Mo'okini Luakini Heiau

 

 Remember, when you do have the opportunity to go to Mo'okini Luakini Heiau, please show your respect ... you have been informed that this Heiau is a living spiritual temple, a sacred site, and not just a historical artifact of the Hawaiian culture or a recreational park.

 
Have you ever wondered what lies beneath and beyond the double rainbow at the northern tip of the Big Island of Hawai'i? Have you ever heard of the Golden Blend? Or the historical story of how Kamehameha I was born...under the streaking red star "Kokoiki"? When was the last time you went to Mo'okini Luakini?
 
You may ask yourself what and where is the Mo'okini Luakini? It "is a link to the past and a bridge to the future for" the coming generations. This ancient Heiau, located near Upolu Point in North Kohala, is one of Hawai'i's oldest and largest historical sites and is among the most sacred.
 
According to Mo'okini Family genealogical chants this Heiau was built in 480 A.D. under the direction of Kahuna Nui Kuamo'o Mo'okini and dedicated to the God Ku. The descendants of the Mo'okini Family have been it's guardians for the past 1500 years. For centuries there was a restrictive Kapu at the Heiau. It was a "closed" Heiau reserved exclusively for Hawai'i's Ali'i Nui for fasting, praying and offering of human sacrifices to their gods. In Kohala it was the focus of religious life and order.
 
The temple, measures approximately the size of a football field, is constructed without mortar and is built of water worn basalt which the chant says came from Pololu Valley approximately 14 miles away. Each stone is said to have been passed man to man in a single night!
 
In November of 1978 Kahuna Nui Leimomi Mo'okini Lum rededicated the Mo'okini Luakini to the "Children of the Land" and lifted the restrictive Kapu. In doing this she made it safe for all persons to enter the Heiau and created a new legacy for the Mo'okini Luakini as a place of learning for future generations to discover the past. Kahuna Nui Lum followed closely the wishes of her father Kahuna Nui Dewey O. Mo'okini who visualized this sacred site as one for the children of Hawai'i and the entire world. Each November since then she has brought a group of children in to learn about their heritage.
 
Given are insights for children, whom Kahuna Nui Lum lovingly calls the "Golden Blend". On November 25, 1996 a group of children from North Kohala and Kohala Elementary were invited to participate with Kahuna Nui Lum in commemorating the Eighteenth Annual Children's Day at the Mo'okini Luakini, Kapakai, Kokoiki, North Kohala, Hawaii. Na Mamo O Hawai'i Nei (Children's Day).
 
It was quite an inspirational morning. Kahuna Nui Lum in her flowing white mu'u mu'u was welcoming the children while there was a brilliant double rainbow sparkling above their heads. It was a reminder of that double rainbow we have heard about when Kamehameha the Great was said to have been born. The children seemed to be the living Golden Blend as they learned and played in their special way.

 Arrangements to visit the Heiau can be made by calling (808) 591-1170 or faxing (808) 591-1142