Natives from Polynesia in the first millennium AD were the first to inhabit Hawaii (ehawaiigov: www. The early native Hawaiian's method of religion was a type of natural worship. They personified the forces of nature as gods (encarta online). The progenitors of the gods were Wakea, the "sky father," and Papa, the "earth mother," but they were not the actual gods worshipped (Hawaii handbook: the all island guide). Among the most important gods worshipped were Ku, Kane, Kanaloa, Pele and Lono (encarta online). Ku was a universal god that represented the male outlook on life. His counterpart was Hina, the moon goddess. Ku was prayed to at sunrise and Hina was prayed to at sunset. Pointed stones represented Ku and flat ones represented Hina. Ku also ruled the forest, lands, mountains, farming and fishing, but he was better known as the god of war. He demanded human sacrifice in times of war. .
Kane means "man" or "husband" in Hawaiian. He was the god of life, an ancestor to all Hawaiians. He was a forgiving god, and did not require human sacrifice because all life was sacred to him. Kanaloa was Kane's antithesis. He was linked to Christianity's devil. He was the ruler of the dead and linked to things like poison. The two were linked together and were often prayed to together e.g., if a canoe was built, they prayed to Kane, but also prayed to Kanaloa for favorable winds. This proves that if there were no evil, there would be no good. .
Lano was the god of the harvest, clouds and rain. It is said that he roamed the countryside challenging people to boxing matches and then decided to leave his island home. Every year before harvest time, the Hawaiians held a Makahiki festival where they had competitions in boxing, surfing, sledding and even bowling. At night they had a luau and people feasted and even shared their wives with others in honor of fertility. This massive orgy was called punalua (Hawaii handbook: the all island guide).
