MERMAIDS AND MO‘O OF HAWAI‘I
While water beings are plentiful in Hawaiian culture, Hawaiian stories about half-human, half-fish entities are rare. More common are stories about the class of Hawaiian reptilian water deities, predominantely female and generally noted for their great size, called mo‘o (the Hawaiian word for lizard). Their lizard forms symbolize regeneration (shedding of skin and regrowing tails) and continuity (their backbones with their visible vertebre and distinct markings), and their association with water also symbolizes continuity (water flow and the water cycle). Mo‘o held important roles in Hawaiian culture, religion, and society, as guardians of place, ancestral guardians, and in certain cases, as deities associated with war and politics. They continue to be relevant for many Hawaiians today.
According to Mary Kawena Pukui, a renowned expert on Hawaiian culture, mermaids are kin to mo‘o.1 Although Pukui did not elaborate on this connection, it is clearly based on certain affinities. Both mermaids and mo‘o possess fishlike qualities: mermaids have fishtails, and dwell in fresh or salt water, while mo‘o generally live in or nearby bodies of fresh water or fishponds (sometimes rain forests, and more rarely, on a seashore or in a sea cave). Mo‘o also exude walewale (a thick watery substance), like certain fish species.
Notably, mo‘o personify the life-giving and death-dealing qualities of water, and as such they can be beneficent or malevolent. Mo‘o are thought to have the power to attract fish and lead them elsewhere, and this power of attraction seems to extend to humans. Like the sirens of European lore, female mo‘o have the reputation of being incredibly seductive. In their human forms, they are generally stunningly beautiful, and the humans they set out to seduce are unable to resist them. The mo‘o’s beauty, like still waters whose placid surface is lovely to behold, may hide a dangerous nature, just as still water may hide dangerous undercurrents.
Hawaiian deities personify nature and natural phenomena. The mo‘o clan’s kinship and antagonism with other deities, especially the family of volcanic deities, speaks to Hawaiian understandings of balance in nature, and the ways in which opposing elements (like water and fire) are in eternal struggle and complementarity.
Most importantly, these deities, water spirits included, are part of a living tradition that finds its narrative expression in mo‘olelo and ka‘ao as well as song, hula, and chant. It is important to note here that in mo‘olelo and ka‘ao there is no sharp distinction between belief narratives and histories, or between belief narratives and wonder genres. Conceptually, mo‘olelo—which as a word connects to oral tradition, family, land, and more2—encompasses what in English would be termed myth, legend, wonder tale, history, and life writing. Within this capacious genre, a single mo‘olelo might incorporate and weave together elements from two or more of these genres, and that is perfectly acceptable. Moreover, ka‘ao—“legend, tale, novel, romance, usually fanciful; fiction” in the Hawaiian Dictionary3—also overlaps with the mo‘olelo, as historical figures and events can be transformed over time by multiple retellings into a more fantastical ka‘ao.4 In the Hawaiian and other genre systems of larger Oceania, cosmic genealogies, myths, and legends constitute history according to these people’s worldview; not to be confused with fiction, they constitute different narrative approaches to that history.
The Mermaid of Honokawailani Pond1
Typically in mermaid lore, it is a human male who falls in love with a mermaid, but in this story from Hawai‘i, a young woman falls in love with a male water spirit who lives in a deep pond. Because of her love for him, she renounces her humanity and her ties to the human world to undergo the transformation from human to wahine-hi‘u-i‘a (literally, fishtailed woman).2
I am a native of ‘Ewa of which it is said “Maka ‘Ewa‘ewa” (Averted Eyes). But my aloha wells up for the elders and friends who have passed on, who did not look the other way when strangers arrived, and who demonstrated to all their open heart full of boundless aloha.
One thing I fondly recall when I think about it now that my head is covered in gray hair that becomes ever sparser as time passes is my grandmother combing my long hair, which had grown quite long, with a small comb and rubbing it with coconut oil. My hair nearly reached my ankles at that time.
