What was so Great about Kamehameha I?

Aside from being a supreme athlete, a master of martial arts, and a merman, Kamehameha fulfilled a centuries-old prophecy. On the night he was born, a fiery rooster tail streaked across the heavens marking the birth of the warrior destined to unite the Hawaiian Islands where persistent tribal wars marred a peaceful existence. No conversation about sacred sites in Hawai’i is complete without explaining why this warrior/chief was so great.
Kamehameha’s birthplace, Akahi aina Hanou, (near Mo’okini Heiau) is on a lonely knoll overlooking the sea in Kohala. It is thought that Halley’s Comet passed by the night of Kamehameha’s birth in 1758 marking him the chosen leader. Priests advised the ruling chief to destroy the child who threatened his seat of power. His mother, fearing for her son’s life, had him spirited away to Waipio Valley where he lived in gentle isolation for the first five years of his life. Tutored by a loving mentor, he learned the genealogical chants of his ancestors and began his life journey as the “Lonely One.”

At pubescence he returned to the village of his mother and was accepted by the now aged chief. He excelled in all sports, dance, and martial arts, proving himself to be an outstanding warrior. The old chief prided in Kamehameha and when he died he appointed him the Keeper of Ku—the war god.

Prophecy held that the warrior able to lift the 7,000-pound Naha Stone would become the chief whose cloud would rest over all the Islands. Kamehameha “lifted” the Naha Stone when he was 16 years old. (The Naha Stone is located in front of the Hilo Library, 300 Waianuenue Avenue.) This was the second omen to re-enforce his hard path.
It was Kamehameha’s unshakable belief in his destiny to be the ruler to unite the Hawaiian Islands that pulled him forward. You cannot understand Hawai’i or the significance of the sacred sites scattered throughout the realm without knowledge of this great leader who—through the force of his will, the strength of his intellect and unequaled physical prowess—brought a “Golden Age” to his people.

In a series of posts and videos about sacred sites in the Hawaiian Islands I expand upon the various temples he had built and the strategic battles that were fought during his rise to power. His words to his people when he passed to the other side in 1819: “Know the great good I have given to you.”

The character Makaha in my historical novel Wai-nani: A Voice from Old Hawai'i is inspired by this brave warrior.

Adventure-travel writer, Linda Ballou, shares Great Outdoor days in L.A, as well as a host of travel articles on her site, along with information about her travel memoir, Lost Angel Walkabout-One Traveler’s Tales, her historical novel Wai-nani, A Voice from Old Hawai’i and her latest action-adventure novel The Cowgirl Jumped over the Moon at-www.LindaBallouAuthor.com.  

Her quest today is to get to as many beautiful places as she can before they are gone. Subscribe to her blog www.LindaBallouTalkingtoyou.com and receive updates on her books, and travel destinations.

Jammin' Hawaiian Style at the Slack-Key Fest

Kalyn Aolani and Sonny Lim

A haunting chant set the scene at the Redondo Beach Performing Center for a host of brilliant musicians, singers and dancers brought in from Hawaii and parts of the mainland for your pleasure. Each of the six slack-key guitarists on stage were exceptional in their own right, but together they put on a brilliant, high energy performance. 

Reading Wai-nani at Meet and Greet

I was honored to be a guest speaker at the meet and greet kick off the night before. At this casual gathering the artist are up close and personal.  It was intimidating to be sharing the microphone with greats that ranged from Cyril  Pahuinui, son of the legendary Gabby Puhuinui the father of modern slack-key guitar, to Jeff Peterson a young artist with classical training who brings a fresh cool breeze to the traditional slack-key riffs. Still, I stood tall and did a brief reading from Wai-nani-A Voice fromOld Hawai’i and prayed this audience of authentic Hawaiian performers would fine my rendering of the “People of Old” pleasing. From all accounts it was!

The doors open at 11:00 AM on the day of the festival so that visitors can enjoy the Aloha market place where artisans share their wares. Prized hand painted gourds of artist Aunty Kanoe

Aunty Kanoe of Punahele Arts

to Hawaiian kitch are there for the taking along with CD’s from all the players. Dancers on the lawn are a warm up for what takes place in the main performance.

Jerry Santos sang old Hawaiian favorites while Kamuela Kimokeo accompanied him with some amazing slack-key solos. Kimo West and Jeff Peterson did a soulful duet in the classical style. Kayln Aolani, a bright little bird whose voice is like liquid sunshine brought tears to my eyes. My heart was full to the brimming by the end of this day of warm aloha. If you can only make one Polynesian event this is the one you don’t want to miss!

Many thanks to Mitchell Chang, producer, musical & creative director for inviting me to be a part of this wonderful event presented by Kala Koa Entertainment. 

