EVENT SUSPENDED. Read the full IAS statement on COVID-19 regarding suspended events.
On July 12, 2019, a small group of Hawaiians established a camp at Puʻuhonua of Puʻuhuluhulu (Refuge of Puʻuhuluhulu Hill) on the slopes of Mauna Kea, a sacred mountain, to prevent the equipment for the construction of the Thirty-Meter-Telescope (TMT) from being delivered to the summit. Five days later, thousands of Hawaiians and our supporters who had answered the kāhea (call) to help protect the mauna (mountain) watched as thirty-eights kūpuna (elders), who were the front line in this protection effort, were arrested. This effort to protect Mauna Kea from further desecration has been the catalyst for the resurgence of Hoʻomana Hawaiʻi. Each day, kiaʻi (protectors or guardians) participate in or lead ʻAha (religious ceremonies) four times a day. As a consequence, hundreds of Hawaiians have, for the first time in their lives, the opportunity to practice their religion together in public. Because thousands of visitors have witnessed or participated in these ʻAha, which have also been videoed and made available to the public on the Puʻuhonua of Puʻuhulu website, there is a growing awareness around the world about Hoʻomana Hawaiʻi and that it is a living religion. These ʻAha manifest mana through prayer chants and hula, which in this case, constitutes a form of kinetic prayer.
Featuring Marie Alohalani Brown.
Co-sponsored by American Indian Studies.