During one of these sessions to beautify my hair, my grandmother told me a story about a girl of her time whose hair nearly reached her feet, made shiny with coconut oil and fragrant with perfume. According to my grandmother, this young woman was incomparably beautiful, and her reputation as a beautiful woman was known from one side of ‘Ewa to the other.
Upland of our family compound (in this time, upland of the electric building of the Hawaiian Electric Company) was a pond called Honokawailani. This pond was always full of water from beneath the earth. When it was high tide, the freshwater of Honokawailani rose like that of the sea, and the water of the pond rose and became a stream. The water was a dark blue-green until the sun hit it, and then made it transparent. The pond was thick with water lilies on every side and here and there within it. Its lushness was striking.
It was the meeting place for all the youths from Waimalu to Manana when I was a child. We would go to Honokawailani to swim and play in water. And it was common for small children to hide in the bushes at the side of the pond and spy on the activities of the youths who had gathered.
That pond is still here today as a kind of memorial for those days. However, it is not beautiful as it was in our days, and even perhaps many years before my birth. In these days, it is crowded with dayflowers and various weeds. Come to think of it, it is very sad.
And about this pond Honokawailani, I learned a story told by my grandmother about the girl with the long hair.
One day, according to my grandmother, the young girl left her family to go with her friends. When they finished amusing themselves there for the day, and had reached home, only then did they notice that one of them was missing. This happened to be that girl. Immediately, they quickly called around, and the families came together to search for the girl. But they found no trace of her.
Then, the expert trained in the art of deep-seeing met with the parents. This expert could seek and find the answers to puzzling questions and find things that had disappeared. The expert told the parents to stand with him. Then, they all looked up and exhorted the Great Mana to spread forth and assist them with their (the parents’) cherished one that they had deeply loved as they raised her.
That same evening, the mother was startled out of a deep sleep by the sound of her daughter’s voice saying “Honokawailani.” The second time this word was said, she understood it was the name of the pond.
She got up in a hurry, gave thanks for this revelation, covered her shoulders with a shawl, and went outside. With dawn on the horizon of the Leeward Side she began her journey toward Honokawailani.
Along the way, the sky cleared, and the uplands were also clear of clouds. She rushed along, hurrying toward the slope before her because it was the place where she could turn to one side and look down at Honokawailani. She reached the top of the slope and stood there. After a while, she spied her favorite child among the many water lilies that surrounded her. Her daughter waved. Her need to be next to her daughter made her run quickly toward the pond’s edge. A path opened between the many water lilies so that the girl could float closer to her mother. The mother pushed through many water-lily pads, moving between the dayflowers and water-lily buds that were just beginning to unfurl. The girl held up her hand as if to say, “Come no farther.”
The woman saw her child’s long hair and said, “Let’s go back, and I will comb . . .” The girl gently shook her head, looking at her with cool eyes. The mother spoke again with tears in her eyes, “Oh child of my heart, let us return home. I see that your sweet face looks at me with such aloofness.”
Upon hearing these words, the girl shook her head forcefully and the mother understood that her child could not speak to her. Su
ddenly, she retreated backward into the water lilies. The mother immediately cried out in pain, “With love your mother has cared for you every day and you said, ‘I need you.’ I searched for you until I found you, to find out how you were, and instead look at you, no concern for the way you cause me pain.”
Just as the mother finished speaking, a young man appeared at the girl’s side. The young woman waved good-bye to her mother, and then jumped up high so that her mother could see the answer to her questions, and thus not feel sad. Behold, a fishtail had replaced her legs.
The mother looked around, but her daughter had vanished beneath the water lilies. She was a mermaid! And this boy, he was her daughter’s sweetheart.
“And there she is until this day,” said my grandmother.