A hypnotic spell that takes us to ancient Hawaii

By 

Toby Neal (MAKAWAO, HI, US) -

This review is from: Wai-nani:High Chiefess of Hawaii-Her Epic Journey

Press in to really "get" this book. Wai-nani’ s story is told in a hypnotic, fairy-tale or high legend voice that took me a chapter or two to get into--but once I did, I was fascinated with the way Linda Ballou had taken us into the intimate and unknown world of the Hawaiian people through the eyes of an unforgettable heroine. Wai-nani is fierce, passionate, and deeply connected to the land and ocean--and to her complex and multi-faceted warrior husband. It reminded me how fully developed the civilization of the Hawaiian people was, and how large their population, before the fateful arrival of "Kapena Kuke" and his "floating heiau." 

Thanks for this journey to another time and a Hawaii seen through a princess of its people.

That Toby Neal author of the Lei Crime series set in Hawaiian Islands, who grew up on Kauai and presently resides in up-country Maui fell under Wai-nani’s spell, makes my heart sing. In my poetic rendering of the people of old I mimicked the rhythm of the meles and legends handed down through a centuries old oral tradition. Hula was a form of mediation to bring more mana,or spiritual power into your world. Inbreeding among royals kept the bloodline of the chiefs clean. The love affair between Kamehameha the Great and Ka’ahumanu,(the inspiration for the character of Wai-nani) rivaled that of Napoleon and Josephine. Kamehameha’s prophesied rise to power plays out like a Greek tragedy. The responsibility to impart this story of mythic proportion in a way that would engage western readers, while remaining true to the culture felt at times overwhelming. That Toby Neal, a woman who knows the history of the Islands, is deeply rooted in the culture, and is a fine writer herself, finds my effort worthy is extremely gratifying.

Photo by Mike Neal

Another dilemma I had when publishing this book was whether to use a pen name since my main writing credits are in the travel narrative genre.  In a blog conversation Toby echoes my sentiment that it feels like a deception that she doesn’t feel comfortable with. She attempts to place an umbrella of all things Hawaiian over her series of Lei Crime novels and her psychological suspense novel Unsound. As an adventure travel writer I have tried to include my historical novel in my travel identity as a book that takes you to a place you can’t get to any other way. Wai-nani speaks to you from the spirit well of pre-contact Hawai'i. Her story is a celebration of of the people of old and a window into a hauntingly beautiful place that no longer exists in its purity.

Would you trust this man with your life?

 We blasted across cobalt blue swells with Captain Zodiac on our way to Kealakekua Bay, one of the top ten snorkeling spots in the world.  Our skipper had a demonic gleam in eyes as we shot out to open waters. I bounced a foot, or two off the seats of our rubber craft holding on to lifelines to avoid being dumped in the drink.

“Land is the other way,” I yelled over the roar of the outboard motor.

“Thought you might like to see some whales.” he said with a sly smile.

After spotting a few flips of tales in the distance, he careened the boat toward the shore of the Big Island where jagged black walls of crusted lava meet the sea.  Our captain slowed the engine as we glided into the serene bay where Captain James Cook met his demise at the hands of Hawaiians. We were greeted by about a hundred petite spinner dolphins doing back flips, triple spins and riding in our wake five abreast!

He cut the engine and told us to jump into the translucent waters teeming with sea life in front of Capt. Cook’s monument. Below the surface a colorful array of fishes going about their business in the pristine coral reef didn’t seem to mind the big-footed fish padding above them. A moray eel slithered into a crevice making himself invisible to passersby.  A lone turtle swam through the underwater scene where I spotted rainbow parrot fish, wrasse and clouds of bright yellow tang.

 Once back on board we were told that the walls above the bay are filled with the bone of great chiefs. A young boy was lowered on a rope to place them there. When the deed was done, the rope was cut and the boy plunged to his death.  He also explained with accurate and vivid detail why the great navigator was stabbed in the back.  I was glad that his rendition supported my theory that it was justifiable homicide.

Enough talk. Next, we were off on a full-throttled ride on the back of huge swells crashing into caves and blow holes sending huge plumes of white into the sky.  An abrupt halt in a small crescent bay brought us to a fierce looking rock face attached to a reclining torso said to be an altar where sacrifices were made to the volcano goddess Pele.

 Jack, our second in command, lay prone to help us imagine her voluptuous outline.  I’ve done more research than I should into sacred sites on the Big Island and this one was news to me.  I was very excited to make this discovery, but I think it might have been a story our Captain thought would make for a more exciting ride. This spectacular day with Captain Zodiac is part of the all-inclusive “Un-Cruise” Adventure holiday aboard the Safari Explorer.

