The Rosary

Informant: Male/31/Filipino ancestry
Location: Koloa, Kauai

Everyone in my family has their own rosary in a different color. My rosary is blue. We switch rooms a lot in my house, so me and my dad decided to switch. When I moved into that room, I hung my rosary over my mirror. Later that night before I was about to go to bed, I noticed that my rosary was gone. I asked everyone if they had seen it or taken it, but they all said they didn’t and that they hadn’t seen it anywhere. Not really suspecting anything strange, I just decided to go to bed.

Later that night I woke up for some reason, and I looked over at the mirror at the end of my bed. I saw my rosary. But it wasn’t on the mirror like I had put it, it was in the mirror. It was open, as if someone was wearing it around their neck. I thought, “Oh, maybe I hung it on the window above me,” so I reached up above my head expecting to feel it, but it wasn’t there. I decided to just go back to sleep.

When I woke up, the rosary wasn’t anywhere to be found, and I still haven’t found it.

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The White Lady of Punahou School

Informant: Male/22/ unknown ancestry
Location: Punahou School, Oahu

My story takes place about nine years ago on the campus of Punahou School.

I was walking from the gym to the pick-up area after a school dance. At that time there was construction going on and I was just looking around the campus 'cause it was the first time that I was there that late at night (like about 11 or something like that, I don't remember anymore).

In any case, I happened to look towards the construction area and I saw this lady in white just walking through the construction yard. I thought it was strange and stared a little bit longer. However, by this time, I had reached the end of the field and could no longer see the construction area. I just wrote it off as being kinda late and the strobe lights at the dance and such.

The following Monday, I happened to mention what I thought I saw to a professor and he responded that it was just the 'white lady' who walks around campus late at night.

Since that time, I've been on campus late at night multiple times and every once in a while I still do see her.

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Pressing in Hale Kahawai

Informant: Male/20/ Japanese ancestry

Location: Hale Kahawai, UH Manoa, Oahu

I’ve lived in Hale Kahawai for two years in the same room, with the same roommate. One night while I was sleeping, I woke up to find that I couldn’t move. I was conscious, but I couldn’t move my body, and I couldn’t speak no matter how hard I tried. A week later, I woke up to a pressing sensation on my chest. I couldn’t move, I couldn’t see anyone or anything on my chest, but something was pressing me.

I talked to my neighbor the next morning about what happened, and he told me that he also experienced something strange. He woke up one night to find a Hawaiian man dressed in a malo sitting on his bed. He just rolled over in bed and pretended not to see the man.

I took a look in Glen Grant’s Obake Files book, and found a similar story about choking ghosts in my dorm. The first year that I lived in Kahawai I had a bag of Hawaiian salt, and nothing strange ever happened. When I started my second year there, I didn’t have any Hawaiian salt. Maybe that had something to do with it.

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Treasures From The Rock

Informant: Male/40s/European ancestry

Location: Big Island

“Why would you take that home with you? Are you crazy?”

It might not be the wisest idea to verbally berate your doctor, but at the sight of his slightly-swollen hand, I felt the need to further drive the point home that taking home strange objects found in lava rock is never a good idea.

While on vacation to the Big Island, my doctor and his family decided to visit the volcano. While they were there, he happened to notice a gold ring sitting in a crack in the lava. He decided to take a stick and fish it out, and took it home with him.

“It’s probably just coincidence, “he said as he showed me his now-healing broken hand. But that wasn’t the only unfortunate accident that had befallen him and his family since he had taken the ring home. His daughter, while on a camping trip in the mountains, ended up breaking her leg in a freak accident.

Still, he seems content with the reasoning that it was all just an unfortunate coincidence, but I could sense a bit of wavering in his voice. Nevertheless, on 8/8/08 he decided to go back to the Big Island and return the ring to the spot that it was found. There have been no accidents since then.

But that in itself might be short-lived, since recently he decided to take the tusks from a boar carcass that he found. Maybe the next time I see him, he’ll have a new story to tell.

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The Legend of Kaluako’i Akualele

[This article was written for the Nalo News, a community newspaper published by the Waimanalo Council of Community in the late 1970's. My uncle's mother, Mrs. Julia A.F. Enoka, wrote numerous articles on ancient Hawaiian folklore and myths. This story was written by Tracy Tengan.]

In ancient Molokai, long before the dawn of recorded history, there lived a powerful Kahuna called Maka’u. Maka’u was feared because of her great power, or mana. She lived in the area of Kaluako’i where the trees had evil spirits trapped inside them, causing them to be poisonous only on Moloka’i.

Maka’u’s powers came by her being able to release these spirits by akualele, or fireballs. Those who had the mana and could see these blue and green balls of flame spoke of their great power and destruction. When Maka’u sent one of these akualele, nothing was able to stand against it.

The people of Molokai lived in constant fear of Maka’u and finally pleaded with the rest of the kahunas to unite and battle against her. The kahunas had never united before, but decided that the reign of terror of this one evil kahuna and her evil powers had to end.

Together they travelled to Kaluako’i, to the head of Waiahewahewa Gulch, to the old heiau of Hina at the head of the spring that always was present there. Maka’u saw them coming and took her malama pu’olo (bundle of sticks from which to release her evil spirits) and prepared for battle.

When the kahunas were close enough, Maka’u commanded them to stop. As she took out the most powerful piece of wood, she began to use the chant of complete destruction. The kahunas were fearful, but continued to move forward, and then began to chant “Ho’i no’ai I kou kahu,” and “ho’i no kau me ‘oe,” which means “Go back and destroy your keeper and what you have just given to me, return to you.”