Kalamainu‘u, the Mo‘o Who Seduced Puna‘aikoa‘e1
In this tale, Kalamainu‘u encounters Puna‘aikoa‘e, a ruling chief of O‘ahu, while she is surfing. She finds him attractive and lures him to another island, where she keeps him prisoner in her cave.2 This story was told to explain the appearance of two images of female deities associated with war and politics: one was carved with a missing eye (Kalamainu‘u) and the other with a flattened nose (Haumea)—injuries they received in a battle over Puna‘aikoa‘e.
When the time came to complete the closing ceremony for the dedication of the war temple, the expert to whom that duty belonged was ready. Two or three images of female deities draped in yellow kapa stood in the places designated for them. One was called Kalamainu‘u (Kihawahine). She was a mo‘o. Another was called Haumea (Kāmeha‘ikana) because she had physically entered a breadfruit tree, perhaps by virtue of her divine nature. It was said that her husband, Makea, had been killed and his corpse hung on a breadfruit tree, the very breadfruit tree she had entered.
Makea was not the real name of the man who died but Puna‘aikoa‘e, an ali‘i of O‘ahu. While he was touring the island with his entourage, they reached Kukui at Waimānalo in Ko‘olaupoko from the direction of Waikīkī. Because it was a good time for surfing there, the ali‘i and his companions went surfing. But when they arrived at the surf spot, they were surprised to see a stunningly beautiful woman, and their hearts were startled by desire. She told Puna‘aikoa‘e, “This is not the best place to catch swells.” “Where then?” asked Puna. “It’s further out, and I know it well.” It seemed as if there were covetous thoughts in her heart as she observed him, and likewise for him when he looked at her, because their gazes locked. When desire is equal, nothing will stand in its way. They paddled their boards for some time, asking each other questions to get to know one another, and swam on. After a while the woman said, “Just beyond here is the good surf spot where we can catch waves.” They continued paddling until they left the surf break behind, carrying on until the upland cliffs could no longer be seen, and further still until the island itself completely disappeared from sight. He had long since stopped looking behind him. All that remained before him was what his eyes beheld. The people ashore cried out for him, but amazingly, they didn’t go on canoes to search for him. But then again, this is a story. Indeed, it would’ve been the right thing to do if she’d been a real woman.
They go ashore at Molokai
They abandoned their boards on the shore and went inland to the woman’s cave dwelling. When he entered the cave, however, he saw no signs of human presence and heard no voices, just an oppressive quiet and eerie solitude. His dwelling there was like being imprisoned. He obeyed all the woman’s commands to placate her in order to remain alive. She took good care of him, giving him food and making certain his every need was met. She took him as her husband. He lived with that kupua wife for such a long time that he barely looked human anymore.
He hears voices shouting boisterously
One day when he emerged from their cave and stood outside, he heard voices resounding from a distance. He greatly wished to discover why but it was impossible because he was bound by his wife’s edict. He must never leave secretly, or he would die. Thus, he lived most long-sufferingly. He went back into their cave and he asked her, “What kind of revelry did I heard seaside of us just now?” The woman answered, “It could be surfing or possibly the game of the rolling stone disks. Perhaps it is something else, and someone is defeating another person, and that is the revelry you heard.” “I would love very much to see these things you speak of.” The woman spoke again. “If you wish to go, then tomorrow is a good time for me to let you go there and so that you can see.”
He goes down toward the sea to witness the recreational pursuits
When the next day dawned, he left and descended toward the sea, reaching the crowd. He saw a great number of entertaining activities. While he was having a good time, a local man named Hinale, who was his wife’s brother, noticed him. When Hinale saw him, he was quite astonished at the strangeness of his features. When the pastimes ended, the man took him to his house to enjoy a meal and rest. While they were relaxing, Hinale asked him, “Where do you hail from now and what kind of house do you live in?” Puna‘aikoa‘e replied, “I am dwelling upland in a cave.” At this declaration, Hinale became pensive. Hinale was preoccupied because he had heard about the disappearance of Puna‘aikoa‘e, an ali‘i of O‘ahu. Kalamainu‘u had taken him.
