Maui and the Sun

retold here by Chris

Adapted from "Maui and the Sun" from Hilo Legends by Frances Reed

One day, Maui was away flying his kite in the beautiful hills of Hawai‘i, while his mother, Hina, and her women, were pounding the kapa back at the house. Their pounding could be heard all around the neighborhood. When Maui came home, he found his mother and her women very sad. He asked them why they were sad and they replied that the sun was going to fast across the sky and this was not allowing their kapa pieces to dry. They had said that when the night comes, the rain falls and this ruins their beautiful kapa pieces. They told Maui to please do something about this. Maui told them that he definitely would.

Maui went away into the forest and he gathered together two items to take with him: a very strong club that was made out of wood, and a very long rope that was made out of coconut frawns. All the people in the neighborhood thought that Maui would take his canoe and ride out to the island of Maui where the mountain named Haleakalā was. Haleakalā was considered the “House of the Sun”. Yet, Maui had something else in mind. If he were to do that, the sun would see him and try to destroy Maui right then and there. Maui transformed himself into a beautiful white rooster with a red beak and red legs and flew over all the islands until he reached the island of Maui.

He turned back into a human and tirelessly climbed up the mountain of Haleakalā. When he got to the top, he started looking for where the sun might be hiding. Suddenly, the sun started to creep out of a crater that was very far away from where Maui stood. All the clouds that were surrounding the sun slowly started to fade away. Maui quickly grabbed his rope and club and lassoed the sun with his rope. The sun yelled at Maui, asking him what he was doing. Maui smiled and told the sun that he would only let him go if he would go slower across the sky. The sun laughed and told Maui with a boastful voice that he was crazy and that he would surely not do that! Out of anger, Maui got his club and hit off the suns longest beam. The sun screamed in agony and pain. The sun finally agreed that he would go slower across the sky. Yet, the sun still complained about this. So Maui agreed that the sun would go slower across the sky for six months out of the year.

Maui was very pleased with this and went home feeling accomplished. When he got home, the whole neighborhood was anxiously waiting for him and gave him big hugs and kisses. Maui told them all about the story of how he slayed the sun and persuaded the sun to go slower across the sky. Everyone cheered with excitement. Hina and her women made a special cape that was made out of kapa for Maui's accomplishments, and were able to dry the kapa in one afternoon. And that is the story of how Maui slowed down the great sun.