Kaleohano Farrant
Reflections on Kahuku Lewa
I.
Who was it that first suggested
It was Lonokaʻeho who parted Oʻahualua in two,
Setting apart the island of Kahuku Lewa
To stir up waves upon the sea?
In this land of many lae, was it
Lonokaʻeho lae koʻakoʻa, lae makawalu
Ke akua poʻopuʻu, ke akua poʻohuku
Who spilled stones from these hills?
II.
How long before Māui arrived,
Secured a hook to each end, then
Pulled Kahuku Lewa back to shore, and
Tied it down so it would not slip back into the sea?
Or was it two luahine, guardians of Lāʻieikawai and Mālaekahana,
Who carved their hooks, braided their lines,
Then pulled the islands together again
From their place at Kalaekoʻa?
III.
When the hooks were removed and
Water gushed forth, filling these loko,
Who offered the names, Kalouwai and Kaloukai,
And blessed these ponds until their last days?
Did the kamaʻāina firm up the walls of the ponds
And build their altars of worship
With the stones that had fallen from the hills
When the land was first broken?
IV.
Did Lonokaʻeho know
When he carved Oʻahu in two
He left behind the boulders to which
Kahuku Lewa would one day be resecured?
It seems the kamaʻāina knew:
That which breaks us apart
May also provide the stones
With which we will rebuild
Afterword
Our kūpuna write about a floating land called Kahuku Lewa that once existed off the northern coast of Oʻahu. According to one account, Māui was the one who secured Kahuku Lewa back to Oʻahu. Another account says it was two old women who were guardians of the chiefess, Lāʻieikawai, and her mother, Mālaekahana. These women braided fishing lines and fashioned hooks, which they secured to each end of the floating land, then pulled the island back to Oʻahu and fastened their lines to the rocky landscape so the island would not slip back into the sea. When the hooks were removed, they left behind two large depressions that became fishponds. One pond was named Kalou-kai, or Polou, and is believed to have existed near the sugar mill in Kahuku, though its exact whereabouts are unknown today. The second pond was named Kalou-wai, or Kalou, and it is a two acre, freshwater pond that can still be found near the coast in the ahupuaʻa of Waialeʻe.
Since 2020, I have worked with the North Shore Community Land Trust as a volunteer and employee, assisting in the stewardship of 30 acres in Waialeʻe, a parcel that includes Kalou and more than a dozen acres of wetland historically cultivated in loʻi kalo. Renowned historian John Papa ʻĪʻī once commented on Waialeʻe in the 1800s, saying, “He aina maikai keia a lako pono hoi,” this is a good and well-supplied land. Our goal is to restore Waialeʻe to a state of lako pono (holistic abundance). With visiting groups, our NSCLT team often shares about the reattaching of Kahuku Lewa as a metaphor for rebuilding connections within our communities and with ʻāina, but we speak less often about how it was separated. Who was it that first set apart this floating land?
Lonokaʻeho is a dynamic supernatural figure, as described by a variety of accounts found in the Hawaiian language newspaper archives. In one article, he is referred to as an akua poʻopuʻu, suggesting that he is a god associated with hills, mounds, and ridges. Poʻopuʻu can also mean a mischief-maker and a quarrelsome person, which fits Lonokaʻeho, since he is recorded as battling with other supernatural figures, including Kamapuaʻa, Olopana, and Kaulu. His primary weapons in battle are his multiple lae, or foreheads. He is said to have as many as eight or more of these fantastical lae, which may consist of stone, wood, or other materials, and these lae become lethal when used to attack an opponent. Lae can also refer to wisdom, though hoʻolae can mean to pretend to be wise.
On the landscape, lae are prominent points, such as rocky projections into the ocean and certain kinds of mountain ridges. Between Kahuku and Waialeʻe, there are many lae. Some of these lae are along the shoreline, such as Kalaeokaunaʻoa. Other lae are inland, such as Kalaeokahipa. Throughout this entire region, the northern edge of the Koʻolau mountains are lined with hills and short, sheer cliffs, which look like stone foreheads. All of these geographic characteristics align with forms of Lonokaʻeho. As such, it is fitting that Lonokaʻeho is said to be the one to ʻoki (sever, separate) the land of Kahuku.
Lono can mean to hear, as a sound. ʻEho can refer to a stone idol dedicated to Lonokaʻeho or another akua, and ʻeho can also refer to a pile of stones, similar to ʻahu. One newspaper article associates Lonokaʻeho with rockfall, which produces loud noises and piles of stones. When Lonokaʻeho cut the land and formed Kahuku Lewa, he likely caused significant rockfall and formed the sheer cliffs we see today. The banks of Kalou are protected by walls made of rock, some of which may have come from the time when Kahuku Lewa formed. The lowlands of Waialeʻe are home to many large boulders, some of which may have been used to secure the fishing lines that held Kahuku Lewa in place once it was reattached.
Although he divides the land to create Kahuku Lewa and is often in conflict with others, Lonokaʻeho is not a villain. He embodies the powerful, violent nature of geological processes such as rockfall and the ways that conflict happens between people and communities. Lonokaʻeho provides stones that can be used to build fishponds and altars, which support the physical and spiritual needs of a community and can be a means of restoring relationships. One of the important lessons that we learn from the moʻolelo of Kahuku Lewa is that we are bound to break apart, but we are capable of coming together again, that we can pick up stones that have fallen, pass them hand to hand, and build something new.
Author’s Bio
Kaleohano Farrant was raised in Paumalū on the northern shores of Oʻahu. His passion for cultivating ʻāina has led him to caring for land in Waialeʻe near where he grew up through the North Shore Community Land Trust. He enjoys writing about his experiences with ʻāina, family, and lāhui.
Photo by staff
