Honolulu Star Bulletin. Monday, January 28, 1957 - Tales about Hawaii, Clarice B. Taylor
The gods were in full attendance in Iliili-opae heiau at the Mapulehu on Molokai before the priests started their dedication ceremonies.
The attendance of the gods was secured by the praying priests of whom there were two divisions, those who prayed all day without interruption and those who prayed all night.
These priests were identified by their long hair which they wore knotted on the top of their heads and long beards which fell upon their breasts.
After the temple had been decorated, these priests entered and sat in rows.
Their prayers were concentrated on "calling the gods." The service was protracted because each god had to be called by name and his attributes enumerated.
If the service went properly and no one forgot his lines or confused the words, then the voices of the priest were heard "beyond the clouds" and the gods answered the invitation to attend.
After all, there was no sense of dedicating a temple to the gods if the gods were not there to receive the prayers of adulation and the offerings.
There were several "schools" of priests, all of whom played part in the services. Each type of priest could be recognized at once by his garb.
The priests of Ku were of the highest order. Their high priest wore a flowing robe of spotless white, a white bandeau about his head and he carried a staff.
While performing on ceremony, he carried a staff of hi kauila wood; at another his staff was decorated with ohia leaves; at another with ieie vine.
At the crucial point of the ceremony - making the offering - his staff was of ohia wood covered with white tapa cloth.
The priests of Lono were the next highest in rank.
They wore robes of pinkish-red, carried a staff covered with vines as needed for the ceremony and wore their hair skewered on top of their heads and daubed with red clay.
A favorite decoration was made of the pala (lace) fern. With it was often used ohia leaves and blossoms.
DRESSED IN RED
For important services, the king dressed in red. Since he stood beside the high priest, his red made a colorful contrast with the pure white of the priest.
Although the king was considered a high priest in these ceremonies, he was not required to know more than the answer to prayers and he was not required to keep the six to eight day fasts kept by the priests.
NEXT: Rituals
No comments:
Post a Comment