The cut off rainbow
Ke Ala Muku / Poʻo Muku
The features of the ala muku, poʻo muku
According to the Hawaiian-English dictionaries, this is the definition o this type of rainbow:
Pukui/Elbert: n., Cut off or unfinished road, dead-end road. Figuratively, an incomplete rainbow, rainbow fragment.[1]
Primary trait: A rainbow fragment
Secondary trait: A partial arc
A rainbow whose body was partially cut off [2]
An ala muku (na Mikhail Dudarev | Dreamstime.com)
There are some metaphorical names concerning the ala muku and poʻo muku, for example, ke ala koʻiʻula a Kāne,[3] ke ala koʻiʻula a Kanaloa,[4] ke ala muku a Kāne,[5] ke ala muku maʻawe ʻula a Kanaloa,[6], a me kūlei ʻula.[7] Two of the aforementioned names contain the color red which is a royal color and appropriate for Kāne and Kanalola, two of the primary Hawaiian gods. The ala muku is often used in chants of mourning for monarchs and people of high rank.
The strata that the ala muku, poʻo muku appear
In ancient times, it was believed that the ala muku could be ascended by the gods, extraordinary beings, and those with high powers. What were the places that they would go? The answer is to the heavens, on top of high cliffs, the afterlife, etc. Therefore, the ala muku, poʻo muku appear in the lewa lani lewa, the lewa nuʻu, and the lewa lani
The times that the ala muku, poʻo muku appear
The times that the ala muku and poʻo muku appear are not limited from the Hawaiian perspective. Within the traditional Hawaiian stories they appear over the land and the ocean.
A poʻomuku (na Picfair.com)
The signs/omens of the ala muku, poʻo muku
There were 2 signs/omens found within the sources analyzed for the full arching rainbow. There are 12 occurrences of these signs/omens, and the signs concerning a rainbow path were the most numerous (9). The Chi-square goodness-of-fit test was performed on the data, and the result is that the data does not vary significantly from an equal distribution and therefore none of the groups is significantly different than the others from a mathematical perspective.[8]
Translation Key
One example of a rainbow path to the heavens is given below, however the other examples are not available in English at this time. See the Hawaiian side of this website.
According to a story that was published in a Hawiian language newspaper, The ala muku is a path for an akua (translated quote):
Yes; when you see the rainbow that is laying down on top of the cliff and binding below to the sacred spring water of our provider; then, it is a foot of a rainbow belonging to the god of the path of Kane. As for the rainbow name in my earthly realm, it is a standing red garland. And therefore, the one that rainbow path that you saw belongs to is a demigod. As for the rainbow that you saw; you did not see a human body. That is a true thing; since a certain one belongs to the foot that trampled on the plant leafs.[9]
[1] n.d. Wehewehe Wikiwiki. Ke Kulanui o Hawaiʻi ma Hilo. https://hilo.hawaii.edu/wehe/.
[2] Abraham Fornader. 1916, 2014. He Moʻolelo No ʻAukelenuiaikū. Hilo, HI: Ka Hale Kuamoʻo: 78.
[3] n.d. Wehewehe Wikiwiki. Ke Kulanui o Hawaiʻi ma Hilo. https://hilo.hawaii.edu/wehe/. E nānā ʻia nō hoʻi i ka māhele e pili ana i ke koʻiʻula ma lalo iho.
[4] Hoʻoulumāhiehie 2006. Ka Moʻolelo o Hiʻiakaikapoliopele. Edited by Puakea Nogelmeier. Honolulu, HI: Awaiaulu. ʻaoʻao 314.
[5] Hooulumahiehie, 1907 - 1908. "Ka Moolelo Walohia o Hainakolo." Ka Nai Aupuni, Ianuali - Mei 1. Ianuari 25: 1.
[6] Adrienne L Kaeppler. 2013. "Chanting Grief, Dancing Memories: Objectifying Hawaiian laments." Edited by Di Roy, Aaron Corn and Ruth Lee Martin Stephen Wild. Humanities Research (Research School of Humanities & the Arts at The Australian National University) XIX (3): 71-81.
[7] Hooulumahiehie, 1907 - 1908. "Ka Moolelo Walohia o Hainakolo." Ka Nai Aupuni, Ianuali - Mei 1. Ianuari 4: 1
[8] ʻO ka hopena o ka hōʻike haʻihelu hoʻoili: χ2 (1, n = 12) = 5.68, p < 0.224. No laila, hoʻāpono ʻia ke kuhiakau kūpapa. .
[9] G.K.P. 1912. "He Moolelo Kaili Puuwai no HAINAKOLO." Ke Au Hou, Ianuari 17.
na Picfair.com