XXIX.—THE HULA KOLANI
For the purpose of this book the rating of any variety of hula must depend not so much on the grace and rhythm of its action on the stage as on the imaginative power and dignity of its poetry. Judged in this way, the kolani is one of the most interesting and important of the hulas. Its performance seems to have made no attempt at sensationalism, yet it was marked by a peculiar elegance. This must have been due in a measure to the fact that only adepts—olóhe—those of the most finished skill in the art of hula, took part in its presentation. It was a hula of gentle, gracious action, acted and sung while the performers kept a sitting position, and was without instrumental accompaniment. The fact that this hula was among the number chosen for presentation before the king (Kamehameha III) while on a tour of Oahu in the year 1846 or 1847 is emphatic testimony as to the esteem in which it was held by the Hawaiians themselves.
The mele that accompanied this hula when performed for the king’s entertainment at Waimanalo was the following:
He ua la, he ua,
He ua pi’i mai;
Noe-noe halau,
Halau loa o Lono.
O lono oe;
Pa-á-a na pali
I ka hana a Ikuwá—
Pohá ko-ele-ele.
A Welehu ka maláma,
Noho i Makali’i;
Li’i-li’i ka hana.
Aia a e’é-u,
He eu ia no ka la hiki.
Hiki mai ka Lani,
Nauweuwe ka honua,
Ka hana a ke ola’i nui:
Moe pono ole ko’u po—
Na niho ai kalakala,
Ka hana a ka Niuhi
A mau i ke kai loa.
He loa o ka hiki’na.
A ua noa, a ua noa.