Ka Papa Lo'i o Kanewai: 7/7/14

Ka Papa Lo'i o Kānewai at UH Mānoa 

 

Ka Papa Lo'i o Kānewai is a cultural learning center and lo'i at University of Hawai'i at Mānoa. It was our second Saturday field trip and a very memorable one. Located in the ahupua'a of Waikiki, Ka Papa Lo'i o Kanewai was discovered by UH students in the 1980's. They noticed an auwai (canal) in the overgrown area and began to clear the space. The lo'i got its name from the mo'olelo of a spring made by the two brothers: Kane and Kaneloa. Over the years, this place was develpoed into an old style Hawaiian village and used to educate students on the Hawaiian culture. Later, Ka Papa Lo'i o Kanewai also became Hawai'inuiakea School of Hawaiian Knowledge.

When we first arrived there, we immediately went to work, peeling kalo (taro) along with other college students/volunteers. For many of us, it was our first time handling kalo. We had to make sure that we kept everything clean and sanitary when it came to touching the kalo because for the Hawaiians, preparing kalo isn't just a physical action but also a spiritual experience. This moment really highlighted the importance of sustaining our culture because being able to hold something as precious and culturally significant as kalo really motivated us to keep our thoughts positive so the mana (power) we would be putting into the kalo would be pono (righteous).

 

Afterwards, we got our hands into the 'āina and started gathering leaves and stepping on them, pushing them to the bottom of the lo'i. This was to return the nutrients back into the soil since the kalo was recently harvested. The mud in the lo'i cold and thick. Pushing the leaves down into the soil was amusing because it even though the lo'i had an unpleasant scent, we wondered how it produced something as delicious and treasured as poi.  We then picked off any weeds on growing kalo in case they were stealing any nutrients. We also got to take home kalo we previously prepared earlier in the day.

We got to rinse off in Kane and Kaneloa's freshwater spring!

 

This field experience really showed us the importance of sustaining our culture. To be a part of a cultural practice and learning how to keep traditions really got us thinking on how we can pass our mana'o (knowledge) on to our children. We knew at the moment we learned all of this new information that it was our jobs as natives to carry on the message and to make sure that the aloha spirit never dies.