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wcerto
Ahonui
USA
5052 Posts |
 Posted - 01/13/2009 : 1:39:42 PM
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We have some questions about this mele and perhaps someone can help us with the meaning of one of the verses. In the third verse, it speaks about "your beautiful voice answers the call of Pi`ilani." One question pertains to whether the word should be kani or should it be kane. The kumu at our hula hui said that Kihei de Silva said now there is talk that it should be kane as described in some documentation that has been found. If so, I do not understand then what the song would mean. It would be something to the effect of answering the voice of the "man" of Pi`ilani -- is it meaning then that Pi`ilani is a woman and the voice belongs perhaps to wahine Pi`ilani's Husband/lover/kane? To me Pi`ilani was a mo`i on Maui and I do not even know what he would have to do with a song about Nawiliwili which is a port on Kauai. Unless they are not talking about the mo`i Pi`ilani but instead taking the word literally as "ascent to Heaven" which could mean that answering the beloved voice takes him to heaven. And then that could have several meanings about whether Nawiliwili as a simple mele pana hearing the sounds of Nawiliwili (perhaps sound of the sea in the harbor) is almost heavenly. Or whether answering the beloved's call (and we can only wonder what that "call" might have been about) helped him to ascend to something heavenly. But moreover, why the reference to Pi`ilani? I can find nothing in the history that speaks of Pi`ilani having any interest in Kaua`i. Could it perhaps mean that he had to leave Nawiliwili and move to the land of Pi`ilani (Maui)?
Or is too much being made of what should be and is a straightforward mele pana?
Any kokua would be appreciated by both Paul and I and would be shared with the hula hui.
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From huapala.org:
Nawiliwili - by George Huddy
Kaulana mai nei a`o Nawiliwili
He nani no `oe ia Ninini
He beauty maoli no
Kuahiwi nani `oe a`o Ha`upu
Ka pua mokihana, ea
Ka pua nani o Kaua`i
Ho`ohihi ka mana`o a`o Kaua`i
E o mai ko leo aloha
Ke kani a`o Pi`ilani
Ha`ina `ia mai ana ka puana
Kaulana mai nei Nawiliwili
He nani maoli no
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Famous is Nawiliwili
You are lovely, because of Ninini
Very beautiful, indeed
You are a beautiful mountain, Ha`upu
With the mokihana berry
The lovely flower of Kaua`i
I cherish my thoughts of Kaua`i
Your beloved voice answers
The call of Pi`ilani
Tell the refrain
Famous is Nawiliwili
Very beautiful, indeed
Source: McKee Collection - Nawiliwili is a harbor on Kauai. Pi`ilani was a famous chief of Maui
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Me ke aloha
Malama pono,
Wanda |
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keoladonaghy
Lokahi
257 Posts |
Posted - 01/17/2009 : 10:42:32 AM
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Aloha Wanda. Not seeing this documentation that you speak of and not knowing for certain that Kīhei actually made this statement which is being attributed to him, it is really difficult to ascertain. Whether it is kani or kāne would obviously have significant impact on the meaning and translation. Pi'ilani may or may not be a reference to Maui. It would seem strange to use that in a mele pana about Kaua'i, I would think, unless is perhaps a reference to a person, someone from Maui, someone whose name is Pi'ilani (though I don't find that the most likely possibility) or being used, as you suggest, for its meaning. There could have been a place called Pi'ilani in the area, and the name fallen into disuse, as many place names have. The author could used Pi'ilani as a combination of more than one of these thoughts.
I did search the newspaper archives and found a kanikau (dirge) written by someone on Kaua'i whose name was Pi'ilani, so the name was known there in the 1800s. I will be seeing Kīhei in March and if I can remember and have time I will ask him about this. He has written many wonderful essays on particular songs, so if he is researching this particular one we can only hope that he writes up what he finds out. Some of his other essays can be found here:
http://web.mac.com/halaumohalailima/HMI/Waihona_Mele.html |
Edited by - keoladonaghy on 01/17/2009 10:45:46 AM |
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wcerto
Ahonui
USA
5052 Posts |
Posted - 01/17/2009 : 12:52:27 PM
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Well, Kihei will be here in Cleveland Valentine's weekend, and I am certainly going to ask him to share his mana`o. I hope Amy Stillman will be joining us this year again, too. So then I think you ought to join the crowd, too, Keola. If Amy can survive Michigan winters, you could make a weekend-end in Cleveland, yeah? We had a great conversation with Kihei and his daughter last year about "onaona" as oh-nah oh-nah or oh-now-nah. And with Amy about Kaulana Na Pua. She actually saw it for real at the Library of Congress!
Anyhow, I guess it is OK for Paul and I to be confused about the meaning of that verse, if someone with your great understanding is not certain about it either. But the ambiguity about Pi`ilani still exists for me.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Keola. |
Me ke aloha
Malama pono,
Wanda |
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rendesvous1840
Ha`aha`a
USA
1055 Posts |
Posted - 01/17/2009 : 6:57:53 PM
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Thank you for posting the web site. In the essay abaout Hilo One, Kihei mentions the fact that songs change meaning over time as words are mis heard or miss remembered. This may be the case with Nawiliwili. As Kihei wrote in his notes on the text of Nawiliwili, "Stay tuned!"
Paul |
"A master banjo player isn't the person who can pick the most notes.It's the person who can touch the most hearts." Patrick Costello |
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