Adventure-travel writer, Linda Ballou, shares Great Outdoor days in L.A, as well as a host of travel articles on her site, along with information about her travel memoir, Lost Angel Walkabout-One Traveler’s Tales, her historical novel Wai-nani, A Voice from Old Hawai’i and her latest action-adventure novel The Cowgirl Jumped over the Moon at-www.LindaBallouAuthor.com.  

Her quest today is to get to as many beautiful places as she can before they are gone. Subscribe to her blog www.LindaBallouTalkingtoyou.com and receive updates on her books, and travel destinations.

What Dolphin Lovers are Saying About Wai-nani

Read What Dolphin Lovers are Saying About
Wai-nani-High Chiefess of Hawaii-Her Epic Journey

Wai-nani was a joy to read! The action and sense of people and place builds with an authentic sense of ancient Hawaii. You have done an incredible amount of research! The interaction with the bottlenose dolphins is realistic for those of us who have developed an extraordinarily intimate relationship with them. I can certainly relate to feeling more freedom, embracement and joy in a water environment than a land based living!
With ALOHA, Roberta Goodman
WildDolphinSwimsHawaii.com

Lush storytelling at it’s very best

What a compelling story. Wai-nani's journey through the portion of Hawaiian history is truly an 'epic' tale in every sense of the word. So descriptively rich and sensually involving were the author's words that I found myself proceeding slowly through the pages, so as to savor, and the better to put myself in the skin of Wai-nani and her gripping transformations. So much of the description of Wai-nani's emotional evolution rang true as the way a woman's heart feels and expresses.

Wai-nani's relationship with her dolphin friends was the cherry on the top for me in as much as dolphins are pretty much the center pole of my life. The author added fantastical elements to the human/dolphin relationships but, knowing dolphins as I have come to, what is portrayed in the story about the interactions hints at some very real possibilities as we go back and re-capture what cultures like old Hawaii still have to offer us.
Muriel Lindsay-Dolphin Chronicles-Tybee Island

I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed it. The dolphin interaction scenes were delightful. You really made the historical time and place come alive with your vivid descriptions and good story-telling. You're an excellent writer and the book was a very fun read.
Charlene Brinke Stevens, Marine Biologist

My Valentine - The Healing Power of Dolphins

People who swim with dolphins often talk about the acceptance in the globelike eye of the Dolphin. They feel a sense of a non-judge mental intelligence, even unconditional love.

Great results from dolphin therapy with children who suffer from Down ’s syndrome, people with neurological disorders, autism, pain relief from spinal injuries, muscular paralysis and depression have been reported. Dolphin Therapy started in the early seventies. Dolphin therapy is not a cure, but it seems to help alleviate symptoms.

Children are asked to swim, touch, feed or pat the animals. It is a happy playful time that produces a change in hormones, endorphins and enzymes. Sonar pulses from the dolphins help bring both sides of the brain into sync creating a heightened awareness and increased learning ability.

Results noticed are:
Strong Emotional Change
Children calm down
Improved communication
Increased attention span
Increased confidence and self esteem
Improved gross motor skills
Better co-ordination
Better eye contact, smiling, laughing, touching
Better immune system

There are about a dozen dolphin therapy centers around the globe. Florida and Hawaii have the most but they are also located in England, New Zealand and Israel. They are not cheap about $2000 a week, and results are not guaranteed. Still it is an exciting alternative medical approach to serious problems.

This video shows how a young boy in Brazil received good results from being with a pink Amazon River Dolphin

February is Dolphin Love Month

Consider this . . . Man is the dream of the dolphin . . . the "other Intelligience" may be in charge . . . not us.

In an attempt to make the interaction between Wai-nani, and her dolphin friend Eku, in my historical novel Wai-nani High Chiefess of Hawai’i, I learned a lot about these enigmatic creatures. Wai-nani spends half of her life in the ocean, so it did not seem far-fetched that she would make friends with playful marine mammals.

Eku rescues her from drowning when she is about ten. Dolphin rescues are on record since the time of the Ancient Greece. If they see a human drifting into a vertical position they will lift them to the surface to prevent drowning. She begins a communication with him with clicks and whistles and they form a bond. She rubs his tender belly making him tremble with delight. He in turn gives her a massage of sonic blasts that cause her to tingle all over.

As recently as 2007 a surfer in Monterey CA was being attacked by a shark and a pod of dolphin formed a protective ring around the man and drove off the shark. Our kinship with the dolphins is greater than with any other sea creature. They are warm-blooded mammals who nurse their young and must breathe air. Unlike us their breathing is not automatic. If they loose consciousness they will drown.

