Hiiaka’s sense of outrage1 touched every fiber2 of her being and stirred such indignation against her sister that she could not again take her former place as a member of Pele’s court. Hawaii was the largest island of the group, but it was not large enough to hold herself and Pele. Of all the islands Kaua’i was the one most remote from the scene of her troubles; it was also the land which Lohiau had claimed as his own—and his was a name that called up only the most tender emotions. To Kaua’i would she go.
The company of those who shared her feelings and whose personal attachment3 to her was sufficient to lead them with herself in a venture of new fortunes was not large. It included, of course, her two staunch attendants, Pau-o-pala’e and Wahine-oma’o and, strangely enough, a considerable quota4 of the sisters who shared with her the name Hiiaka (qualified though it was in each case by some additional distinguishing epithet). Towards Kaua’i, then, did they set their faces or, more literally5, turn the prow6 of their canoe.
Many unforeseen things, however, were to happen before the God of Destiny would permit her to gain her destination. Other strands7 stood ready to be interwoven with the purposeful threads Hiiaka was braiding into her life.
In the ancient regime of Hawaii, the halau, as the home and school of the hula, stood for very much and for many things. It served, after a fashion, as a social exchange or clearing house for the whole nation; the resort of every wandering minstrel, bohemian soul or beau esprit whose oestrus kept him in travel; the rallying point of souls dislocated from an old and not yet accommodated to a new environment; a place where the anxious and discouraged, despairing of a new outlook, or seeking balm for bruised8 hearts, might quaff9 healing nepenthe.
It is not to be wondered at, then, that Hiaaka, not yet healed of her bruises10, on reaching Oahu and finding herself in the peaceful haven11 of Kou, should turn her steps to the home of that hospitable12 siren and patroness of the hula Pele-ula, as to a sanitarium or hospital whose resources would avail for the assuagement13 of her troubles. It was almost an article of Pele-ula’s creed14 that in the pleasures and distractions15 of the hula was [236]to be found a panacea16 for all the wounds of the spirit; and Pele-ula, as if taking her cue from the lady of the Venusberg, offered her consolations18 generously to every comfort-needing soul that fared her way.
Hiiaka stepped into the life at Pele-ula’s court as if she had been absent from it for only a day. Madame Pele-ula, good sport that she was, bore no grudge19 against the woman who had outplayed her at every turn, and would do it again. She received Hiiaka with open arms. As to entertainment, the play was the thing and that, fortunately, was already appointed for the same evening. It was the same old performance, the hula kilu, with but slight change in the actors and with full opportunity for Hiiaka to display her marvelous skill in hurling20 the kilu.
It was Hiiaka’s play and she, following the custom of the game, was caroling—in sober strain—a song of her own; when, to her astonishment21, a voice from the crowd struck in and carried the song to completion in the very words that would have been her’s. Hiiaka stood and listened. The voice had a familiar ring; the song was not yet in the possession of the public, being known only to a few of her own household, among whom was to be reckoned Lohiau. There was no avoiding the conclusion: it was Lohiau.
It remains22 to tell the miracle of Lohiau’s reappearance among men in living form and at this time. While the body of Lohiau lay entombed in its stony23 shroud24, his restless spirit fluttered away and sought consolation17 in the companionship of the song-birds that ranged the forests of Hawaii.
When the magician La’a, who lived in Kahiki, contemplated25 the degraded condition of Lohiau, alienated26 from all the springs of human affection, living as a wild thing in the desert, he determined27 on his rescue and despatched Kolea (plover), one of his ancestral kupuas, to fetch him. The mission of Kolea was not a success. The voice, the manner, the arguments of the bird made no appeal to Lohiau; they were, in fact, distasteful to him and rather increased his devotion to his other bird-friends.
“Well, Kolea, what sort of a place is Kahiki?” asked Lohiau.
“A most charming place,” he answered, nodding his head and uttering his call, “Ko-lé-a, Ko-lé-a.”
Lohiau was disgusted with his performances and would have nothing more to do with Kolea. [237]
When Kolea returned and reported his failure to La’a, that magician sent another bird on the same errand, one of more seductive ways, Ulili. There was something in the voice and manner of Ulili that touched the fancy and won the heart of Lohiau at once and he began to follow him. Ulili skilfully28 lured29 him on and at last brought him to Kahiki and delivered him over to his master. La’a ministered to the soul of Lohiau with such tenderness and skill that he became reconciled once more to human ways. But the soul of Lohiau still remained an unhoused ghost, and at times ranged afar in its restless excursions.
