1

Keola
&
The

Kahuna

Keola & the Kahuna

Once upon a time in the small village of Keanae, on the windward side of Maui,
there lived a boy named Keola. He lived in the traditional Hawaiian way and was
very happy. His mother and father worked the land to grow vegetables and fruit for
their family to eat, and of course coconuts to drink. Their life was very beautiful . . .
almost like the flowers that always seemed to grow with more color at their
household than anywhere else in the village.
Keola worked too, and he was a very good boy, although he would sometimes sneak
off and go fishing with the other boys of the village. There were times this would
make his mother mad, if she needed his help in the garden or taro patch. Keola
almost never got into trouble though, because his mother Anuhea could never really
get very angry with anyone. Maybe she was just too busy to take the time . . . and
Keola's father never got very mad either. Kaohu was always happy and could make
fun of any situation even if he were the one who should get mad.
Keola's baby sister was the one who caused more work anyway, as she was always
getting in the mud and making a mess. Keola would often take her down to the
beach to keep her out of trouble, and there, without causing anyone problems, they
would play in the water and sun.
Now in those days, there weren't always schools, and children learned the ways of
Life from their mothers and fathers and their relatives, from the time they couldn't
even walk. They kept on learning more and more things until they were quite old in
our view of things today. In those times a boy or girl was not an adult until they
were already teaching their own children themselves. Sometimes even then, they
would be considered children by their elders. All the people had a very great
respect for the elders. They had a great respect for the Kahunas too.
The Kahunas were the keepers of the secrets, and the keepers of the knowledge.
There was a Kahuna for healing and a Kahuna for boat building and a Kahuna for
the flowers and just about everything. Each kind of Kahuna had a different kind of
Kahuna name.
All the people would share in the bringing up of the children of the whole family
that they called the Ohana. Most important of all was the Auntie. Your mother's
sisters were always taking you for a whole day to give your own mother an easy day

where she didn't have to keep an eye on you. Keola loved all of his aunties and
always liked to visit their homes and have a good time with his cousins.
At the home of his one Aunt, lived his grandmother who was very old now, and had
many many stories to tell. Keola loved to spend the whole morning listening to his
tutu tell stories. Now, his tutu's cousin was a Kahuna La'au Lapa'au, and she
healed many people with lomi lomi massage and herbs. She was always the one in
charge of the Ho`oponopono when there was a family problem to be taken care of.
Her name was Pua Malalo 'O Ka Anuenue, or "The Flower Under The Rainbow."
Keola didn't know that it was the Kahuna Pua, who had given him his name, but
soon he would be sent to talk with this tutu Kahuna to learn why he was given the
name Keola.
One day after the morning meal of Poi and Limu Waiwaiole, with tomatoes and
onions, Keola's mother sent him to fetch two big papayas to finish off their
breakfast. When he returned from the papaya tree behind the garden, he could see
his parents talking and looking at him. He knew that he was going to be asked to do
some work in the taro patch or some other odd chore.
When the papaya had been cleaned of its seeds and sliced up for everyone to eat, his
father looked up from where he was eating his papaya and asked Keola if he could
answer just one question for him before he went off to go fishing or playing with his
cousins. "Tell me Keola," he said "what does your name mean? What is the
meaning of Keola and why were you given that name?"
Keola was a smart boy and knew that if he answered right he would be allowed to
go and play with his cousins. After all, everyone loved fish, and he was a good diver
and often brought home enough fish for everybody! "Sure Father," Keola
answered, "I am called Keola because that is the name that you chose for me when
you found out that I was a healthy baby boy, but I don't really even know exactly
what it means."
"Did you give me my name or did mother choose it?" His mother smiled while she
cleaned up the peelings of the papaya, and said nothing at all, as if to keep a secret.
"What about it Anuhea," his father said, "Did you give this boy his name? Was it
you who call him Keola?"
She looked up with a wide grin on her face as though she had just made a very good
joke. Keola was confused, and looked first at his mother's face, then at his father's
face. Then he started to laugh and his baby sister laughed too. They were all

laughing at this very funny joke, for who was it after all, who had given him his
name? "Well then, who did give me the name Keola anyway?" he said.
"It was your Tutu's cousin, the Kahuna Pua, who gave you your name Keola. She
gave me my name too, and your Mother's and Sister's as well. She gives many
people their names. They have a magic effect on you! You'd better go and see her
today boy. She is getting very old and you might be too late to find out what your
name really means, and then the magic will be lost forever."
"Why didn't you tell me before? My goodness you should have told me! It might be
too late!" Keola stood up and everyone was laughing all over again. "I should go
and see her today!"
"Well," his mother said, "She might be busy so you better go and see your tutu and
ask her to see if you can see the Kahuna today. I guess you're old enough now to
understand. Do you think you are old enough to go and see the Kahuna La'au
Lapap'au?"
"Well I had better try at least!" said Keola, and with that he got up and started to
run toward the house of his Auntie.
"Wait Keola!" his father said, "You can't go empty handed. You had better take
your relatives some fresh vegetables from the garden and a bottle of coconut sap for
your Tutu. Don't be in such a rush. You'll cause yourself bad luck. Just take it
easy. Be sure and wash the vegetables so they look good. You can choose whatever
you wish. And you should offer to pound poi at your Auntie's house if she wants
you to. You're older and stronger than your cousins, so you should offer to do it."
With that said, his father laid back to take a quick nap before he went to the taro
patch to work. His mother was playing with his baby sister Luana.
Keola went right away to get three papayas from one tree and two from another.
They always had lots of papayas and he knew that they would be appreciated by his
relatives. They didn't have so much food because their family just couldn't work
the land like his mother and father could. He then went to the garden and picked
carrots and cucumbers and onions, all of which he loved. He was glad that the
Mission teachers had given his family the seeds and the knowledge to grow
vegetables. He wondered what life would be like without this wonderful and colorful
food.

