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| The source of the Hule'ia River Nawiliwili Valley, Kauai ©March 18, 2013 |
Today is the vernal equinox, the first day of spring, and to some of my Cherokee friends it is also the day to honor the Long Man by making a visit to a stream or river. A river or stream is held sacred to many Cherokee and the practice of of going to water for purification was once common among the tribe - especially on the day of the vernal equinox.* The Long Man is the conscious spirt of a river or stream whose voice can be heard in the sound of a waterfall - "creator has seen in the form of a river."
To Hawaiian ancestors, water was sacred. It was a gift from Kane i ka wai ola (procreator in the water of life), and delivered by Lono makua (the rain provider).
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| Waterfall on the Waipo'o Falls Trail System Waimea Canyon, Kauai ©March 19, 2013 |
I honored the vernal equinox here in Hawaii a few few days early with a visit to the Hule'ia River on the south side of the island of Kauai and also to Waipo'o Falls in the Kokee rainforests of Waimea canyon. The Ryan side of my family is descended from the House of Luxembourg where legend has it that we worshipped Melusina, the feminine spirit found in fresh water, sacred springs and rivers in European folklore.
So on the auspicious and divine first day of Spring - I celebrate the ancestors and those who keep sacred water traditions alive and honor and respect our rivers and streams as living beings. And I celebrate the Aloha 'aina I have for this beautiful land here in Hawaii.
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