The other morning on the way to work the morning sun created a brilliant rainbow fragment low in the western sky over the plains of Ewa. Such a low-lying rainbow is called punohu, and is ho'ailona (sign) of Kane. This is no surprise, nor is it overtly supernatural when you think about it. One of the main manifestations of Kane is the 'onohi-o-ka-la, (the eyeball of the sun), and as it rises, its effect on the world, including early morning, low-lying rainbows of course would be associated.I think on the empiricism of the po'e kahiko (ancient people), and how every moment of day or night, every pattern of the changing moon and its effects on tides, and life of sea and land, and the progression of the seasons (much more subtle than the "wet season - dry season" simplification you hear about) is recorded for us as traditional knowledge woven into oli (chant) and hula (dance), as well as the details shared in the multitude of mo'olelo (stories). Through these media the world was described. So the punohu 'ula is ho'ailona of Kane, and that is to say, the rays of the rising sun, sent through the thick atmosphere and refracted, produces red-shifted low-lying rainbows.
So are the new shoots of the endemic Hawaiian fern Schizaea robusta, called oali'i-makali'i, the kinolau (physical manifestation) and ho'ailona of Lono, and as it is true that these new shoots are produced on the onset of the winter rains, themselves a sign of the approach of the Makahiki, then so much stronger is the connection between the fern and the Lono, god of the Makahiki. I had known of this fern for years before the name's connection to the constellation that marks the start of the Makahiki suddenly became apparent to me. I knew the Makalii as the Pleiades, until the time of Hokule'a and rebuilding awareness of Hawaiian star names reacquainted me with its proper inoa Hawai'i. It probably didn't help that the person who first showed me the fern described the name "makalii" as "small face" and used it as a mnemonic to help me link the tiny fern frond to the name. But not only a "small faced fern" was this, but also, the oali'i fern associated with the Makali'i constellation and the start of the Makahiki season. Such a tiny obscure and subtle thing to link to such an important season in Hawaiian life!But large or small, we are surrounded by ho'ailona, and when they involve those elements that we share with the generations of ancestors that have trod the trails of these islands, they are the same now as when they presented themselves to our ancestors hundreds and thousands of years ago. That is one of the reasons I chose to explore the art of oli, chant, and why I most enjoy the ancient chants. It is because the phenomena that were chosen by the po'e kahiko to put into chant were no doubt the ones most prominent and known, so that they could invoke the intended response via the kaona they embodied.That is another good reason for us of ke ao nei (these modern times) not to contribute to the destruction of the native ecosystems of these islands, but to know them, cherish them, and actively protect them. When we let the oali'i makali'i disappear physically from the uplands, chewed up by introduced animals, or let it disappear from our knowledge and awareness, we lose yet another link in the net that the kupuna of these islands wove for us pulapula (descendants).
So now you too know of the oali'i makali'i, and that it is kinolau of Lono. Now you should take a long hike up to the summit crest of the Ko'olau, where the oali'i makali'i sends it little fronds out from the tops of the cliffs, hidden in the clouds.pipi holo ka'ao'Ohu
the standing rainbow we call te rangi tu aniwaniwa, it is like the poutoko manawa, a supporting post that holds a house up, and also symbolises the love between Ranginui sky father and Papatuanuku earth mother, ive seen the standing rainbow three times in my life, the most recent was two days ago also over the sea, after the most brilliant Kahukura / double rainbow ive ever seen had faded the standing rainbow was left while the 'sea people' the dolphins and seals chased a school of fish up and down the bay. they were so clever our ancient ones and it is amazing the way you can get lessons only if you ponder and use thought and reflection to get those lessons, they are not goven for nothing, just like the work in the gardens is rewarded by food, the work pondering the thoughts and words the ancestors left for us will give us many lessons :) aloa e bruddah 'Ohu
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