Hawaiian Science Ike o ka poe imi loa

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Hawaiian ScienceIke o ka poe imi loa
Knowledge of a far-seeking people
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Chant for knowledge

• E io e, e io e, e ku, e manu e
• O Io, o hawk, stop, o bird
• Ke alu aku nei ka pule ia Hakalau
• Combining the prayers toward Hakalau
• Kulia ka lani ia Uli, ia namu, ia naue
• The chief strives toward Uli, toward mumbling,
  trembling
• Ka nehe i luna, ka nehe i lalo
• Rustling above, rustling below
• Kaa akau, kaa hema
• Rolling northward, rolling south

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Chant for knowledge

• Ku makani, hai ka lani
• The wind rises, the heavens break
• Hekili kaakaa i ka lani
• Thunder rolling in the heavens
• Ka uila nui makeha i ka lani
• Great lightning flashing in the heavens
• Pane i ka lani, e ola ke kanaka
• Reply to the chief, to bring life to the people
• Ho mai ka loea, ka ike, ka mana
• Confer skill, knowledge, spiritual power

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Chant for knowledge

• I ae ka honua la
• That the world continue
• O waha lau alii
• The many chiefly mouths
• O kahi i waiho ai ka huaolelo
• The place where the word is presented
• Elieli kau mai
• Great awe settles in
• Amama, ua noa
• Completed, kapu is lifted

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Two world training
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Recent conflicts between Science Hawaiian
Culture

• Astronomy on Mauna Kea
• GMO research on kalo (taro)
• Fishing regulations

• Science is not Hawaiian
• Book science useless when dealing with
  Hawaiian issues

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We recognize that science is a process that is
not restricted to Western Civilization, and that
Ike Hawaii (traditional knowledge) can provide
great value to modern endeavors.
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What is Science?

• An approach to learning marked by
• Empiricism / Observation
• Manipulation / Experimentation
• Prediction / Modeling
• Testing / Replication / Proof
• Transmission / Publication

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Empirical observation

• Pala ka hala, momona ka wana
• The hala fruit are ripening, the sea urchins are
  fat
• Pua ke ko, ku mai ka hee
• The sugarcane are blooming, the octopus are
  rising
• Pua ka wiliwili, nanahu ka mano
• The wiliwili is blooming, the shark is biting

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Pua ka wiliwili, nanahu ka mano The wiliwili
blooms, the shark bites
Pua wiliwili Lalani
Kalalea
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Experimentation /Modeling / Prediction

• Loko ia (fishponds), loi (terraced
  agriculture), auwai (irrigation channels)
• Hand pollination

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Testing / Transmission

• He lohe pepeiao, he ike maka hoiA piece of
  hearsay or seen personally
• O ka mea pono, kupaa, o ka mea hewa, kapae
  aeThe correct retain, the flawed set aside
• Selective oral transmissionWe pass on what we
  accept as true

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Contrasting World Views

• There are some implied assumptions about Hawaiian
  vs. Western approaches, especially with regard to
  world view.
• Some of these are oversimplified here, but serve
  to highlight contrasts
• Lets explore some examples from the restoration
  efforts on Kahoolawe

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Western view of land restoration

• Land as commodity, upon which one applies actions
  toward "best use."
• Biological elements manipulated from wild
  toward human-friendly form.
• People as labor hired to realize scope of work.
• Plants and animals as objects to be reintroduced
  to the island.
• Biological elements separate from cultural
  (man-made) elements on the landscape.

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Hawaiian view of land restoration

• Land as conscious entity, reacting to humans in a
  reciprocal relationship.
• Ecosystems modified and often semi-wild, key
  ecological processes intact.
• People connected spiritually with place,
  contributing to and benefiting from the place.
• Plants and animals as conscious individuals and
  requiring individual attention to thrive.
• Plants and animals as sacred kinolau of kini akua
  and part of cultural landscape.

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Hawaiian world view example

• The Hawaiian owl, pueo, is indigenous to
  Kahoolawe, where it feeds largely on non-native
  rodents.
• Pueo is, for many Hawaiian families, one of the
  kinolau of aumakua, to be treated with utmost
  respect as a revered ancestral form.

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Natural vs Cultural Resources

• The idea that natural resources are also cultural
  resources means that cultural restoration is not
  merely devoted to identification stabilization
  of artifacts such as rock shrines
  petroglyphsbut that the living context of the
  island is valued as part of the foundation
  context for cultural stewardship enrichment.

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Objectivity

• Western science viewed as coldly objective
• Hawaiian approach embraces feeling
• Key contrast point between the two
• Intuition passion important to both
• Dispassionate western science created immoral
  developments
• To the wise, what feels right is right

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Reconciliation of Western and Hawaiian approaches

• Recognition of ecological zones
• Manipulative experimentation
• Transplantation of species
• Expert consultation
• Concern for the future of resources
• Imposing and lifting of restrictions
• Importance of pest control

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Hawaiian traditional skillsfor dryland planting

• Attention to weather seasonal climate
• Management of semi-wild ecosystems
• Well developed agricultural protocols propagation
  via seeds, cuttings, etc. hand-pollination,
  cultivars
• Specialized techniques for drylands kuaiwi rock
  mulching conventional mulching/fertilizing
  irrigation soil moisture retention via
  terracing

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Hawaiian techniques for coordinating cooperative
effort

• Dispute resolution (hooponopono)
• Protocol for unification joint effort
• Work viewed as composed of both physical and
  spiritual aspects
• Moral conduct important during work and vital
  for success

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Conclusions(from the Kahoolawe Management Plan)

• Hawaiian culture provides very specific methods
  dealing with both physical and spiritual needs of
  land and people
• Traditional methods for growing and nurturing
  plants and animals in dryland settings have
  direct relevance.
• Experimentation, and detailed manipulations of
  land and living things under expert guidance are
  not alien to Hawaiian culture, but have
  traditional precedence.
• Integration of spiritual and physical efforts on
  Kahoolawe will require continued development of
  a native Hawaiian cultural approach that looks to
  the past for foundation, and pulls both practical
  substance and intangible essence into service.

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Value of Ike Hawaii

• Haka uau i ka hale uluhe o LauhakaThe Hawaiian
  petrels nest in the fern house of Lauhaka

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Value of Ike Hawaii

• Aia ke ana koi i KaluakoiAt Kaluakoi is an
  adze quarry

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Addendum

• What does it take to pursue Ike Hawaii?
• How is Ike Hawaii transmitted?
• How is Ike Hawaii confirmed evaluated?
• What are the pitfalls of Ike Hawaii?