He Ho'oheno Ua
ʻIkea ke kualau, ka ua nū hele ma ka moana, ka pili ʻana mai hoʻi o ka polohiwa o luna me ka lipolipo o lalo, a ke pā mai ka mālamalama o ka lā i nā pakapaka o ka pōmaikaʻi e koʻiawe mai ana, pāhaʻohaʻo mai ana kekahi kinolau o ua akua nei: ʻōpiʻopiʻo ʻo Lono me he ānuenue lā. I loko o kona mau malama o ka noho pili ʻana mai, ʻo ko ia nei nohea nō ke hoʻopulu mālie i ka honua a hoʻohāinu mai i nā mea kanu a pau a kānaka. Ke ehuehu mai, ʻo ka ʻiliki nō ia a ka ua a hana mao ʻole, huʻe ʻia ka lepo me ka ʻopala, puka i kai, a waiho maʻemaʻe mai ke kahawai a me ka ʻāina. ʻO ke kuʻi ʻana aʻe o ka hekili, ka hā ʻana mai o ka uila, ka ua o kēlā ʻano kēia ʻano, a me ke ānuenue, he mau kinolau kēia no Kāne kekahi, akā nahenahe mai kona mau ʻano a ikaika aʻe hoʻi ko Lono. Ma ke ʻano hoʻohiwahiwa i kona mau nani like ʻole i ʻike ʻia i ka Makahiki, haku akula mākou i kēia hoʻoheno nona, he lau hoʻi e hōʻike mai ana i kekahi o nā ua i ʻike ʻia i kona wā o ke kipa ʻana mai (ʻaʻole naʻe kaupalena ʻia i ka Makahiki): ka ua koko (he ua lawe ānuenue i ʻike nui ʻia ma kai), ka uhiwai (he ua noe e uhi paʻapū ana iā uka), ka ua loku (he ua nui e ʻiliki mai ana, ʻaʻole o kana mai ka ikaika), a me ka ua lele (he ua i hoʻolele wale ʻia aʻe e ka makani ma ke ʻano pāʻaoʻao, a komo kolohe mai ma lalo o ka loulu a i loko hoʻi o ka puka aniani hāmama). Ke ʻike kākou i kona mau kinolau, e aloha aku paha kākou iā ia e like me ko kahiko: E weli aku ana iā ʻoe, e Lono!
A huge squall sits offshore, a dense column of water connecting dark cloud to deep ocean, a mass of falling rain that, when struck by the sun at the right angle, produces a glowing rainbow: ‘Ōpi‘opi‘o ‘o Lono me he ānuenue lā - Lono arches like a rainbow. From steady showers that nourish newly planted ‘uala to heavy downpours, the rains in the winter months are animated by Lono. At Makahiki, this akua moves into the space close to us and begins to drive the weather, while Kāne, with his gentler patterns, takes a sideseat. Both akua are embodied in lightning, thunder, rain and rainbows, but Lono’s manifestations are more intense, especially his rains, which cleanse all that has built up during the time of Kū. This design depicts five rains not limited to, but frequently seen during the four months where Lono rules the weather: ke kualau (ocean squall described above), ka ua koko (a rain often seen over the ocean with a rainbow), ka uhiwai (heavy fog or mist), ka ua loku (heavy downpours), and ka lele ua (windblown rain, or rain that comes sideways). This is our ho‘oheno ua, our visual mele that pays tribute to the many beautiful rains our kūpuna recognized and to Lono’s kinolau (multiple forms) seen in the weather during Makahiki.