Now it happened that at the very time when these events were taking place Kane-milo-hai, an elder brother of Pele, was voyaging from Kahiki to Hawaii. His canoe was of that mystical pattern, the leho (cowry) in which Mawi had sailed. While in the middle of the I?i?-waho channel he caught sight of the distracted spirit of Lohiau fluttering like a Mother Carey’s chicken over the expanse of waters. The poor ghost, as if desirous of companionship, drew nigh and presently came so near that Kane-milo-hai captured it and, having ensconced it in his ipu-holoho-lona,1 he sailed on his way.
Reaching Hawaii and coming to the desolate30 scene of Lohiau’s tragedy, he recognized a charred31 heap as the former bodily residence of the shivering ghost in his keeping. He broke the stony form into many pieces and then, by the magical power that was his, out of these fragments he reconstructed the body of Lohiau, imparting to it its original form and lineaments. Into this body Kane-milo-hai now introduced the soul and Lohiau lived again.
The tide of new life surging in the veins32 of Lohiau stirred in him emotions that found utterance33 in song:
I ola no au i ku’u kino wailua,
I a’e’a mai e ke ’lii o Kahiki,
Ke ’lii nana i a’e ke kai uli,
Kai eleele, kai melemele,
Kai popolo-hua mea a Kane;
I ka wa i po’i ai ke Kai-a-ka-hina-lii—
Kai mu, kai lewa. Ho’opua ke ao ia Lohiau;
O Lohiau—i lono oukou.
Ola e; ola la; ua ola Lohiau, e!
O Lohiau, ho’i, e!
[238]
TRANSLATION
I lived, but ’twas only my soul;
Then came Kahiki’s King and took me—
The King who sails this purple and blue,
The dark mottled sea of Kane,
A sea that is ghostly, foreign, strange.
Lohiau flowers anew in the sunlight;
It is I, Lohiau! Do you hear it?
New life has come to Lohiau!
To Lohiau, aye, to Lohiau!
Having come to himself, Lohiau sought his own. His chancing at Kou and his appearance at the halau in which Pele-ula was holding her kilu performance, and on the very evening of Hiiaka’s arrival, was an arrangement of converging36 lines that reflected great credit on the god of Destiny.
Lohiau arrived at the kilu hall just in time to witness the opening of the game. Having seated himself quietly in the outskirts37 of the assembly, he begged a neighbor to permit him, as a favor, to conceal38 himself under the ample width of his kihei, exacting39 of him also the promise not to betray his retreat. Thus hidden, he could see without being seen. The sight of Hiiaka, the words of her song—he had heard them a score of times before—stirred within him a thousand memories. Without conscious effort of will, the words of his response sprang from his heart almost with the spontaneity of an antiphonal echo. Let us bring together the two cotyledons of this song:
O ka wai mukiki a’ala lehua o ka manu,
O ka awa ili lena i ka uka o Ka-li’u,
O ka manu aha’i kau-laau o Puna:—
Aia i ka laau ka awa o Puna.
Mapu wale mai ana no ia’u kona aloha,
Hoolana mai ana ia’u, e moe, e;
A e moe no, e-e-e.
And now comes the unexpected antiphone by Lohiau: [239]
O Puna, lehua ula i ka papa;
I ula i ka papa ka lehua o Puna:
Ke kui ia mai la e na wahine o ka Lua:
Mai ka Lua a’u i hele mai nei, mai Kilauea.
Aloha Kilauea, ka aina a ke aloha.
TRANSLATION
Nectar for gods, honeyed lehua;
Food for the birds, bloom of lehua;
Bitter the sweet of Puna’s tree-awa.
The cry of the soul for love’s fond touch;
And who would forbid the soul’s demand!
Antiphone
Puna’s plain takes the color of scarlet—
Red as heart’s blood the bloom of lehua.
The nymphs of the Pit string hearts in a wreath:
Still turns my heart to Kilauea.
We must leave to the imagination of the reader the scene that occurred when Lohiau, the man twice called back from the dead, leaves his hiding place and comes into Hiiaka’s encircling arms lovingly extended to him.
This was accomplished44 the reunion of Hiiaka and Lohiau, and thus it came to pass that these two human streams of characters so different, in defiance45 of powerful influences that had long held them apart, were, at length, turned into one channel—that of the man, not wholly earthly, but leavened46 with the possibility of vast spiritual attainment47 under the tonic48 discipline of affliction; that of the woman, self-reliant, resourceful, yet acutely in need of affection; human and practical, yet feeling after the divine, conscious of daily commerce with the skies; and, yet, in spite of all, in bondage49 to that universal law which gives to the smaller and weaker body the power to introduce a perturbation into the orbit of the greater and to pull it away from its proper trajectory50.
