Legends of the Wailuku by Charlotte Hapai

Author:Charlotte Hapai [Hapai, Charlotte]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781465514875
Google: 03Dd5IUJ8C0C
Publisher: Library of Alexandria
Published: 2009-01-15T03:30:30+00:00

Old Laamaomao, the Wind God, Admitted That Times Were Dull

Drawn by Will Herwig. Paradise Eng.

Old Laamaomao, the Wind God, Admitted That Times Were Dull.

On one such occasion Laamaomao, having received an order for a great storm, forgot all about Maui's kite and turned loose his most powerful wind from Ipunui. All night long it howled through the creaking trees, driving the rain before it in lashing sheets. Stout as it was, the olona cord with which Maui's big kite was moored could not long withstand the strain and finally parted, leaving the kite to the mercy of the winds. Tossed madly about in the storm, it was carried far across the flank of Mauna Loa and dropped into the sea off the shore of Kau.

Now Puuanuhe, the much-dreaded lizard-woman, made her home on the shores of the Kau desert, and to her ears had come the wonderful story of Maui's kite, fanning an already hot jealousy of the young demi-god and his doings. Puuanuhe was the only creature of those days who had fiery red hair, and her temper was none the less caloric.

So when she saw this strange object floating in the water near her home on the morning after the storm she recognized it as Maui's kite. Chuckling in vicious satisfaction at this chance opportunity to make trouble for the handsome son of Hina, Puuanuhe hid the kite in the rough hills back of Hilea.

Great was Maui's surprise and consternation when he found his kite gone. He at once set out in search of it. Days passed without trace of it, but one day news came to him that Puuanuhe had been seen with a large kite. He knew it must be his, as there was none other so big.

Arriving at Hilea he discovered the hideous red-headed lizard-woman, who admitted she had found his kite, but refused to enlighten him as to its whereabouts. This same creature had lured many a poor fisherman to death on the rocky coast of Kau, and Maui thought it high time to put an end to such a pest, so he killed her.

Once more he took up his search for his beloved kite and soon found it cleverly hidden in the hills. Ironically he named the spot Puuanuhe, and returning home with his precious toy he fastened it securely to its moorings again.

Even today you can see the immense kite, now turned to stone, just as Maui hauled it in for the last time and left it. It is seventy-five feet long and about forty-five feet wide, narrowing to eighteen feet at one end. At the narrow end is a crystal-clear lake, very deep and smooth as glass. In its center is a large, round stone projecting above the surface with a two-inch aperture in the middle where Maui used to make his kite string fast.

Near this lake are the two windpots, Ipunui and Ipuiki, and a little way below are three very distinct foot-prints, each fifteen inches long, showing where Maui stood while flying his great kite.

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