulness oregon their kupuna successful their ain ways,” Gionson said.

Kainani Kahaunaele said arsenic a Native Hawaiian, she feels moved to grant the infinitesimal and volition instrumentality her children, nieces, nephews and adjacent friends arsenic adjacent to the lava travel arsenic possible. There they volition chant to Pele.

“Our hookupu volition beryllium our voice,” she said, utilizing the Hawaiian connection for offering. “It’s not for immoderate benignant of show. It’s a transportation that we’re making to Pele, to the land, to Mauna Loa.”

Many Hawaiians are practicing household traditions that person been passed down from elders.

Akima-Akau, who lives successful Kawaihae connected the westbound broadside of the Big Island, remembers proceeding stories astir however her gramps would alert from Maui oregon Oahu whenever determination was a Big Island lava travel to grant Pele.

“He would leap connected a level and travel to Hawaii Island to springiness his hookupu,” offerings of gin, metallic dollars and tobacco, she said.

Her gramps died earlier she was born, truthful she doesn’t cognize precisely wherefore helium chose those items, but helium wasn’t alone. She said she grew up knowing others who offered the aforesaid items, truthful that is what her household volition bring. She said the children volition connection Pele a ti leafage lei.

Hawaiians person antithetic relationships with the spirituality of lava, said Native Hawaiian taste practitioner Kealoha Pisciotta. To Pisciotta, the lava “brings bully mana” — which tin mean supernatural oregon divine powerfulness — “and cleanses wherever it needs cleansing.”

There are besides antithetic relationships and connections to Pele, who immoderate notation to arsenic a deity oregon goddess. Pele has large value successful Hawaiian culture, representing each the phenomena related to volcanoes — the magma, steam, ash, acerb rain.

“Her superior signifier is the lava, not needfully that she is simply a female, quality person. But the representation of her relation is creation, which happens to beryllium a precise feminine image,” said Kekuhi Kealiʻikanakaʻole, a taste practitioner successful Hilo.

Pisciotta calls her “Tutu Pele,” utilizing the connection for grandparent, due to the fact that deities “are much past than we are.”

Manua Loa’s spectacular amusement is drafting thousands of radical seeking nighttime views of the lava flowing down the mountain’s northeast flank, clogging the main east-west roadworthy connected the island. Among them are those coming to wage their respects, leaving altars oregon shrines on the roadway.

The slow-moving lava travel was astir 2.7 miles (4.3 kilometers) from the roadworthy Friday, U.S. Geological Survey scientists said.

Cultural practitioners similar Pisciotta privation lava gawkers to beryllium mindful of those who are chanting, praying oregon gathering successful ceremonies amid the eruption: “Give them immoderate abstraction and respect.”

“If a idiosyncratic doing thing wants to invitation idiosyncratic to enactment oregon watch, determination volition beryllium an invitation,” said Gionson, the tourism official. “And if not, respect that and support a respectful distance.”

So far, the tourism authorization hasn’t received immoderate complaints astir radical getting successful the mode of taste practices, helium said, adding that the bureau focuses connected educating tourists successful wide astir being respectful and behaving appropriately erstwhile visiting the islands.

Kahaunaele, who teaches Hawaiian connection and euphony astatine the University of Hawaii’s Hilo field and planned to stitchery with her household connected Thursday night, knows that visitors to the land mightiness beryllium funny erstwhile they spot and perceive her household chanting.

“Don’t movie us. Don’t adjacent inquire for permission, conscionable don’t,” she said. “That adjacent goes for locals. Don’t infringe upon anybody else’s moment.”

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Associated Press newsman Caleb Jones successful Hilo, Hawaii, contributed to this report.