Last of all, he went to one of his sweetest coconut trees, where the sap still hung
from the top of the tree by a long twine. He untied two bottles of the sap for his
Tutu.
Keola was very good at making the sap and he knew that it was because he was very
careful in cutting the end of the flower stem and keeping his knife both sharp and
clean. Everybody loved the coconut sap and when there was a lot of it, the older
boys would take an extra bottle or two to make the intoxicating beverage that his
own father liked on special occasions. He sat quietly in the shade of the big
breadfruit tree and pulled off the leaves of a coconut frond to weave a big basket.
He would use it to hold all of the fruit and vegetables he had gathered and washed.
He counted out the number of leaves he needed for weaving and then pulled back on
the place where they were joined together . . . an equal number for each side and
two sets to complete the whole basket.
All of his hurry seemed to melt away as he wove the basket. Over and under, over
and under over and under. The basket began to take shape. As he held the braided
handle with his toes he did his best to keep the basket even so that it would look nice
and round when he filled it with the fruit and vegetables. As he tied the braided
ends together to make the handle, he looked up into the breadfruit tree and saw a
beautifully ripe breadfruit. That will add a big spot of green to this basket, he
thought. He climbed up, and using the long pole that was always kept in the tree, he
proceeded to twist the breadfruit loose at its stem. He heard it hit the ground below
him with a thump.
When he got down, he used a stick to knock the stem off the breadfruit and he
tossed it over at the base of the tree. This would insure that the tree would always
produce lots of fruit. Keola always respected the ways of the old ones, for they knew
best. It was always good to respect the life in the trees and the plants, just like as if
they were people. He washed the white sap off the breadfruit and placing it in a big
leaf. He then put it in the basket with all of the other things he had gathered. Now
he lifted the basket to see how heavy it was and he realized that it was a lot heavier
than he had thought.
Keola didn't know how he would be able to carry such a big basket all the way to his
Auntie's house. He pulled the braided handle up over his shoulder and tried to
settle the weight of all the food in the middle of his back, but the breadfruit fell out
and rolled away from him.

"You'd better go and wash that off again, Keola. I don't know why you put together
a basket which was too big for you to carry." His mother was standing behind him
with the two bottles of coconut sap that he was about to forget. "I'll help you carry
this stuff over there, so go and wash the breadfruit. And be quick about it, I don't
have all day to play like you!"
When Keola came back, he took one side of the handle of the basket and his mother
took the other side. They walked down the little lane that led toward the village and
his Auntie's house.
When they got to the house near the end of the rocky part of the beach, they turned
toward the shed where his uncle was busy working on the ropes that held the big
canoe together. His uncle was a busy boat builder and always had to work hard to
keep up with all the projects his friends and neighbors gave him to do.
"Anuhea! How good to see you and Keola too. What have you got in the basket?
Boy would I love to have some papaya right now. Gee, you folks sure know how to
grow beautiful fruit. Let me call Kiele. She just went inside." With that he yelled
her name in the direction of their big Lanai that went all the way around the house.
Kama was such a good carpenter that everyone in the village had asked him to
make something or other for their homes. When he did the work, it always looked
just right.

The Kahuna Pua Malalo 'O Ka Anuenue

Kama called Kiele again, but she was already coming out of the house with a big
teapot in her hands. At Kama's house, they had no one who wanted to make the
coconut sap, so Kiele was always making tea to drink. She would always put a few
lime leaves in the tea to make it have that special taste. Their family had a little
more money than Keola's family did, because Kama was quite successful as a
carpenter and one of Keola's cousins worked for the poi factory as a manager and
was paid a good deal of money.
Keola was sorry that they didn't have anyone to make coconut sap because he knew
that his tutu Mamo really preferred the sweetness of coconut sap to sugar . . . but
at least they could afford to by sugar anyway.
Kiele called one of her daughters to bring cups and they sat down together, all of
them, on the Lanai. The Lanai, (the Hawaiian name for an open air porch) was
always a meeting place for family and friends. For those who were not so close as
one's relatives, they didn't really have to enter your house. For the close friends and
relatives, it was always cooler on the Lanai anyway.
"Oh look, Kama! Look at all of the stuff they have brought us!" "We'd love you
anyway, but with all this fruit and vegetables, we really love you!" Everyone
laughed at Kiele's remark and as she poured out the tea the smell of the lime leaves
entered Keola's nose with pleasure. Like his tutu Mamo, Keola preferred the soft
sweet taste of the coconut sap, but this tea was very special.
"So, what are you folks doing out our way today?" Kiele smiled at Keola when she
asked, and he could tell that she must have already known what he was out to do.
The whole thing must have been cooked up in advance. This was the way his
mother and her sister were. They always knew what was going on . . . ..
Keola didn't answer, but just looked out over the edge of the Lanai at the waves
coming ashore, in the distance. He knew that he would be asked to explain, but he
figured he would play right along anyway.
"Well I just helped Keola bring the basket over," Anuhea said, "he has something
that he is going to do today."

