Makahiki in Hāna, Maui

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Makahiki in Hāna, Maui

Photo: Makahiki
Last November, nearly 400 members of the Hāna community – with generations of ʻohana ranging in age from 8 to 83 – participated in Hāna’s 9th Annual Makahiki Ceremony. The event was the culmination of months of work and planning, including learning and practicing ceremonial chants, making instruments like kāʻekeʻeke and kalāʻau (pictured here), and growing and preparing foods specifically for the celebration. – Photos: Shandelle Nakanelua

Read this article in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi

How an entire community comes together to celebrate the season

It is rare to see a whole community actively participating in Makahiki – the season set aside to honor Lono (one of the four major gods of Kahiki) that began in late October and concludes this month. It is traditionally a time of peace; a time to rest and play games.

“What we seemed to have lost was the ʻwhy’ [of Makahiki] and then ‘how’ do we apply that reasoning to us modern-day kānaka and have it be a meaningful experience,” said Kauʻi Kanakaʻole, a kumu hula, cultural advocate and practitioner.

She explained that her Aunty Nālani instilled in her the fact that “our kūpuna used ritual and ceremony to observe environmental phenomena, set foundations, launch governments and sail vast oceans.”

In 2016, Kanakaʻole celebrated Makahiki in her hometown of Hāna, Maui, through her hālau hula, Hālau o Nakaulakuhikuhi. Their effort found support from the staff of Ala Kukui, Kahanu Gardens, Ma Ka Hana Ka ʻIke and other ʻāina-based organizations in Maui Hikina.

“From that small group, we grew,” said Kanakaʻole. “I saw Makahiki as our opportunity to re-introduce those rituals and ceremonies into today’s vernacular and access a deeper understanding of place.”

The intentional growth of Makahiki celebration and ceremony in the Maui Hikina community was no easy feat. It took a lot of time, energy, commitment, trust, the learning and practice of ceremonial chants, and the making of instruments such kāʻekeʻeke, kalāʻau, ʻūlili.

Photo: Lele with Makahiki offerings.
Lele with Makahiki offerings.

Ceremonial food preparation required growing and harvesting crops that are either associated with Lono or that are favorites of Maui Hikina’s people. Puaʻa cooked in the imu were caught in the vicinity of Piʻilanihale, one of the largest heiau in the pae ʻāina.

“The ceremonial food is a symbolic feeding of body and spirit and represents the nourishing reciprocity of kānaka and environment,” noted Kanakaʻole. “We are fed and satisfied with the abundance that ʻāina provides, and so this kinship with place cycles.”

On Nov. 8, 2024, about 375 people – with generations of ʻohana ranging in age from 8 to 83 – participated in Hāna’s 9th Makahiki Ceremony. It began with ʻoli and hula, followed by ceremonial eating, then Makahiki games.

Photo: Keiki participating in Makahiki games
Makahiki games included hukihuki (tug-of-war).

A turning point for this most recent Makahiki celebration was that others in the community took ceremonial leadership roles. They learned protocol specific to ʻālana (offerings), receiving chants, and the different kinolau (forms) of Lono to understand how they may be presented on the lele (altar).

Misty Fontanilla was among those who took on the kuleana of receiving ʻālana.

“Accepting this kuleana meant that I was stepping up and claiming my duty as a kanaka,” said Fontanilla. “It was also a personal testament to my growth, resiliency, and commitment to being an example for my daughters. I look forward to carrying this kuleana for years to come and hope it inspires others to do the same.”

Fontanilla’s husband, Liloa, and their 9-year-old daughter Kilinahe, all participated in this year’s ceremony. Despite it being very new for them and the broader Maui Hikina community, she said it also felt natural.

“To be together in ceremony with my ʻohana felt normal. It felt like we were on one big waʻa together and this waʻa was leading us to where we needed to be. And to me, this means that we’re on the right path,” Fontanilla shared

“It was surreal to see the openness to learning, transference of knowledge, continuance of practice, deepening of [our] cultural lens, and the leadership all happening at once – yet it was generations in the making,” Kanakaʻole reflected.

She remains vigilant in the effort to educate her community about Makahiki, inspired by her grandmother, renowned kumu hula and cultural practitioner Edith Kanakaʻole who always said, “We have to educate our people.”

Kanakaʻole notes that once our people understand why our kūpuna did certain things, it makes sense and feels right. “And you can’t argue with your naʻau.”