Maui's Hook the Manaiakalani

Maui's Hook the Manaiakalani

Maui's Hook

Lately I’ve seen a lot of people wearing a Makau or Hawaiian fish-hook.  These fish hooks are generally carved out of bone or wood, but there are also some really beautiful hooks done in metals such as silver or bronze and in stone such as jade.  These hooks are the first circle hook, which to some fisherman may seem like recent invention, because of their recent popularity.  These fish hooks have been around for thousands of years.  Wearing a Hawaiian style fish-hook is said to bring good luck and prosperity.  This is just the tip of the iceberg or well in this case, volcano.  Here is the mythology about the Hawaiian Fish Hook.

The Manaiakalani, Maui's Sacred Hook

A traditional Hawaiian fish-hook is known as a Makau.  There is a special sacred fish-hook in Hawaiian mythology, that fish-hook is known as the Manaiakani.  The Manaiakani hook is essential to the Hawaiian creation myth.  Here is the Story.  

Formation of the Hawaiian Islands

Maui, a demigod was given the Manaikani by his father.  He was sent out to fish by his mother who wanted to eat a hard to catch fish.  Maui went out with his brothers to the middle of the ocean when finally Maui got a bite.  Maui warned his brothers not to look back at him fishing or the spell would be broken.  The fish started to fight and huge waves almost capsized the boat.  Maui’s brothers all thought they were going to die.  Maui kept pulling up the huge fish when his brothers could no longer resist and looked back to see what was going one.  As this happened Maui gave one last pull and up came the fish.  Because the brothers looked back, the spell was broken and the fish transformed into islands.  The islands Maui pulled up was the Hawaiian Islands.  So next time you wear your fish-hook wear it proudly.

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