Mamao

Kii: Bettmann

In our remote past, our people of Hawaiki left our ancestral homeland in search of new lands upon which to settle. These tūpuna from the districts of Puna and Ka'u left our shores to discover new lands. In great long waʻa these people sailed, guided by the stars, winds, currents, and the wisdom of generations.

Our Hawaii ancestors were not only great warriors, but masters of the many arts of life. They were skilled in weaving, lawaiʻa (fishing), mahiʻai (agriculture), lāʻau (healing), kilo (observation and navigation), and countless other disciplines essential to the survival and prosperity of our people. Each art was carefully preserved and passed from one generation to the next.

 Kii: Dennstedt

The instructor is the spring or punawai—the life giving water, from which 'ite or knowledge flows. From this source, the learner receives insight, ensuring that traditions of ancient practices continue unbroken. These are the teachings of our kūpuna which form the foundation upon which every practitioner builds on. With each generation, ancient practices grows deeper, and the ʻite expands broader.

 The practice of aiha'a is closely intertwined with lua. In some hālau, the two are regarded as one, their teachings complementary and, at times, interchangeable. Aihaa of Haa is a low dance form that incorporates the balance and fighting techniques of a warrior. It also unites the mind, spirit and physical body to flow like a raging river or a calm stream, so all parts are moving as one fluid form or water or air. Its a training tool for the warrors skill, a elevated dance to communicate with our ancestral ties as well as increasing one's spiritual well being. The body of knowledge encompassing both ha'a and lua is also known as mamao. Mamao is now only heard and recognized outside of Hawaii in the distant land of the long white cloud. These fighting styles of mamao are of an ancient spring, passed down from our tupuna, over hundreds of years.

Though much has changed over the centuries, the practice and techniques of mamao have been secured in certain family clans. The arts of mamao continue to live quietly in some of our Maoli whānau, carried on by dedicated punawai who safeguard these family arts. Though often silent and hidden from public view, the spirit of these ancestral teachings remains alive, connecting today's practitioners with the wisdom first cultivated in Hawaiki across countless generations.

 A chant in the aihaa realm, that speaks to the generations across time, passed down in - ta aha ura a Kane.

Traditional K.K. Ku'ialuaopuna

Te aroha mai katou e na hoa hanau

Mai ta aina nui mamao

Mai Tahiti nui mamao

I haere mai ahau i Tahiti nui,

Tahiti roa, Tahiti pa mamao

I te hono i wairua

Huahuai ka ite roa

Huaina hoi la, huaina hoi

Ka aha ula a te tahua

Hookipuu, a paa ia ma ka aha ura

I te hono i wairua!

Greeting to us all, my relatives

From the great, away lands

Distant sands, beyond the horizon

I come from a far off island

A long and distant place

Where the ancestors gather

Burst forth the vast knowledge

Expose it indeed, gush forth

The sacred cord of the source

Knotted securely on to the reddish cord

Where the ancestors gather