Keola knew that he might as well tell what everyone else must already know. So he
told his Auntie that he had brought his tutu Mamo two bottles of Coconut sap, and
that he was going to ask her to see if he could go and visit the Kahuna Pua today.
"What are you going to see her about, Keola?" said Kama, "Do you have a pain
somewhere?" Then Kama suddenly stood up and held his back, then his knee, and
then he cupped his hand over his Okole (his behind). He turned round and round
until everybody was laughing.
Keola was a little embarrassed, but just answered up that he had been told that it
was time for him to understand the meaning of his name. He was going to learn
why the Kahuna Pua had called him Keola.
"Well you came on the right day Keola," Kiele said, "because your tutu Mamo is
going to visit the Kahuna this very morning. In fact she may have already gone . . .
you'd better go around back to her room and see if she left without you."
Keola knew that this whole thing was a plan, but he didn't waste any time going
around the house to where his tutu Mamo had a room to herself. He was happy to
see her as he rounded the corner. She was sitting on her own Lanai, and no doubt,
waiting for him.
"Oh good, you've come at last. Let's go right now because I'm tired of waiting for
you. Now Keola, where have you put the Coconut sap? You need to have something
to give to Pua. You don't want to go empty handed do you?"
With that Keola knew that he had been just a little part of a big plan that his mother
and Auntie had set up. He ran again around the house to get the bottles of Coconut
sap.
He held out his hand and his mother just smiled and handed him both bottles. "You
can bring more for these folks later. Take these to the Kahuna Pua, and be very
polite now. Listen to everything that she has to tell you. I'll be going home in a little
while. When you've walked your tutu Mamo home, you can go swimming or
whatever you want."
Keola and his tutu Mamo walked slowly. They went by the path that went under
the breadfruit trees so that they wouldn't get so hot in the direct sunlight.

The place where the Kahuna Pua lived was very beautiful. It was where the little
stream came down the mountain side and formed a small pool. From there it
meandered on down through the waterways that were the source for the poi fields
all over the Keanae and Wailua area. It was very good that the Kahuna was living
at the source of the water. In that way, she could then take care of all the people by
taking care of their water.
As they arrived, they could see nobody around. "Tell me Tutu," said Keola, "does
she know that we are coming?"
"I almost always know when someone is coming Keola. And if it is someone that I
really want to see, than, I get them flowers and fruit."
Keola was very surprised but he just smiled back and held out the two bottles of
Coconut sap. "Here Kahuna Pua, these are for you from my Tutu and Me. I am
very glad to see you today. How are you?"
She placed the basket she was holding on the table next to Keola and gave him the
ripe mango. Then she took the two bottles of Coconut sap and hung them behind
her on a branch that had been cut off like a hook. "Thank you very much Keola! I
love the taste of Coconut sap. Aloha to you and your tutu! How are you Mamo.
You don't come to see me very often anymore. Are you doing well?" She stepped
over and gave Keola's tutu a big hug and kiss. Then she hugged and kissed Keola
too.
"Won't you two have a seat here in the shade of this mango tree? We must be
relaxed and tell some stories, for really there is very little that is more important
than story telling."
Keola remembered that his parents had pointed out that nothing a Kahuna said was
said by accident. You had to listen carefully to everything that was said so that you
wouldn't forget what you were being told.
"Now Mamo, what is your grandson coming to see me about today? And what
about yourself? Do you want me to help you with any problems of your own?"
"I'm just fine Pua, but I do wish that I wouldn't wake up so early, I get tired of
waiting for there to be any action around our house. They all sleep so late you
know."
8

"Well, Mamo maybe you need to sleep later too then. I'll do a Ho`oponopono for
you and see if we can find someone to stay up at night to listen to your stories. That
might help you and help them too!"
Keola watched the two old women, and he could see that they might be about the
same age, but the Kahuna Pua was much more healthy that his tutu Mamo. She
seemed to have a special air of peace about her. He found that he was very
comfortable around her, even though he knew that some people were afraid of the
Kahunas. They could do magic and make things happen in a way that regular
people could not.
"So what is this boy going to learn from me today? Did you want me to tell him
some story in particular?"
"Well Pua, we were wondering if he was old enough to learn what his name was all
about. Keola you know is a pretty big name and none of us have ever told him what
it means or why he was given that name. He is a good boy and always brings me
Coconut sap from his sweetest trees. Do you think that he is old enough for you to
tell him the meaning of the name 'Keola'?"
"Do you know what the word 'Ola' means, Keola?", Pua said.
"No, Kahuna Pua, I don't really know just what it means."
"Keola, just call me Pua. I don't need to be reminded that I am a Kahuna. After
all, I'm just Pua to many people, and at least to my own grandson, I must certainly
be just your tutu Pua."
"Yes Pua." Keola answered with a smile.
"Ola is a very big word, because it means 'Life and all that Life is'. It means health,
well-being, salvation, and all the things that Life is as we see them. The name Keola
means all of these things too. It means also the force behind life and the ability to
share life and well-being with all those who come in contact with you. If we were to
look at life as being like light, then when there is light everything in the presence of
that light is affected by it. Do you understand?"
"I think so, but I'm not sure." Keola was thinking very fast about all the things that
were coming to his mind. He could see the image of flowers in the sunlight. How
beautiful they were, and how they smelled of life and happiness. "Do you mean like
9