This conversation made Hinale’s heart fill with compassionate affection for his brother-in-law. So he asked, “How did you arrive there?” He told him the story. Hinale replied, “Your wife is not human, if that is your wife, for she is a kupua. You should return early. If you creep in silence, then you will discover her true nature as her mouth snatches in secret spiders and their webs. Even so, she will know you have returned. She will also know about our conversation. It is because of my great affection and compassion for you that I tell you this. Your former wife is an older sister of all your sisters-in-law. I advise you to plan for the moment when her [Kalaimanu‘u] anger has waned. When she is pleased with you, simply moan, ‘I have such an intense craving for water.’ She will ask, ‘What water do you crave?’ You should answer, ‘The water of Poliahu at Maunakea.’ However, you should pierce her water gourd until it is riddled with holes so that it delays her. Then go to the old woman’s crater, the woman whose eyes have become diseased. She alone is your salvation. You and your wife are well known. But when your life is safe, she will seek mine. I care deeply about your life because you need to return to your former wife.”
His return to their cave dwelling
As he neared the cave, he secretly crept in silence and he saw her indeed, her mouth reaching here and there for spiders on their webs. When he saw this, he then understood Hinale’s statements. He then backed up until he was far away and made noises to announce his arrival.
When she heard him, she went back to being human. He entered, and she spoke harshly to him, “It seems that you are secretly creeping in silence to see the worst of people. You retreated not too long ago and then made noises to announce your presence, perhaps because you thought I wouldn’t know better? Maybe I should eat your eyeballs. It’s possible that Hinale gave you some advice and when you heard it, you came back to observe my nature.” Before he had left, she had ordered him to speak loudly so that she could hear him as he was arriving if he returned early.
As that beloved husband stood in the sea spray of her anger, he refrained from saying a word until the storm of anger that prickled the gills and the wind ruffling the neck feathers had completely died down, until her displeasure was finally spent like a whirlwind that meets an obstacle and then dissipates. Thus, they cast away their discord and dwelt with each other very peacefully. In fact, that woman would have wagered her bones on his words because she almost trusted him more than before.
“Lovers are wooing in the woods”
Kalamainu‘u’s taking leave of Puna
Once Puna felt everything had gone back to normal and he saw that his wife was once again fulfilling all his desires, he let out a loud sigh because he was
thirsty. It was not a real thirst, just a ruse to carry out Hinale’s advice to be freed from living in captivity with that monster. When his wife heard his moaning, she quickly asked, “Why are you sighing?” He replied, “I just felt thirsty as we were sitting here and relaxing—the thirst rose forth for no reason.” “The water of where,” asked the wife. “For the water of Poliahu, at Maunakea.” She said, “What is your reason for craving that water?” Puna replied, “I yearn for water mixed with ice, which I have always drank since I was a child. My grandparents would only fetch water for me from that place. If I traveled, that water would be brought as well. Whenever it was about run out, it would be fetched again. It was like this until the day that I became yours. You have water and I drink it, but it tastes nothing like water mixed with ice. However, I do not want to send you to fetch it because of the distance, which would be unfair to you, my wife.” The wife bowed her head down. When she raised her eyes, she said, “You do not crave water, you just want to wear me out with work. But I should fetch it lest you say I ignore your words.
Just before he mentioned his craving for water, he had pierced the bottom of her water gourd until it was riddled with holes to delay her, just as Hinale had advised him, which would give him time to escape. His wife rose to go. That same day, he left to board a canoe for Maui. From Maui, he took another canoe to Hawai‘i and landed at Kona. From there, he sailed to Ka‘ū. Once he landed at Ka‘ū, he made his way to Pele’s crater, and climbed up its rim. The people of the crater recognized him, and their welcoming call resounded, “Here is the husband of our older sister.” Hearing their welcome, he quickly joined them. He spoke of his voyage there and shared his story.
The Penguin Book of Mermaids Page 24