No matter the game, konāne, kilu, ho'opāpā, the game's stakes are what mattered.
High stakes because the games were played by Ali'i. The higher the rank of the ali'i, the higher the game's stakes. When one player bets all he has and loses everything single time, all that is left to bet is his body. If he won, he won an entire ahupua'a. If he lost, he lost his bones. If the person he lost to, was fair in his victory, he killed the loser first and buried him in the imu and steamed the flesh off his bones, and kept it for some use. However, if the winner is void of any honor or moral character, he would strip the flesh of the loser from his bones while he was still alive.Today, the area where these games took place still exists, but only in spirit form, and even in such a form, these spirits are aware of our presence. Many of the living who are perceived by the spirits are invited to participate in these otherworldly games, having no clue as to the reality of the situation. Accepting the invitation, the living goes forward believing they are stepping into a lū'au much like the ones offered on the west side of 'O'ahu. Once they step foot into that realm, they are never seen again. We walk, drive, and ride the bus past this location every day, never knowing about a realm that exists simultaneously with our own. Ka-ua-nono-ula is one name. It is regularly known as a Loku, where the spirits of the ancient Ali'i gather to play the games they played in life.
No comments:
Post a Comment