the flowers and how they make everyone feel good?" Keola picked up one of the
flowers in the basket on the table and held it in the sunlight.
"Yes Keola, what do you feel like when you look at the colors in the flower you are
holding in your hand? How can you understand yourself when you see a flower,
which is so different from what you are?"
"Well I can see that I am different from the flowers. Like this bird of paradise
flower here: it is orange and purple and has a green stem, but I am not altogether
different. I have colors too. My skin is brown and my hair is black, but my tongue
is red and my teeth are white. I have many colors just like the flower has many
colors." Keola turned the flower over and over in the sunlight and he looked back
at Pua . . . She nodded as if to say for him to go on. "Well, when I look at the flower
in the sunlight, it is different from when it is in the shadow. When I am in the
sunlight, I look different too. When I go swimming in the ocean, I look all shinny,
and when I work in the taro patch I look like dirt. So if life is supposed to be like
light, then there must be many kinds of life to see, even for one flower and even for
me."
"You are very smart Keola, and you will live up to your name, as long as you don't
forget to remember that you have a lot of things to live up to. Let's drink the
Coconut sap and listen to the waterfall for a minute. The waterfall talks to me you
know! Do you believe that?"
Keola's tutu Mamo laughed a little and looked over at Pua. She was very amused
by the shocked look on Keola's face.
"You know, it doesn't talk with words Keola. I don't try to listen for words. Words
are what people talk with, but what the waterfall has to say is not the same as what
people have to say. Listen and see if my waterfall will talk to you too."

10

The Unihipili The Uhane and The Aumakua

As they walked over to where Pua had laid out a beautiful Moena (sitting mat), she
took the two bottles of Coconut sap from the hook. When they reached the Moena,
Keola and his tutu Mamo sat down and watched as Pua carefully placed the two
bottles of Coconut sap into the cool water at the side of the pool. There was a stake
in the grass to hang the bottles on, so they wouldn't slide in beyond reach.
"They will be cool in a little while and we can sit here and listen to my waterfall.
Meanwhile we'll just sit here and wait for a while. You know Keola almost
everything important in our Hawai`ian way, starts with a little quiet time when we
take in the Ha. Even the word Aloha has this meaning. Ha means to breathe, and
Aloha can mean the breath of God, or the breath of the oneness of all of Life. That
is something you should know. When we take in the Ha in the ritual way before we
do the Ho`oponopono and other important Pule (prayer forms), we breathe in
slowly and hold our breath after we're filled up with air. Then we breathe out
slowly and hold our breath when we're out of air too. In this way we show respect
to the universe that is all around us, because we're not in a hurry to breathe in and
out. We show that we would rather hold on to Life."
Pua smiled over to Mamo, and Keola knew that perhaps the Kahuna had told this
same story to many others while his old tutu Mamo sat and listened to her tell it,
over and over. They were not just cousins. They were old and good friends. They
had seen many people grow up in their care and teaching. Keola's own mother and
father had been taught many things by these same two women, and Keola knew that
what he was being told, he would some day be expected to tell others so that they
might also understand.
"Now, Keola, before we go on, I must ask you one question first. Where did you get
the name Keola anyway? Who gave you that name?"
Keola's mouth dropped in shock. After all the people who had made such a joke
about his name, was it true that the Kahuna Pua didn't really give him his name
after all?
"But Pua, wasn't it you who gave me the name? They all said it was you. You must
have given me the name. Didn't you?" Keola was very sure that she must be
playing a joke with him or something.

11

"No, Keola. It was not me that gave you your name. Your name came from the
'I'!"
"What do you mean the 'I'? Do you mean you?"
"This is the story that I have to tell you today, Keola. But before I can tell you
about the 'I', we must do the Ha. Now, remember that we do the Ha to relax and
show our affection for the Life all around us. And you haven't even tried to listen to
my waterfall talk to you yet either. Don't worry about who gave you your name. It
was, after all me who told your parents what your name was, but the 'I' was the one
who told me. You will be able to listen to the 'I' if you listen to my waterfall. So just
be quiet for a few minutes and do the breathing. Do it just like I told you how to do
it, and we will see how it is. Remember now, don't be in a hurry, because you are
showing your respect for Life when you take in the Ha."
"Enjoy the moment of peace and let yourself go with the flow of things. The water
is falling over my waterfall, and the Coconut sap is cooling in the pool over there,
and we must relax and close our eyes for just a little while, and show our respect for
this beautiful place. Is that O.K. with you Keola?"
Keola closed his eyes and made himself comfortable. Before he closed his eyes
though, he looked about him at the beauty of this place that his tutu Mamo and the
Kahuna Pua knew so well from so many years of experiencing it. He loved this
place as though he had been here many times. It felt like a favorite place to him,
although, he wasn't even sure that he had really ever been here before. Just at that
moment the sun came out from behind a white puffy cloud and the mist of the
waterfall made a beautiful little rainbow over the silhouette of his tutu Mamo and
Pua. Their eyes were already closed and they looked as if they were asleep or
dreaming, and Keola quickly closed his eyes too.
The time went by slowly, and Keola watched the colors behind his eyes where the
sunlight and shadows of the trees overhead made patterns on his closed eyelids. He
listened to the sounds of the waterfall and he wondered if it was really talking to the
Kahuna Pua as she said. He listened hard to all the sounds that he could here,
because he wanted her waterfall to talk to him too.
Keola forgot how long it was that he had been sitting quietly enjoying all that
sounds and light patterns that he saw and heard. When he heard the sound of the
two bottles of Coconut sap clink together like a little bell, his body jumped and he
opened his eyes.
12