The old order has passed away, the order in which the will of [240]Pele has ruled almost supreme51, regardless of the younger, the human, race which is fast peopling the land that was hers in the making. Hitherto, surrounded by a cohort of willing servants ready at all times to sacrifice themselves to her caprice,—behold, a new spirit has leavened the whole mass, a spirit of dissent52 from the supreme selfishness of the Vulcan goddess, and the foremost dissident of them all is the obedient little sister who was first in her devotion to Pele, the warm-hearted girl whom we still love to call Hiiaka-i-ka-poli-o-Pele.
THE END
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1
outrage
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| n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒 | |
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2
fiber
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| n.纤维，纤维质 | |
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3
attachment
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| n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附 | |
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4
quota
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| n.（生产、进出口等的）配额，（移民的）限额 | |
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5
literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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6
prow
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| n.(飞机)机头，船头 | |
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7
strands
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| n.（线、绳、金属线、毛发等的）股( strand的名词复数 )；缕；海洋、湖或河的)岸；（观点、计划、故事等的）部份v.使滞留，使搁浅( strand的第三人称单数 ) | |
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8
bruised
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| [医]青肿的，瘀紫的 | |
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9
quaff
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| v.一饮而尽；痛饮 | |
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10
bruises
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| n.瘀伤，伤痕，擦伤( bruise的名词复数 ) | |
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11
haven
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| n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所 | |
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12
hospitable
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| adj.好客的；宽容的；有利的，适宜的 | |
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13
assuagement
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| n.缓和；减轻；缓和物 | |
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14
creed
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| n.信条；信念，纲领 | |
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15
distractions
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| n.使人分心的事[人]( distraction的名词复数 )；娱乐，消遣；心烦意乱；精神错乱 | |
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16
panacea
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| n.万灵药；治百病的灵药 | |
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17
consolation
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| n.安慰，慰问 | |
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18
consolations
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| n.安慰，慰问( consolation的名词复数 )；起安慰作用的人（或事物） | |
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19
grudge
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| n.不满，怨恨，妒嫉；vt.勉强给，不情愿做 | |
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20
hurling
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| n.爱尔兰式曲棍球v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的现在分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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21
astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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22
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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23
stony
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| adj.石头的，多石头的，冷酷的，无情的 | |
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24
shroud
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| n.裹尸布，寿衣；罩，幕；vt.覆盖，隐藏 | |
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25
contemplated
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| adj. 预期的 动词contemplate的过去分词形式 | |
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26
alienated
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| adj.感到孤独的，不合群的v.使疏远( alienate的过去式和过去分词 )；使不友好；转让；让渡（财产等） | |
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27
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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28
skilfully
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| adv. (美skillfully)熟练地 | |
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29
lured
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| 吸引，引诱（lure的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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30
desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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31
charred
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| v.把…烧成炭( char的过去式)；烧焦 | |
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32
veins
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| n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理 | |
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33
utterance
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| n.用言语表达，话语，言语 | |
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34
amber
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| n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的 | |
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35
monarchs
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| 君主，帝王( monarch的名词复数 ) | |
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36
converging
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| adj.收敛[缩]的，会聚的，趋同的v.（线条、运动的物体等）会于一点( converge的现在分词 )；（趋于）相似或相同；人或车辆汇集；聚集 | |
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37
outskirts
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| n.郊外，郊区 | |
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38
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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39
exacting
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| adj.苛求的，要求严格的 | |
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40
pang
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| n.剧痛，悲痛，苦闷 | |
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41
quaffed
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| v.痛饮( quaff的过去式和过去分词 )；畅饮；大口大口将…喝干；一饮而尽 | |
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42
wafts
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| n.空中飘来的气味，一阵气味( waft的名词复数 )；摇转风扇v.吹送，飘送，（使）浮动( waft的第三人称单数 ) | |
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43
pangs
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| 突然的剧痛( pang的名词复数 )； 悲痛 | |
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44
accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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45
defiance
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| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
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46
leavened
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| adj.加酵母的v.使（面团）发酵( leaven的过去式和过去分词 )；在…中掺入改变的因素 | |
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47
attainment
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| n.达到，到达；［常pl.］成就，造诣 | |
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48
tonic
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| n./adj.滋补品，补药，强身的，健体的 | |
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49
bondage
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| n.奴役，束缚 | |
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50
trajectory
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| n.弹道，轨道 | |
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51
supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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52
dissent
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| n./v.不同意，持异议 | |
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