Hina

“ Halai hill trembled and earthquakes shook the land round about. The great heat of the fire in the imu withered the little life which was still left from the famine. Meanwhile Hina Ke Ahi was carrying out her plan for securing aid for her people. She could not be injured by the heat for she was a goddess of fire. The waves of heat raged around her as she sank down through the stones of the imu into the underground paths which belonged to the spirit world. The legend says that Hina made her appearance in the form of a gushing stream of water which would always supply the want of her adherents. ”

“ When Hina saw that the child was full grown she took him to the temple of Alanapo and brought him up with the spirits, where he was educated in the arts of warfare and in all the training proper for the development of great strength. After the years of training his two hands were equally developed and could deal out death to all his enemies. In his daily life and bringing up, he had a twofold character; that of a spirit and of a human being. ”

“ He then took Hina to wife, and they two dwelt together on the top of Haupu.
Poor Hakalanileo, the husband of Hina, mourned the loss of his companion of the long nights of winter and the shower-sprinkled nights of summer. Neither could he regain possession of her, for the ridge of [65] Haupu grew till it reached the heavens. He mourned and rolled himself in the dust in agony, and crossed his hands behind his back. He went from place to place in search of some powerful person who should be able to restore to him his wife. ”

“ Safe is Hina the goddess."
Kuna heard the crash of the club against the stones of the river bank and fled up the river to his home in the hidden caves by the pools in the river bed. Maui rushed up the river to punish Kuna-mo-o for the trouble he had caused Hina. When he came to the place where the dragon was hidden under deep waters, he took his magic spear and thrust it through the dirt and lava rocks along one side of the river, making a long hole, through which the waters rushed, revealing Kuna-mo-o's hiding place. ”

“ A dead body was supposed to be acceptable to the gods when a chief's house was built, when a chief's new canoe was to be made or when temple walls were to be erected or victories celebrated. The bodies of the people belonged to the will of the chief. Therefore it was in quiet despair that the workmen obeyed Hina Ke Ahi and prepared the place for sacrifice. It might mean their own holocaust as an offering to the gods. At last Hina Ke Ahi bade the laborers cease their work and stand by the side of the oven ready to cover it with the dirt which had been thrown out and piled up by the side. ”

“ And behold, Kapeepeekauila and Hina sat before him. Then Niheu seized the hand of Hina and said, “Let us two go.” And she arose and went.
When they had gone about half-way to the brink of the precipice, Kapeepeekauila exclaimed, “What is this? Is the woman gone?”
Mo-i, the sister of Kana, answered and said, “If you wish the woman, now is the time; you and I fight.”
Great was the love of Kapeepeekauila for Hina, and he said, “No war dare touch Haupu; behold, it is a hill, growing even to the heavens.” And he sent the kolea (plover) squad to desecrate the sacred locks of Niheu ”

“ Evidently he had not come to wage war or do harm to the people, for he had already made friends with many of the fishermen living near him.
So Hina decided to see him for herself and went down to his home. She was surprised to find that he really had established himself on that low rock.
"Why," she exclaimed, "you must not stay on this rock! Can't you see the waters above here are high? When the rains come you will be washed away and drowned. It is not safe!"
Paoa stood upon the little plot of pili grass as he answered her. ”

“ There are no two O-Hina-San exactly alike out of millions; and when you have become familiar by long residence with Japanese types, any such doll will recall to you some pretty face that you have seen. ”

“ Jealousy is self-willed and obstinate and no amount of reasoning from her dependents could have any influence over her.
The ordinary incantations were observed, and Hina Kuluua gave the same directions as those her sister had given. The imu was to be well heated. The make-believe food was to be put in and a place left for her body. It was the goddess of rain making ready to lie down on a bed prepared for the goddess of fire. When all was ready, she lay down on the heated stones and the oven mats were thrown over her and the ghostly provisions. ”

“ He would send his brothers off fishing, and he himself would watch for the smoke from the fire that the alae would kindle. But they would kindle no fire on the days that he did not go out in the canoe with his brothers. “We cannot have our cooked bananas to-day,” the old bird would say to the young birds, “for the swift son of Hina is somewhere near, and he would come upon us before we put out our fire. And remember that the guardian of the fire told us never to show a man where it is hidden or how it is taken out of its hiding place.” ”