"So you really do like Life then, Keola. We wondered if you would ever wake up!"
His tutu Mamo was looking over at him with a big smile as she arranged three
'Jimangos' (coconut shell cups) on the mat. Pua then poured out the pale white fluid
from the Coconut sap bottles. This was his favorite way to drink the coconut sap.
From a tin cup or even from a china teacup that sweet sap seemed to loose its flavor,
but from a Jimango, it was just wonderful.
"Well, my waterfall said that she was talking to you, but she didn't know if you were
listening. Did you hear her talking to you?"
"Pua, I could hear the sound of the waterfall and it was very beautiful, but I don't
know what it was saying. How can I tell what the waterfall was saying to me?"
"You don't need to know, Keola, your Unihipili was listening and he will know. Do
you know about the Unihipili, the Uhane, and the Aumakua?"
"Well, I know that the Aumakua are the Gods. Is that right?"
"I guess that some people put it that way, but you will learn now, how I use that
word just a little differently. I will tell you about all three parts of the human form.
Each of us has all three of these parts within us, and you need to know about them,
before you can understand the 'I'."
Keola sipped on his cup of coconut sap and was amazed at how cool it had become
in the short time it had been in the water, of course, he wasn't too sure just how long
that had been. He had counted the first two or three Ha, and then he forgot to count
from that point on. He figured that he may have been there longer than he had
thought. Keola sipped again at the cool liquid in his Jimango.
"Each and every one of us has three parts. There is the little baby inside, where we
get our feelings from; like when we get angry, happy or sad. Then there is the part
of us that can't stop talking. When we use words, and when we are thinking, we are
using the Uhane, Keola. But when we are happy without words to express it, then
we are using the Unihipili. When we know what is right and what is wrong, we are
using our Aumakua. The Aumakua is how we are connected to each other and to
the past where all of our ideas come from.

13

This is hard to understand, because the little Unihipili is the one who has all of the
Mana, but the Uhane is the boss. At least the Uhane acts like it's the boss, even
though you cannot get in touch with the 'I' until you talk to the Aumakua. It is like
having a Father, a Mother, and a Baby all in one, inside of each of us. Do you see
what I mean?"
"No, Pua. I don't understand what you mean at all. How can I have my father and
my mother in me when they are out there in them at the same time?"
"Well, Keola, if it were not for the love between your father and mother, could you
be here right now? They were the two who came together to make you, and even
then, they could not have made a human form if it had not been the will of the 'I'."
"You mean that you had to give them permission?"
"No, Keola. I wasn't speaking of myself, I was speaking of The I. I could have
said the Universe, or God, or the Life that is all around us, and in us, each and
everyone. But it gets to be a very long story if every time I want to talk about the
oneness of all things, I have to describe it. We like to call this the 'I', because it
makes it easier to talk about.
We just call it the 'I', so that it is different from the little 'i' which is inside each of
us. The big 'I' and the little 'i'. Do you see how it works? I am here, but I am over
there with you too, because we are both people. I am here because I am from this
world, but I am over there where the sun comes from, because I can feel the warmth
of the sun within me. We are one together. We are all the 'I'."
Keola looked puzzled again and then he seemed to find the answer somehow.
Mamo looked Keola in the eyes and said, "When you are in the taro patch you look
like your father, and when you are with the flowers, you look like you mother, and
when you are in the sunlight you look like the 'I'. Do you see, Keola?"
"I think so. Do you mean that I look like the 'I'?
"We all look like the 'I' all of the time, Pua said. When the waterfall talks to me, she
talks with the words of the 'I', and I listen with the ears of the 'I'. These things are
with us always. The Unihipili carries the Mana, which is the Life Force that the 'I'
gives to each of us. The 'I' gives Mana to each and every thing as well. It goes all
the way out to past the last star, and connects to you from your insides through the
14

Unihipili. You're never out of touch with the 'I' Keola. That is why we can all say,
'I am the I'."

15

Transmute To Light And Cut All Aka Cords

"Pua, if we are all the 'I', then what makes us so different?" Keola had a confused
look on his face. "Where do we end up with so many things that don't look the
same?"
"All the flowers in every garden look the same if they are the same kind of flower,
but when you look real close, they each have their own special shape and color. We
are just like that too. We each have our own Mana. It is the Mana given to us by
the 'I'."
"So when I'm alive, I'm alive differently than you are Pua? To me, we both seem to
be alive and I can't see where the difference is."
"The difference is very obvious! You are young, and I am old. You are a little boy
and I am a woman. These things we can all see, but where the real difference is, you
may not see at all. I admit that we are both alive, but why are we here anyway.
Why has the 'I' given you the name Keola, and why are you so interested in knowing
what it means. It's the 'Why' that is different. That's where the real difference
comes between your life and mine. Why do you live, Keola?"
"I don't know, Pua. I feel alive and I want to be alive, but I don't know why I'm
alive. I never gave it any thought. I don't know why I'm alive, I just know that I
am."
"The 'I' knows why you're alive, Keola!" Mamo smiled as she said this to Keola,
and she poured out some more coconut sap.
"That's right, Keola. Your tutu Mamo knows that the 'I' knows all about you, and
so do I. We know that the 'I' has a purpose for each and every thing in all of the
Life everywhere in the world. I think that you know this is true too. Do you think
that it's true, Keola?"
"Yes, Pua. I know that everything has its purpose, but that still doesn't help me to
know why I'm here."
"Well, sure it does, Keola. It helps a whole lot if you know that you're here for a
good reason which the 'I' knows. All you have to do is to ask the 'I' to let you do the
right things. That's very easy. You just talk to your Unihipili, because your
Unihipili knows why you're here too!"
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"What do you mean, Pua?"

