The Myth of Maui: A tale of clever creation.
Our story begins with Maui—the son of an old God and a human woman.
He was one of four brothers (and demigods) that came from this union. And of all his brothers, Maui was always the one left behind. He was always the one left out of their grand adventures and thrilling trips.
And this never angered Maui. It only challenged him to get a little more… creative.
One day, Maui decided he was done with being left behind. He decided he would do whatever he needed to do to go fishing with brothers. But, being as clever as he was, he knew the key to being invited more than once was to prove to his brothers that he could fish just as well—or better—than them.
So, this inspired Maui to let his cleverness run loose. He wove himself a fishing line and enchanted it to give it a strength no other fishing line had ever seen. And on the end, he fashioned a hook out of a magical jawbone his grandmother had given to him as a gift.
With his fishing rod made, and his plan in action, Maui went to his brothers and convinced them to take him fishing—to give him just one chance to prove himself.
And his brothers, dubious but loving, agreed to let Maui come with them just this once.
So, the four brothers set sail into the open waters and began to fish.
And Maui, with his enchanted rod, cast his line out into the waves—determined to catch the biggest fish of them all.
But, unbeknownst to Maui, his hook did not catch a fish, but instead caught an edge of the ocean floor. And Maui, feeling this resistance tug, began to reel his “catch” in. But of course, it would not budge. And this, Maui thought, must have been the biggest fish of them all! The fish that would prove himself to his brothers—that would get him invited back!
And Maui pulled and pulled, but the rod just wouldn’t budge. So he turned to his brothers and told them to paddle as hard as they could—“I’ve caught a big one, my brothers! We need more strength to reel it in.”
His brothers paddled as hard as they could, and Maui, still gripping the rod with all his might, pulled and pulled until something started to give way.
But what emerged from the waters was not the biggest fish ever seen, but instead it was land.
You see, what Maui pulled up from the depths of the ocean was not some monstrous fish, but several whole islands.
Islands that would one day hold a vast and vibrant array of life.
Islands that would become known for their beauty and their majesty.
Islands that we now know today as Hawaii.
So, on that day Maui did not catch the biggest fish of them all. No. Instead, he created a new container for life thrive! And to his brothers, that was far more impressive and beautiful than any fish could ever be.And that, dear reader, is the story of how a young demigod named Maui created the Hawaiian islands.
*(*Maui & his feats also have roots in New Zealand and is prominent in Maori mythology.)
