Page:Pele and Hiiaka; a myth from Hawaii (IA pelehiiakamythfr00emeriala).pdf/57

TRANSLATION

O honey-dew sipped by the bird,
Distilled from the fragrant lehua;
O yellow-barked awa that twines
In the upper lands of Ka-li'u;
O bird that brews from this leafage
Puna's bitter-sweet awa draught;—
Puna's potentest awa grows
Aloft in the crotch of the trees.
It wafts the seduction to sleep,
That I lock my senses in sleep!

It was a subtle temptation that suggested the awa cup as a relief for her troubles. Hiiaka had need that all her faculties should give her their best service. For her to have slept at this time would have been fatal. Her song well expressed it:

E nihi ka hele i ka uka o Puna;
Mai ako i ka pua,
O lilo i ke ala o ka hewahewa.
Ua huná ia ke kino i ka pohaku,
O ka pua na’e ke ahu nei i ke alanui—
Alanui hele o ka unu kupukupu, e-e;—
Ka ulí-a!
A kaunu no anei oe o ke aloha la?
Hele a'e a komo i ka hale o Pele;
Ua huahua'i i Kahiki; lapa uila,
Pele e, hua'i'na ho'i!

TRANSLATION

Heed well your way in upland Puna;
Pluck never a single flower;
Lest you stray from the path.
The shape lies hid neath a stone,
The path is one carpet of flowers,
The blocks of stumbling overgrown.
Quick follows the downfall!
Is there a compact between us of love?
Fly, voice, assail the ear of Pele!
Erupt, Kahiki, with lightning flash!
Now, Pele, burst forth in thy might!