"What I mean is, that when you do the right thing, you will know it, because you
will feel good. When you make a mistake, you will be able to feel that too. There is
nobody who really likes to make mistakes, and the Unihipili will always know when
you're doing something wrong. Your Unihipili is your little friend, and with the
Mana, it can tell you what you need to know, when you need to know it."
"Will it always tell me what I need to know, Pua?"
"Your Unihipili loves you very much and will always want to tell you what you need
to know. But if it is afraid of you, it might be afraid to tell you anything at all. You
have to remember that the Unihipili is like a baby, and you have to treat it very well.
You need to love your Unihipili and talk to it really nice. When you are mad at the
things you do when you make a mistake, you cannot blame your Unihipili.
Sometimes it is just too afraid to tell you what to do. It will always give you a
feeling, to let you know, but if the Uhane won't listen, then you might make the
mistake anyway. You can't blame the Unihipili."
Mamo smiled over at Keola and said, "Keola, just treat it like a little brother who
doesn't know any better. It will do all the work for you, and be happy to do it too!
But if you make it afraid of you, then it won't be able to tell you anything. It will get
into more and more trouble, just like a little child. Be good to your little friend, and
talk to him with great affection. We must work together with our Unihipili. That's
how it works."
Keola was silent for a minute, and then he took a sip of his coconut sap and asked a
question that he had been holding back for some time. "If it is so easy to do as you
say, then why do many big people get into trouble. Why do they fight with each
other, and have unhappiness and those kinds of things?"
"Keola, not everybody believes, or even knows about the Unihipili. When the
Uhane is very strong, then what we think with words takes over and the little
Unihipili feels very sorry and afraid. It is not easy to remember everything that has
ever happened to you in your whole life, but the Unihipili has to remember. It is not
easy to be able to remember everything that has ever made you mad or afraid or
upset, but the Unihipili has to remember. Sometimes there is so much work to the
remembering, that the little Unihipili wants to close its eyes and ears and go away.
That's when people get out of control with themselves, and forget to be who they

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really are. That's when people do terrible things, but the poor little Unihipili still
has to remember those things anyway. Even so, it still loves you."
"Your little Unihipili is your very best friend," Mamo lowered her voice, "and the
little Unihipili isn't your only friend, Keola . . . " she looked over at the Kahuna
Pua.
"Yes, Keola, the Unihipili can call the Aumakua to come and help you when you are
in trouble. The Aumakua all love you too. They will do anything that the Unihipili
asks them to do. You have a lot of help when you need help, but you can't just yell
for help and get it! Your voice will just float away with the wind. But when your
Unihipili calls the Aumakua, then the help is there in an instant. The Aumakua are
your guides and your teachers. They know the will of the 'I' and they know why
you are here. They want to help you to do the right thing. You have lots of help,
Keola. You have only to learn the meaning of your name, and begin sharing the
force of Life with all those who come in contact with you. This is why I was directed
to tell you that the 'I' gave you the name Keola. You can be one of the special people
who can call the power of the 'I' within you to help yourself and to help others too.
This is a very big name that you have and we want you to live up to your name."
"Oh, Pua, I don't know how to live up to my name. How will I be able to do all of
these things you're talking about? How will I know what to do?"
"You will need to know how to talk to the 'I' within you, Keola. Everybody needs to
know this, but for you, it is very important, because this is part of why you are who
you are. It is what your name means! Don't you want to live up to your name,
Keola?"
"Yes, I do, but it seems like so much work. I don't know how I will know what to
do. What will I do?"
Pua smiled at Keola and let a little space of time pass in silence. Maybe she was
taking one of the Ha breaths. "Listen to me, Keola, I want you to really remember
this for yourself, and for anyone you ever help. The most important thing to
remember is that you don't need to worry. Just don't worry! There is the 'I' within
you and all you have to do is to remember that, and you will never have to worry. It
is so easy."
Mamo smiled at her grandson too. She knew the feeling of his fear, but she knew
that he would learn many things to help him along the way and she wasn't worried
18

