Читать книгу Kauai Trails. Walks strolls and treks on the Garden Island онлайн

25 страница из 65

Strict laws defined what was forbidden, or kapu, and governed the conduct of kauwa toward everyone else, of commoners toward alii, of alii of a lower rank to alii of higher rank, and of men and women toward each other. Some of the laws seem irrationally harsh. For example, a commoner could be put to death if his shadow fell on an alii.

Chiefs frequently made war on each other. If the chiefs of one island were united under a high chief or a king, often that island would make war on the other islands.

The people of Kauai, like other Hawaiians, worshipped many gods and goddesses. The principal ones were Ku, Kane, Kanaloa, and Lono. Ku represented the male aspect of the natural world. Ku was also the god of war and demanded human sacrifice. Kane was the god of life, a benevolent god who was regarded as the Creator and the ancestor of all Hawaiians. The Kauaians worshipped Kane at many places. The high alii of Kauai, both men and women, made a difficult annual pilgrimage from Wailua to worship at Kane’s altar on the forbidding, stormy summit plateau of Kauai’s sacred mountain, Waialeale. Kanaloa ruled the dead and the dark aspects of life, and he was often linked with Kane in worship.