As the brilliant blue akualele was released from the stick, it heard the chant of the kahunas and returned to Maka’u. Maka’u’s eyes grew as the brilliant blue akualele began to veer and return to her. The horror that filled her was clear to all the kahunas. The blast and the blaze of the fireball sent the kahunas tumbling to the ground and the earth shook with the power of the “god’s” anger. As they recovered they saw that the spring that never failed was dried up and completely destroyed, and there was no sign of Maka’u.

The kahunas united in one last ceremony. They formed a circle around the spring and chanted. They begged Hina to forgive the destruction of the old heiau, but pleaded with her to see that the good of the people goes before any one place of worship. Even to this day, the spring is gone, the heiau is still in ruins, but the lesson of Maka’u still remains.

Tengan, Tracy (1979, February). Legends: The Legend of Kaluako'i Akualele. The Nalo News.

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Kamapua'a at The Merrie Monarch

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Informant: 14 years old/female

Location: Hilo Hawaiian Hotel, Big Island

For the past 30 years my grandma's hula halau, has been in the Merrie Monarch hula competition in Hilo on the Big Island. One night, my cousin and I went walking around the Hilo Hawaiian Hotel at three or four in the morning. We walked out to the beach and we sat on the dock just talking.

We looked out to the ocean saw this small cat-like figure on the rock wall in Hilo bay. My cousin and I started freaking out. We decided to walk down the road to the gardens at hotel and we looked back and saw a black pig following us. We started to get scared. We go back to the dock and the pig was there again. My cousin and I were wondering what the heck a pig was doing following us.

After this, a young but older lady came up behind us and she started chanting in Hawaiian. Her presence was very warm, but my cousin and I were still scared as ever. I speak fluent Hawaiian; the lady chanting was saying, "Kamapua'a leave these girls alone. You are a pig, and a pig you will be."

My cousin and I looked at the pig and it just disappeared. We turned to the lady and she told us our grandma was looking for us and we should go back upstairs. We got back upstairs and told our grandma about what we saw. She told us that around Merrie Monarch time, Kamapua'a comes around Hilo in search of Pele. Legend says they had a thing going on. 

Every year since that incident my grandma has made sure that my cousin and I stay in our rooms. But every Merrie Monarch since that night, my cousin and I go outside to go look at the dock and we see that same lady we saw from 2003, making sure that we are safe. My grandma said it's Kapo, Pele's best friend keeping us safe from harm.

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Ancient Religion and the Heiaus

[This article was written for the Nalo News, a community newspaper published by the Waimanalo Council of Community in the late 1970's. My uncle's mother, Mrs. Julia A.F. Enoka, wrote numerous articles on ancient Hawaiian folklore and myths.]

The Hawaiians had four main gods that they worshiped-- KANE, the creator-god; LONO--the God of Storm, Rain, and Fertility; KU, the God of war and strenuous activities, and KANALOA, the god of Sea and Death. When the Tahitians migrated to Hawaii they brought their worship of Tane (Kane) and Taaroa (Kanaloa). This was the religion in the ancient days, similar to that of the rest of Polynesia.

Heiaus are enclosed areas built of stone where the Hawaiians worshiped their Gods and held religious ceremonies.

On the Island of Hawaii there are two known heiaus built by Pa'ao, a Samoan priest who left Samoa and went adrift on the high seas, finally landing at Puna. He built the heiau Wahaula at Puna and Heiau O Mookini at Upolu Point.

There are six known heiaus in Waimanalo. KEIKIPUIPIU heiau was situated on Quarry Hill, just above Kalaniole Highway directly opposite the Olomana Golf Course. Traces of this heiau were destroyed when W.G. Irwin and the Maunawili Ranch planted pineapples on the hillsides.

The Hawaiians made their adzes and small chisels from the stones at Quarry Hill. Adzes are made from very hard basalt rock and the rocks at Quarry Hill were considered some of the best. (The Hawaiian word for adze is ko'i.)

POHAKUNUI is a small heiau (50' x 90') on the crown of a hill at the base of the Koolau Mountains. The heiau is located on Ekahi Farms on the hill between Kaulukanu and Mahailua Streets. The site is in a fairly good state of preservation.

There is a possible heiau of stone ruins above Kaikaina St. Its size is about 130' x 110', but archeologist were unable to give a detailed inspection of the area due to the heavy growth of underbrush.

There is also an unnamed heiau on the Waimanalo side of Olomana ridge facing the Koolau Range. According to McAllister, the archeologist who researched the site, the heiau consisted of two terraces and was 50' x 130'.

The largest of Waimanalo's heiaus is PUEO, located above the University Experimental Farm on Waikupanaha Road. It is 130' x 150' and is still well-preserved.

There was another heiau in Kaupo Village at Makapuu. The heiau was situated in the present Sea Life Park area. In 1853 there was a small pox epidemic and many Hawaiians moved to Kaupo Village to escape the quarantine. Most of that site was destroyed when the present highway was built.

PUUHONUA heiau is located on a coral hill just a short distance from the main entrance of Bellows Field. This hill was a sacred place of refuge and all who sought safety there had their lives spared. On all of our islands there is a PUUHONUA. Most famous of these sites is our National Park City of Refuge at Honaunau on the Big Island.

Enoka, J. A. F. (1979, February). Old Waimanalo: Ancient religion and the heiaus. The Nalo News, [4(2)], [4].

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