at all. "Keola, don't even think about what you will have to do. Does the water that
is flowing over the waterfall over there think about the fall? Let it flow . . . let it
flow. You will learn many many things to help you. You never need to worry, just
let it flow."
"Today, I will help you to feel that you have something to work with, Keola. Today
I will tell you the secret of Ho`oponopono. With Ho`oponopono, you will never have
to worry again. You can always help people who need help. Ho`oponopono is very
easy, if you let it be easy."
"Oh, thank you tutu Pua, I know that you will help me to live up to my name."
Keola felt somehow, much better. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and
listened to the sound of the waterfall. He listened with pure joy. He didn't try to
hear anything, he just listened and listened.
"Just keep your eyes closed, Keola . . . " Pua said, "and let your eyes paint colors
for me as I talk to you. Breathe deep and listen to me and I will tell you about the
way of Ho`oponopono."
Mamo closed her eyes too, and smiled. She loved this part and wouldn't pass it up
for anything.
"When you have a problem, or someone else tells you of their problem, you just
relax and take in the Ha. Take seven Ha if you have the time, but even one is
enough if you need to hurry. Then you tell your little Unihipili that there is trouble.
You just have to tell your little Unihipili that you found some trouble. You should
tell him that you would like to ask him please, to help you. Always ask him very
nicely, to do this favor for you. He will never turn you down, but you must always
ask him to show respect. Your little Unihipili is like a helpless child, but he has all
of your Mana and you must remember to always respect him.
When you have taken the Ha and asked your Unihipili for help, then you start the
Ho`oponopono by asking the 'I' to forgive you if you have been wrong or if you have
caused any trouble yourself. You ask the 'I' to make the trouble turn into light.
Once it is light there will be no more trouble, you will be in touch with the 'I' within
you. Then you can ask that all the Aka cords be severed and cut free."
Without opening his eyes, Keola asked, "What are the Aka cords, Pua?"

19

"The Aka cords are how we are connected to all the other people and places
everywhere we have ever been. You ask your Unihipli to help you get yourself
disconnected . . . you ask to be set free. Since you are asking your Unihipili to help
you, then you say, 'We ask that this be done, and it is done!' As soon as you have
said this you are forgiven, and then you can ask for a Ho`oponopono for the
problem that you are working on.
When you have been forgiven yourself, then all you have to do is to ask for a
Ho`oponopono, for those whom you are trying to help. Remember that you must ask
for the forgiveness for them as well. This is an important part of the way we do it,
so that everything is clean.
You simply ask for a Ho`oponopono and ask that if there is any unwanted negativity
or unwanted energy of any kind between you and what ever your problem is, that it
be transmuted to Pure Divine Light. It's as easy as that. Just transmute all the
unwanted energy to Pure Divine Light, and cut all Aka cords. When you say 'We
ask that this be done, and it is done! Boom! It will happen! Now, you should ask for
the Ho`oponopono in the name of the Divine Creator: The Aumakua, the Uhane,
and the little Unihipili as One. This is to make it clear that you are asking it of the
'I'. Do you understand?"
Keola opened his eyes, and said, "Tutu Pua, I don't know if I can remember all of
that. Isn't there any easier way?"
Both of the women giggled a little at Keola's concern. "Remember, Keola, don't
worry! Your Unihipili will remember. I know that this is a lot of information all at
once, but I have a way that will help you, so just don't worry." She patted Keola on
the shoulder and they all laughed together, and the waterfall seemed to be laughing
with them.

20

The Pillar of "I"

