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Hula
The Heartbeat of Hawai`i
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Our Hālau
A lovely hula girl sways with the rhythm of the palms
as the music of steel guitars fills the soft night air. . . While this is a
popular image of the hula, this ancient dance form is far more. King David Kalakaua said, "Hula is the language of the heart, and therefore the heartbeat of the Hawaiian people."
The hula is almost synonymous with Hawai`i. Anywhere one travels, as soon as people learn that Hawai`i is home, they ask, "Can you do hula?" Most of them picture the hula of the Steamer Days, "grass" skirts swaying to "Little Grass Shack" and the piercing sweetness of the steel guitar. Yes, that is hula, but it is one small part of hula.
Hula is the literature of the Hawaiian people. Walk into a library. The shelves will hold books on agriculture, astronomy, religion, genealogy, and hundreds of other topics. On one shelf will be The Holy Bible. On another will be "The Little Red Hen". On another will be "Princess Diana".
Hawaiians had, and still have, the same interests as everyone else. The Hula served, and still serves, the same purposes as other literature, both sacred and profane. There are ancient hula which tell of the creation of the world and its creatures. There are hula which tell stories. There are hula which tell about heros, chiefs, and chiefesses. To watch a hula is to read a book about Hawai`i.
According to one legend, the first hula was danced by Hi`iaka, and her best friend, Hopoe.
The First Hula
Hi`iaka and Hopoe were best friends. They were
always together, and both loved the deep mysterious forest, older than any
being they knew. When they traveled in the forest, they always were
respectful and kindly to its inhabitants, both plant and animal.
They admired the forest for its beauty and great
age. As they rested in its shade, they listened to the branches creaking and
watched them sway. They saw the shadows of birds flitting about, and heard
the murmur of the streams. It was as if the forest had a language of its
own. They would say to each other, "I wish we could understand the
language of the forest - it is so old, it must be very wise and able to
teach us many things."
Laka, the goddess of the forest was so impressed
with the two young woman, These two young women deeply loved the ancient
forest. They were always respectful upon entering, and never harmed any part
of it. Laka decided to grant them their wish. In a dream, Hopoe found she
could understand the forest. The swaying branches told a story, to which the
wind set a melody. the stones, rolling downstream, sounded like drumbeats
keeping rhythm.
When Hopoe awoke, she shared her dream with
Hi`iaka, and the two young women were then able to tell the stories of the
forest with the movements of their hands and bodies.
Types of Hula
Today, we have many styles of hula: The hula can
be divided by style, by subject matter, by era, and so many other ways.
There are over 300 different kinds of hula which have been cataloged so far
by the
Hula Preservation
Society,
including
puppet hulas.
Within each of the main categories of hula
are many variants and styles. Some are specific to geographic areas; the
hula of Moloka`i are different from the hula of Hilo, the hula of Hilo are
different form the hula of Kona. Some are specific to families; Kanaka`ole
hula are very different form Beamer hula. The hula is a living art form, and
innovative kumu evolve new styles. Other kumu focus on preserving the old.
Every hula dancer learns the saying: A`ohe
pau ka `ike i ka hālau ho`okahi - "Not all knowledge is
taught in one school"
Throughout all of the styles, however, there is one
defining characteristic - hula is storytelling. Without the story, there is
no hula. Within each style of hula there is a vocabulary of motion which is
consistent within that style. An educated hula dancer can see another dancer
and tell the genealogy, the lineal decent from teacher to teacher, of the
dancer by his or her "accent" in the movements.
As Kaeppler says, in
Hula Pahu, Volume I, Ha`a and Hula Pahu,
"The movement systems were part of the underlying structure of Hawaiian
society, while the movements themselves were surface manifestations of human
action and interaction in specific contexts. A sequence of movement motifs
is given meaning through choreography, but the movement dimension is only
one component of a larger social activity that must be understood as a whole
if one is to understand what or how movement communicates in a particular
instance. Meaning is conveyed through cultural conventions that deal with
human movement in time and space."
The Four Grandparents of Hula
I was taught that one way to think of the
beginning of the hula is to imagine it as having four grandparents. One tutu
wahine - grandma - is the sweet nature hula of Hopoe and Hi`iaka.
The second tutu wahine is the hula of the
maka`ainana - the common people - story in song and dance which tells of
their daily lives. Love songs, fishing stories, and various adventures.
One tutu kane - grandpa - would be the sacred hula
of the temples. Only the men dedicated to those temples would know them. Do
people still dance them? Perhaps - but my kupuna tell me that those of us not from those bloodlines
will never know.
And the tutu kane is the dances of the warriors.
Imagine telling stories of great battles! You are so excited you jump up and
pantomime exactly how you defeated your enemy! The warrior in charge of
training you young men notices how much fun you all are having, and decides
to incorporate those moves into your exercise. Much like the kata of the
Asian martial arts, the hula of the warrior helped him - and sometimes her -
to learn the moves of fighting.
The hula uses the entire body to express the
meaning of the dance - hands, feet, eyes, posture - all have a place in
telling the story. For, without the story, there is no hula.
Na Mea Hula - Hula Implements
In addition to the dancer's body, various impliments are used. These include
different kinds of drums, rattles, rhythm sticks, and other items.
Click
here to learn more.
To
see products with Leilehua's artwork, click on any of the images of
her paintings.
Hula costume has varied through the ages. The sketches here are representative of typical costumes. It is impossible to show all the styles worn in the veaious eras. There is also significant overlap of styles - as new styles became popular, the older styles often remained in use. Today, hula costumers select from all of the previous eras, choosig costumes to suit the hula. For more on costumes, click here.
Hula as Exercise
The hula is an ideal exercise. Generally, especially in beginning classes, it is low impact and provides both aerobic and anaerobic exercise.Simply holding the ha`a, the basic stance, is good isometric exercise. But, no matter how good for the body an exercise plan is, it is useless if the person does not follow it. Many studies that people will stick more closely to exercise routines they enjoy. If you enjoy dance and Hawaiian culture, then there is a good chance you will enjoy the hula. Click here for some hula basics.
If you are interested in the study of hula, I recommend you read this article by Amy Stillman: http://www.mele.com/resources/studyhula.html
Hawaiian Music Resource -
www.huapala.org
2004 Lunar Phases - http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/info/astronomy/moon2004.html
Excellent lunar phase calculator - http://tycho.usno.navy.mil/vphase.html
Native Hawaiian Moon Calendar - http://www.angelfire.com/sports/huntfishmaui/moon.html
Hawaiian Calendar in Fishing - http://www.oceanicinstitute.org/research/abstrfishenv_mooncalendar.html
Bishop Museum Info - http://explorers.bishopmuseum.org/sciencegarden/eTheSky/calendar.html
Bibliography - Early accounts and observations
Bibliography:
Sacred Hula, The Historical Hula `Ala`apapa, Amy Ku`uleialoha Stillman
Click here to shop for hula-related gifts - t-shirts, cards, and more!