“ What he did on his return this time was to go fishing. His favorite mode of fishing was pole fishing at night: one night he went out and while he was idling away a canoe came along looking for a [540] man to be offered in sacrifice by the king; Maui was taken prisoner and brought to the chief at Halulukoakoa. This place is at Moalii, Maui, in a westerly direction from Lahainaluna. He was to be placed on the altar the following day. At this time Hina saw in a vision what was happening to Maui. So Hina and the owl followed along and at Pohakuawahinemauna63 Hina stayed there. ”

“ In Tahiti the legends said that the sun rushed across the sky very rapidly. The days were too short for fruits to ripen or for work to be finished. In Samoa the "mats" made by Sina had no time to dry. The ancestors of the Polynesians sometime somewhere must have been in the region of short days and long nights. Hina found that her incantations had no influence with the sun. She could not prevail upon him to go slower and give her more time for the completion of her task. Then she called on her powerful son, Maui-ki-i-ki-i, for aid. ”

“ She was angry and cried out: "Where are the bananas of the sun?" Then she took off another part of the bunch, and Maui stole that. Thus he did until all the bunch had been taken away. She was almost blind and could not detect him by sight, so she sniffed all around [Pg 46] her until she detected the smell of a man. She asked: "Who are you? To whom do you belong?" Maui replied: "I belong to Hina." "Why have you come?" Maui told her, "I have come to kill the sun. He goes so fast that he never dries the tapa Hina has beaten out." ”

“ E hili aku ana o Niheu i ka laau palau ana, pau ke ki o Koaea, a me ka ulei o Nuuhiwa, komo ka makani i loko o Halehuki.
When Niheu came up to the fence he beat down the ti-leaf and ulei with his war club, causing the wind to enter Halehuki. As the wind blew into the house, Kapepeekauila asked: “What has caused the wind to enter here?” “There is a boy outside with a war club. He has beaten down the fence.” Hina then spoke up: “It must be Niheu, our brave son. He is without fear. We shall be killed.” While she was speaking, Niheu came in and taking hold of Hina started off with her. ”

“ Hinauri, the Bright One, stands free, but she does not yet live. Nevertheless, Chief and Tohunga, there will be another life in this cave before many days.’
“ ‘Blessed be the child that is born under the smile of Hineteiwaiwa,’ I said. ‘I will go to my tribe and bring back a woman to be with you.’
“I brought the woman, and Miriami’s child was born before another moon had set out to find the Sacred Isle in the West. ”

“ They did so, and when they went out to fish the next morning, the alae counted and saw four figures in the canoe, and then they lit the fire and put the bananas on to roast. Before they were fully baked one of the alae cried out: “Our dish is cooked! Behold, Hina has a smart son.”
And with that, Maui-mua, who had stolen close to them unperceived, leaped forward, seized the curly-tailed alae and exclaimed: “Now I will kill you, you [35] scamp of an alae! Behold, it is you who are keeping the fire from us. I will be the death of you for this.” ”

“ I asked, smiling back, “you will wed an abstraction and beget great poems. Now look here, Kahikatea, face the thing squarely. Suppose, according to the tradition, which was probably hoary long before Pygmalion and Galatea were thought of—suppose that Hinauri should become a living, breathing woman, what would you do?”
He did not answer for some little time, but remained looking straight before him. At length he gave a sigh and said, “Granting for the moment that such a thing were possible, Hinauri would be more to me than she is now. I should love her with my whole self.” ”

“ But the spirit of Hinauri returned not. Yet from that time forward certain men with the fire of the Vile Tohungas in their eyes found entrance to the temple. My thought is that they had heard a threatening voice teaching them strange things. Perchance the ages had told them how they had been tricked, and they came to learn the secret of our greater magic, and to destroy the Bright One. But, O Sons of Kiwa, I took their heads, baked them, and hung them in the abyss. ”