"O.K. Keola, now just close your eyes again, and this time take in a real big Ha, and
relax as much as you can. Just listen to the image that I give you. You can paint the
colors with your inside eyes. The eyes that we see real things with, are only our
outside eyes, but we have eyes for the inside too. When you use the inside eyes, you
can see the things that the 'I' can see. Relax now and help me to make the picture
for you to remember.
Have you ever been out on the kind of day when it really wants to be sunny, but
every now and then a rain cloud comes by and covers over the sun?"
Keola smiled and answered, "Yes, I love those days, because you can always smell
the rain before it comes."
"Well think of a day like that, and then remember how it looks when the sun finds
a hole in the sky. It shines through that hole like a tube of light. That usually
happens at an angle. Where the light hits the ground, the color of the area that it
hits, seems to have a special intensity. The color is more clear and beautiful there
than at any other place where the light is more pale in the shadow of the clouds.
When you want to make a Ho`oponopono, but you don't have enough time, or you
can't remember all of the words that you are supposed to say, then just think of that
special kind of light. The light which comes through a rain cloud. Make believe
that you can see that kind of light coming down right over the people you want to
help. Can you make that kind of picture with your inside eyes? Can you do it?"
"I can do it! It is just like I'm seeing it right now! I can see a big piece of white and
gold light coming down on us right here this very minute. It's great, Pua. I can
really see it!"
"Very good, Keola. This is what we call the Pillar of 'I'. When you have an
emergency and you need to be quick about your Ho`oponopono, then you just take
one Ha breath, and put the Pillar of 'I' right down over your problem. Now don't
forget that you must still learn to finish up with a real Ho`oponopono. You must
ask for your Unihipili to help you to get forgiveness, and then to cleanse, purify,
release, and transmute to Pure Divine Light any unwanted energy. You must also
ask that all the Aka cords be cut free too! These things are not hard to remember.
With a little practice you can easily remember all of the rest of the Pule as well. It
will be much more powerful when you use it the right way. You will learn.
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Now, before you open your eyes, I want you to practice a little more work with your
inside eyes. See if you can follow along as I tell you about the bath of Pure Light.
When we bathe ourselves . . . and don't forget that the Pillar of 'I' and any part of
the whole Ho`oponopono process must include yourself . . . we bathe ourselves with
Pure Divine Light. We can also use colors as well as the Divine White Light.
First we use Indigo Light, which is the blue like what we see when we look out to the
ocean on a clear day. A very deep deep blue. This Light is for cleansing and comes
first, so make the Pillar of 'I' change colors now and become Indigo Blue Light.
Can you see it?"
"Well, I'm not sure of the color, but I see a blue color coming through the cloud
where the sunlight was before."
"Don't worry about what kind of color you see. If you think Indigo Blue, the 'I' will
give you the right color. You must see and feel it all around you.
Next we use the color of emeralds. The emerald green color is just as pure and rich
a color as the blue was. A beautiful brilliant green like the best quality of emerald."
"I have never seen an emerald, Pua. I don't know if I have the right color."
"Well, it's like I said, you can leave that up to the 'I'. It is the clear green color like
the fresh new leaf of the healthy taro plant. This color is for healing the problem
you are dealing with, so make this color very beautiful and full of Life.
After the green color, you want to change it again to a different kind of blue. We
call it ice blue, and I know that any of the ice that you may have seen isn't blue. It's
just a name. It's the blue color of the ocean near to shore where it is very clear, but
a lighter kind of blue than out in the distance. The reason we call it ice blue, is that
it is cool like the fresh water in a mountain waterfall. This color is to soothe and
relieve any pain of the problem. It feels really good like when you're hot and run off
into the surf to cool off.
When you change the color for the last time, you change it to the color of the sea
foam in sunlight. It's almost yellow, but it's really just very very white. It is the
Pure Divine Light, and has all of the other colors of the rainbow within it. This is
the most special color of all, and it's what the 'I' gives us to fill the problem with
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Love, Peace, and Joy, and Happiness. It is the last part of the Pillar of 'I', and by
the time you come to it, things are already getting better.
Now don't forget, that for yourself or for others, the Uhane may have scared off the
little Unihipili, so it may take a while to work. If you have the time and you try to
remember to do the whole Ho`oponopono, it will never fail to help. If it cannot help
others whom you want to help, then at least it will help you to feel the freedom of
release from their problems. You have to work on yourself first, if you want to help
others.
One more thing which you can also do. Surround the trouble, no matter what it
is . . . people things or feelings, with a band of gold light. Let the band expand both
up and down from the middle, until it is like a great big bubble of gold light, with
whoever or whatever you are working on inside. Then you can leave it up to the 'I'
to use whatever color of the rainbow it needs for the inside.
Keola opened his eyes, and saw that the Kahuna Pua was watching him. "I think
that I can do it, but I will have to practice a lot."
"Well that's good," said Mamo, "the more practice you get, the more good you will
do!"
"Well, I usually only do the light stuff after I have made a whole Pule. When we do
it in the ritual way, we use a little bit of water and actually sprinkle a few drops on
each of the people we are working on. I do this while I say the words that make the
whole thing more formal. You know how we Kahunas are, we like to keep the
tradition."
With that she reached over to the edge of the water and flipped up a splash which
gently washed Keola's face. Keola's startled face made the two old women giggle
again.
I can tell you, though, that if I'm unable to take the time, or if I don't have any
water handy, I don't let that stop me. The image of these things in my inside eyes is
just as strong as the real thing itself.
You don't even have to have the people right there in front of you. You can do it for
somebody way far away from here. You just pretend and do it with your inside
eyes. It will work for them anyway. After all, when you for example, want to do it

23

for your fear of not remembering all the words, where would you throw the water.
You just image it in your inside eyes, and let it flow. Remember, just let it flow."
"Yes, Pua, I'll just let it flow."
Now Keola, went back to see his tutu the Kahuna Pua many times, and he heard
many stories from his tutu Mamo as well . . . He learned many many things. Those
stories are now the stories that we tell of the Kahuna Keola, who lives under the
rainbow.

Somewhere under the Rainbow,

The Rainbow of Pure Divine Light,
There lives the Kahuna Keola,
Keola Malalo 'O Ka Anuenue.
Somewhere under the Rainbow,
The sound of Ho`oponopono can be heard.
Keola makes the way of Ho`oponopono,
He makes it with the Light and the Word.
Somewhere under the Rainbow,
The echo of Kahuna gone by,
Reflects the Light of Kahuna before,
Reflects the Light of the "I".
Somewhere under the Rainbow,
You and I will someday see "I".
Somewhere under the Rainbow,
With Keola, and Kahuna, and "I"

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Afterword
All of the concepts that are given in this story and the information which is shared
with you in the "Outline of the Ancient Huna Pule - Ho`oponopono" are to the best
of my memory the words, and way of Ho`oponopono as taught by my teacher,
Morrnah N. Simeona.
The prayer forms and the bulk of all the forms in the outline were taught to me by
Morrnah, and have been incorporated in an organization called the Foundation of
I, which was the way Morrnah made sure that the information would be carried
on after she was gone.
I was very fortunate to be a part of the Foundation of "I" which is the non-profit
foundation which has organized the concepts of Ho`oponopono and teaches the
process. All of the material which I have shared with you was reviewed by Morrnah
before her death. Although she felt that my children's story was more than what
most children would understand, she did not suggest any changes to it.
What I have presented to you is not to be considered in any way anything other than
how I have remembered what I learned Morrnah and later with the Foundation of
"I".
Although I sincerely wish to give my teacher credit, I do not want you to think that
what you receive from me is in any way a part of the Foundation's teaching
materials. I do not represent to be a spokesperson or a teacher of the Foundation of
"I" and if anyone wishes to make contact with that organization, or attend any
seminars held by Pacifica Seminars, I will endeavor to help you to make contact
with the appropriate people. Information about the foundation of I can be found
at: http://www.hooponopono.org/

Feel free to contact me:

Dr. Keola G.A. Downing, Ph.D.
15-113 Ui Ui Street
Pahoa Hi. 96778-8583
keola@hilobay.com 808-965-9008

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