Ohe Kapala on Hāʻupu

Haumea:

The hands coming down from the heavens and placing  the ohe Kapa

Moʻolelo o Hinaiuku: 

The kinloau (many nonhuman forms) of the Akua (god/goddess) Hina can be seen in the profile of a beautiful wahine found on Hā'upu mountain, mistakenly called Queen Victoria’s profile today. Peleʻula, an Aliʻi from Oʻahu heard about the beauty of Kauaʻi women. Since her own royal court was known for its beauty, Peleʻula ventured across the Kaʻieʻiewaho channel to see if what she heard of Kauaʻi was true. Peleula was greeted by a divine chiefly woman named Hinaiuka who agreed to a friendly competition where a young, tall, handsome chief would be both judge and prize. Peleula, adorned in the lei ʻilima for which Oʻahu is known, was beautiful, but when Hinaiuka emerged draped in kapa and decked with lei maile wrapped in the famous mokihana of Kauaʻi, Peleula conceded that Kauaʻi’s women, but more symbolically Kauaʻi’s natural beauty, are second to none. To memorialize this, Hina’s profile was carved into Hā'upu as a regal reminder of Kauaʻi’s beauty forever.

Ohe Kapala on Hāʻupu:

Ānuenue: Rainbow symbolizing the rainbow that arches over Kalālālehua till this day. 

Ao: Clouds, representing Keaolewa or the cloud “hat” that forms above Hāʻupu signaling rain and the presence of Akua Kamapuaʻa and the coming of the Akua Lono for the time of harvest and peace. 

Waikai: Wai means fresh water. Kai means ocean water. Waikai means brackish water. Waiwai means wealth because in Kānaka ʻŌiwi (Native Hawaiian) worldview, water is the only true wealth we have as humans. Hāʻupu is a mountain known to have brackish water, which is ideal for helping nonhuman life such as fish to grow and populate. Kauaʻi is a place of true wealth (waiwai) because of her many waterways that feed life to all beings. Kauaʻi is one of the wettest places on Earth, a fact touted because that shows that Kauaʻi’s true wealth is overflowing. 

Haumea: The hands coming down from the heavens and placing the ohe kapala on Hāʻupu can be thought of as the Akua Haumea. Haumea is known to be the Akua of childbirth and creation. She is sometimes referred to in the same light as the female Akua, Papa who is symbolic of the earth and who, along with Akua Wākea, birthed the ka pae ʻāina o Hawaiʻi (the Hawaiian islands). The hands coming down from the heavens are symbolic of Haumea and her “stamping” our elements into creation on Kauaʻi.

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