Pele is the Hawaiian goddess, a deity of fire and volcanoes. She is the daughter of Haumea (an ancient earth goddess) and Kane Milohai (creator of the sky, earth and heavens). She is one of 6 daughters and 7 sons of Haumea and Kane Milohai.
Legend says that Pele (peh-leh) resides in the most active volcanoes at the summit of Kīlauea, within Halema‘uma‘u crater at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island. However, other volcanoes on the island that have remained dormant, such as Mauna Loa are occupied with Pele’s spirit too. When volcanoes erupt or as native Hawaiians refer to, she erupts, it is Pele who has risen. It is believed that she takes and creates land, in other words she destroys parts of Hawai’i but also gives back by creating something more natural and more beautiful. What others may see as destructive and chaotic, native Hawaiians see beauty in that destruction and chaos.
It has been said that Pele travels not only through volcanic eruptions but can appear to mankind by taking the form of a beautiful woman or an old beggar woman and is sometimes accompanied by a white dog.
There are many versions of how tūtū (grandmother) Pele came to Hawai’i but I will share with you one of many stories and provide you with an animated short film of this story.
One legend says that Pele was sent away from her homeland and birthplace, Tahiti, by her father because of her difficult temper. Pele also fought with her eldest sister, Namakaokaha’i’ or Namaka (the water goddess) because Pele had seduced Namaka’s husband. Pele’s oldest brother Kamohoali’i, (the king of sharks), gave her a canoe and paddled across the ocean to find a new home. While traveling by canoe Pele was also still battling against her sister Nakama.
Pele first arrived on the island of Kaua’i where she dug her o’o (digging stick) into the land to dig a pit for her home. But every time Pele dug her o’o into the land, Namaka would flood the pits, leading Pele to travel down the chain of the islands where she eventually made her home on the Big Island where she currently lives today.
Pele knew that the fight between her and her sister had to end and that she could not run away forever, so Pele dug her o’o into the land and Namaka found her again. As they fought, Pele did all she could but Namaka defeated Pele and Pele was buried beneath the ground. However, Pele was able to find her way through the fiery pits of the earth’s core and made her way through Kīlauea on the island of Hawai’i, where she brought forth a lava stream and also created a home for her family.
Here I am today, honoring Pele by telling her story, of who she is and what she possesses. After 38 years of Mauna Loa sleeping peacefully, Pele woke up Sunday night November 27, 2022. She has been seen in the steam and has been flowing for almost a week. Native Hawaiians have already paid tribute to Pele by chanting and welcoming her presence.
As scary as it may seem, it is also a very cathartic and a beautiful sight to see and if you're lucky enough to actually be there to witness this with your own eyes, breathe it in and connect on a deeper level with mother nature. With all the bad that Hawai'i has been facing, I strongly believe that Pele has risen because she feels that the 'āina (land) is not being taken care of as it should. So Pele is here to take back what she feels needs to be cleansed but she will always give back by presenting a healthier 'āina.
As long as the lava keeps flowing and the sun rises and sets, Pele lives on through the 'āina and our stories we share through dance and chants.
'Eli'eli kau mai, e Pele ē!
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