The Famed Pihanakalani Hula Dance
For decades while living on the island, Gurudeva reached out to the Hawaiian community, invited them to events, involved them in our various temple consecration ceremonies. His love of the confluence of the two cultures continues this week.
On November 26th, Kumu Leihi'ilani Kirkpatrick and ten hula dancers came to the monastery with their friends and family, to dance the Pihanakalani hula, and chant the Pihanakalani Oli (chant). Kumu is among Kauai's most knowledgeable and beloved hula teachers, and it showed in the performances of her wahinis.
In her introduction she gave much praise to the monastery for caring for the aina (land) which her ancestors inhabited some 8-900 years ago. Such a joy to have them here, and to see their joy in a rare performance on sacred grounds. The rains held back, barely, as they danced from 3:30 to 5:30, and almost as soon as they finished the heavens opened to bless the event.
You can see a one-minute video here:
https://youtu.be/l2dxvCWodLI
One Response to “The Famed Pihanakalani Hula Dance”
From Our Gurus' Teachings
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November 30th, 2023 at 5:15 pm
“AUM”!.