“ This was to loosen one more of the fetters of Hinauri, for, as he said, “How could she move to life when her feet were fast bound to the rock?” Thus the place where Hinauri had stood through the ages was now left vacant, so that her living image might stand there with her arms outstretched to the western sky, with the same loveliness of old upon her face, and the same age-long prayer upon her parted lips. This, Miriam maintained, was not a trick, but a test, for none knew as well as Ngaraki the form and features of his ancient goddess! ”

“ The Vile Tohungas of the Pit were searching for Hinauri to destroy her, but Zun tricked them. He cast himself down into the foundations of the temple and dwelt among them to learn their vile magic. Then, when he had mastered their secrets, he fashioned a false image of Hinauri as a great spar, and bound it down to the rock with a round stone. The Vile Tohungas, believing that this spar, stranded on the shores of Time, contained the sacredness of Hinauri, cursed it for ever, so that woman should never rise to the skies, but remain bound down to do their will. ”

“ The distinguishing features of the Hinayana may be declared to be its adherence to the strict morality of primitive Buddhism, its greater simplicity of worship, its smaller Canon of scripture, and the fact that it appeals rather to the comparatively few, to those, that is to say, who are able and willing to make the surrender it requires. Whereas, in the Mahayana, or Greater Vehicle, we see a system characterized by that increased ease and laxity, which too often accompany a season of repose and the cessation of the enthusiasm that attends the establishment of a new movement. ”

“ When the Chief told this to his son Ni-he-u, Ni-he-u said, “Then the only thing to do is to go to Uli, my grandmother and Kana’s grandmother, and ask her what we are to do about it.” The Chief went to her. And when he came before Uli, she said, [140] “What have you come for?” “I have come for a canoe for Kana, in which he will be able to make the voyage to Mo-lo-kai and fight Pe-pe’e, who lives on the hill Hau-pu, and bring back Hina, my wife, to me.”
And when he had told her that, Uli said: “There is only one canoe that Kana can travel in; it is in Pali-uli, and it is buried there. ”

“ Hinde, and has been connected with the Goth. hinÞan (hinthan) , to seize, which may be connected ultimately with “hand” and “hunt.” “Hart,” from the O.E. heort, may be in origin connected with the root of Gr. κέρας, horn. “Hind” (O.E. hine, probably from the O.E. hinan, members of a family or household) , meaning a servant, especially a labourer on a farm, is another word. In Scotland the “hind” is a farm servant, with a cottage on the farm, and duties and responsibilities that make him superior to the rest of the labourers. ”

“ Then, as now, the adage that "All is fair in love and war" held good, and it was agreed that Hinemoa should flee to Tutanekai, to whom she had been forbidden, under pain of death, to give her hand. The strains of his flute were to herald the beginning of operations, when the maiden was to paddle her own canoe across the water. Now when the night was calm Tutanekai took his flute, and seating himself upon a rock hard by Kaiwaka on the shore of Mokoia, the sound of his music was wafted by the breeze to the home of Hinemoa. Then Hinemoa came down to the lake to step into her canoe, but, alas! ”

“ For eight and twenty years Asoka worked sanely for the real needs of men. Amidst the tens of thousands of names of monarchs that crowd the columns of history, their majesties and graciousnesses and serenities and royal highnesses and the like, the name of Asoka shines, and shines almost alone, a star. From the Volga to Japan his name is still honoured. China, Tibet, and even India, though it has left his doctrine, preserve the tradition{v1-433} of his greatness. More living men cherish his memory to-day than have ever heard the names of Constantine or Charlemagne. ”

“ In 1857, on the 28th day of the 12th month, Hino came to Yedo from Miako, as bearer of a letter from the Emperor addressed to the Shiogoon.
“Your duty is to act as Shiogoon; and yet you, being Se i dai Shiogoon [barbarian-quelling commander-in-chief] , are unable to perform your duties. You ought to know what the duties of that office are, and yet our foreign enemies (eeteki) you are unable to punish. You have many high officers with you, and this matter is one of the utmost importance; therefore I wish you to come as soon as you can to Miako. ”