Don’t get fooled by the scenic beauty, the clear beaches and the lush rainforests in Hawaii. Dig deep into the culture of Hawaii and you will be exposed to the not so goods side of the Hawaiian legends. Whether you are the superstitions types or the brave heart who would like to dare these beliefs, you can’t escape these stories around
Pele, the volcano goddess, is a big fan of gin. So if you want to save your family and yourself from the hot eruptions of the volcano then you need to oblige and pay respect to the goddess. Legends state that if you see a beautiful lady with long hair or an old woman with long white hair, you should greet them with an “aloha”. You should then offer help. If you would like to impress the goddess further then you will have to visit Halema’uma’u which is a crater and give offerings to the god. The offerings should include food, flowers and not to be missed is the Pele goddess’s favourite, gin.
The stories of mujina are sure to give you a scare. Mujina is a creature which has no face. It can shift faces into human form. As per belief this creature was first spotted in Japan. Rumours state that this creature was bought to Hawaii by the Japanese immigrants. In the year 1959 a woman apparently saw a mujina in a restroom in a theatre. She noticed a lady combing her hair and when she looked closer she noticed that the lady had no face. Though this gave her a nervous breakdown she repeated the same story when she came back to her senses.
Pele, the goddess, does not let anyone take pork over the Pali highway. The story goes as such that Pele had an affair with Kamapua’a who was half man and half pig. They had a bad breakup and thus they decided to never cross path again in life. So if you are trying to cross with a pig, Pele god will take it as trying to bring Kamapua’a to cross the mountain. However if you dare to take one then your car will be stopped mid way and an old woman will appear in front of you with a dog. If you want to continue your journey you will have to feed the pork to the dog.
Pele also does not let you cross the Pali highway with pork. The legend has it that Pele and Kamapua’a, who was a demigod and was half man half pig, had a nasty breakup. They decided to never meet each other again. So if you ever get pork you will be stopped by Pele. If you are driving your car, it will be stopped and an old woman with a dog will appear in front of you. To continue your journey forward you will need to feed the pork to the dogs.
The ancient Hawaiian warriors, Huaka’ipo, had been cursed to march through the islands of Hawaii. They are known as the night marchers. They are believed to march in a straight line, carrying torches and weapons, playing their drums and chanting. If you hear drums and a foul smell you know that the night marchers are coming towards you. Spotting a night marcher is not considered good and if you hear them bend down to avoid their stare. But if by chance you stare at their faces you will be killed unless you have an ancestor marching along.
Want to pluck a red Lehua blossom as a souvenir to take back home? Don’t dare to. The Ohio tree is the first plant that grows on lava. The story goes such that Lehua and Ohio were lovers. But one day when Pele saw Ohio she wanted him for herself. Ohio rejected her proposal so Pele turned him into an ugly tree. Pele ignored Lehua’s requests to turn Ohio back to his original form. The other goddesses felt mercy and turned Lehua into a beautiful red flower and placed her on the tree. Now they both are inseparable.
Face Pele’s curse if you take rock or sand from the Hawaiian island back home. The belief is that you will get cursed and will have to face bad luck till you do not send the rock back to Hawaii. No one knows the truth but every year there are pockets of sand returned back to Hawaii by tourists who want to wade off their bad luck
No one knows the truth behind these legends. But meet any local in Hawaii and he will tell you stories about the misfortunes that people had to face on ignoring these legends.