While swimming after a dolphin in the waters off the Big Island, I ran into the “Dolphin People.” They are a group who follow dolphin movements around the Islands in an attempt to make spiritual connections with them. There is a very large need it seems to make contact with this “other intelligence.” Anthropologist, Loren Eisley, calls it the yearning to end great loneliness of the human species....why go to Mars when the mystery of an alien intelligence is with us and it is in a pleasing, graceful energetic body.

This video called The Dream depicts the universal appeal of dolphin and how we have tried to connect with their energy and spirit.





Your comments about your own dolphin encounters are welcome.

Stories from Tim Cahill at the Book Passage Travel Conference

Tim Cahill regaled the audience with stories at the Book Passage Travel Conference. Tim is America’s best known and funniest travel writer, founding editor of Outside Magazine and is the author of more than 7 books.

In his writing classes he teaches aspiring authors how to achieve “Flowbie.” This is a state of mind in which you are so totally engaged by your own imagination that you lose sense of time and place and awake a couple hours later with writing that you never knew you had in you.

Tim’s conversational style is always educational and is often laugh out loud funny. I had the pleasure of interviewing Tim in his home in Livingston, Montana among the many artifacts he has collected in three decades of adventure travel. You may read that interview in my book Lost Angel Walkabout-One Traveler’s Tales.


I walk in beauty on the good red road
Linda Ballou

www.lindaballouauthor.com

Contest to Win a Free Autographed Copy of Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii – Her Epic Journey, the novel

An Autographed copy of Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii – Her Epic Journey will be awarded to one lucky person on July 15, 2010.

About the Book:

From the cauldron of controversy that is Hawaiian history, emerges Wai-nani, a reflection of the passionate chiefess Ka’ahumanu. Like all Islanders, she is a water baby finding pleasure, sustenance, solace, wisdom and courage in the ground and vibrant sea. She is born fifteen years prior to the landing of Captain Cook in Kealakekua in 1779, and is the favorite wife of Makaha, a fierce warrior modeled after Kamehameha the Great.

Hawaiian women enjoyed sports, were trained in martial arts, played active roles in decision-making and participated in wars. They communed with the gods through hula and ritualistic ceremonies. Wai-nani’s bond with Eku a playful and communicative dolphin – propels her on a mythological journey couched in magical realism.


Contest Rules;
1. You will need to leave a comment in the comment box and be sure to leave your correct e-mail so we can notify you if you are the winner.

OPTIONAL

2. IF you would like to become a subscriber click on the subscriber button to receive e-mail updates on all blog posts.
3. IF you would like to become a follower and receive email updates, click on the follow button

Good Luck!

An Evening in Old Hawaii honors Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii

Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii is to be an honored guest at the 7th annual Luau of Na Hula O Wahine.

You are invited to enjoy authentic hula and song along with a delicious Hawaiian meal.



The stories of creation, of great loves, and honored chiefs are handed down in kahiko, the art of hula done in time honored ways. Kumu, Deborah Doody, embodies the spirit of old Hawaii. She sings the chants with a powerful voice and keeps the drum beat solid for young dancers who carry on the sacred dance of the Hawaiians designed to pull mana, or spiritual power, from the heavens. Modern adaptations of the hula will also be performed.

Saturday, June 26, 2010 at Covenant Presbyterian Church 6323 W 80th St (corner of 80th and Sepulveda ) 1pm - 4pm. Doors open at 12pm. Suggested donation $12.00 children under 8 are free. Price includes a buffet lunch and show, door prizes, and a raffle will be held for a flat screen color TV. Tickets may be purchased in advance or at the door.

For more information contact Mary Tricerri at marytrice(@)yahoo dot com. Join us for an afternoon of food, Hula, and fun and great Aloha

One Writer’s Journey interviews Linda Ballou, author of Wai-nani and Lost Angel Walkabout

Linda’s novels Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii, Her Epic Journey and Lost Angel Walkabout stay with you long after you finish reading them. Linda talks about the heroine in Wai-nani and how she came up with the idea for the book and the research behind it.

“Writing Wai-nani was by far the most difficult thing I have ever done, but completing her epic journey remains my proudest achievement. “

Read more of Linda’s interview at One Writer’s Journey.

Order your copy of these amazing books at http://www.lindaballouauthor.com/ . There is an About Linda page. On Wai-nani’s media page there are radio interviews, a first chapter and reviews. If you purchase the books on her site you will enjoy free shipping. There are numerous reviews on Amazon and Barnes and Noble and all major online distribution sites. Wai-nani is also on Amazon’s Kindle Reader and will soon be available on the IPAD.