We traveled to the Place of Refuge, one of the Hawaiian National Parks called the Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau. The park is on the coast with a beautiful beach and coral reef. This location has huge historical significance and value for Hawaiians.
The small village was once a place of sanctuary, forgiveness and freedom for Hawaiins running from war or breaking kapu. Kapu were the laws that governed all living things in Hawaii, decided by chiefs, and had to do with everything from when to plant to where to swim in the ocean. These laws were more strict for women who were restricted from things we would see as small, for example, women were not allowed to eat banannas. If a someone broke kapu the punishment was death unless they could reach one of these sancuatry locations. There were a few of these in each district, and if a kapu breaker made it they would beg for forgivness from a priest and be given the chance to heal. However they were not allowed to leave unless their healing was deemed over which could be anywhere from months to their whole life. The process is not as easy as it sounds though, as there were people whose sole job it is to hunt for kapu breakers and kill them before they reached saftey.
These Puʻuhonua were the most scared places in Hawaii and had temples where chieOf bones were barried. They also had ki’i sculptures, known to us as tiki, that were made out of wood and represnted the Hawaiian Gods. One of the main temples is loacted right on the beach infront of the ‘door’ to the Puʻuhonua, which was the only place where one could enter the sacred space. Now no one is allowed to swim on that beach to honor and protect its history.
We got to hear and learn from one of the park rangers about the location and were able to experince an authenitic Hawaiian chant!