Myth – Hawaiian

Folklore: Hawaiian myth

Maui was a demi-god, half human and god. There’s one story, where in ancient times, the sun would go around the earth really fast. People couldn’t farm or work because it was never a full day.  Then Maui took a lasso and lassoed the sun and halted it down, which caused the days to be longer so people could eat and slow down.

Annotation: Book

Beckwith, Martha. Hawaiian Mythology. Hawaii: University of Hawaii Press, 1977. “Snaring of the sun” found on page 229.

My Analysis:

This is a sacred truth that nearly all Hawaiians know, one that explains the origin of the day.  Maui, on which one of the islands is named after, has incredible strength and compassion for the people of Earth. It shows how he can control the sun.  This myth also explains the origin of farming and how important agriculture was to the people. Most of their days revolved around how much sunlight occurred during the day.