Kuhikuhi...

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At Bishop Museum, one uncle was kind enough to share the process of pounding kalo pa'a to make pa'i'ai, or thick poi. He brought out pieces of kalo pa'a. Cooked kalo (taro) corm for the children to practice on...


He placed the little pieces of treasured gold onto the papa ku'i 'ai...

The excited 'opio, or youth, grasped onto the pohaku ku'i 'ai. The stone poi pounder...

The little piece of kalo pa'a just relaxing on the board and unsuspecting of what is about to happen...

Down comes the pounder with the weight and muscle of a little man behind it...

Pushing forward, the smear technique occurs...

Pushing and sliding forward...

The results of the smear technique. 20% kalo smeared. 20% kalo pushed aside. 60% kalo smushed onto the poi pounder...

The partner on the opposite side goes into action...

All hands grab and flick water to loosen up the stuck kalo on the board and stone...

The smash and pivot technique...50% of the kalo stuck to poi pounder...

Time to wet your fingers and spatula the kalo pa'a off of the pohaku...

It helps to have an assistant when you are just starting out...

A little extra muscle helping to lift the stone which gets heavier over time....

Helping hands to scrape the smashed kalo off of the pohaku...

The one-finger technique works good for small hands...

A dollop of beautiful sticky kalo pa'i'ai put back on the board...

Not bad for a first attempt at pounding kalo the way our beloved precious kupuna did for centuries to sustain the life of Haloa. To sustain the life of the Kanaka. To sustain the life of the 'aina, the land. And most importantly, to sustain the life of love and Aloha for healing the world...

Comments

Anonymous said…
Another fascinating and instructive sequence...thanks! What are the ki leaves in the water for?
June 23, 2009 at 2:12 AM
Ka`iana said…
You know I wondered about that but didn't get a chance to ask. Maybe to provide some mean spiritual influx to the kalo and poi?
June 23, 2009 at 6:56 AM
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