ppunahoualoha

The Iliahi Foundation of Hawai'i

On the 'Spirit of Aloha'

"Aloha is the power of God (The Great Spirit) seeking to unite what is separated in the world - the power that unites heart with heart, soul with soul, life with life, culture with culture, race with race, nation with nation, (and man with woman). Aloha is the power that can reunite when a quarrel has brought separation. Aloha is the power that reunites individuals with themselves when they become separated from the image of God (the Great Spirit) within. Thus when a Person or a People live in the spirit of Aloha, they live in the spirit of God (the Great Spirit).

Aloha consists of this attitude of heart, above negativism, above legalism. It is the unconditional desire to promote the true good of other people in a friendly spirit, out of a sense of kinship. Aloha seeks to do good, with no conditions attached. We do not do good only to those who do good to us. One of the sweetest things about the love of God (the Great Spirit), about Aloha, is that it welcomes the stranger and seeks his and her good. A person, who has the spirit of Aloha loves even when the love is not returned. And such is the love of God (the Great Spirit).

Aloha does not exploit a people or keep them in ignorance and subservience. Rather, it shares the sorrows and joys of people. It seeks to promote the true good of others.

Today, one of the deepest needs of humankind is the need to feel a sense of kinship, one with another. Truly all humankind belongs together.

From the beginning, all humankind has been called into being, nourished, watched over by the love of God (the Great Spirit). The real Golden Rule is Aloha. This is the way of life we shall affirm.

Let us affirm forever what we really are - for Aloha is the spirit of God (the Great Spirit) at work in you and in me and in the world, uniting what is separated, overcoming darkness and death, bringing new light and life to all who sit in the darkness of fear, guiding the feet of humankind into the way of peace."

The above is a reprint of a sermon delivered by the Rev. Abraham Akaka at Kawaiaha'o Church, Honolulu Hawai'i, on March 13, 1959 on the day Hawai'i became a state of the Union. With the permission of Kahu Akaka, some of the words of the original sermon as noted in ( ) were changed to be even more appropriate to these times just before the new Millennium for a prayer service delivered by Jon Larson to a gathering of Native American Indian families upon a special occasion in August of 1997. On this occasion a gift of a sacred 'First Peoples Healing Pole' created by the Pacific Islanders Cultural Association was presented to the Muwekma Ohlone Indian families, the descendents of the first peoples who lived on the lands of the San Francisco Bay for thousands of years before these lands were rediscovered by Europeans. 'Mankind' has been changed to 'Humankind' to reflect the recognition of woman as equal partners with man in the responsibility of managing the affairs of the human race. And the words 'The Great Spirit' were added to honor the Native Americans present and their own historic spiritual understandings. Mahalo Rev. Akaka for these beautiful words which are just as appropriate and meaningful today as when you first spoke these words in Kawaiahao Church on March 13, 1959.

On The 'Spirit of Aloha'

"Aloha is an intangible quality. It is a deep-seated characteristic. It springs out of the heart and mind. People who love people have this spirit. People who are unselfish and radiate joy are full of the spirit of Aloha. It cannot be taught in seminars. It cannot be taught in some kind of sensitivity session. The spirit comes from the heart. It comes from the soul of a person who loves. The ancient Hawaiians loved each other - they were good to each other -- The Hawaiians loved nature - they loved the land and the sea - they loved the hills and the trees - they loved life. This is the spirit of Aloha to me." - (by Charles Kekumano)

'Spirit' (defined in Webster's Dictionary)

1. The life principle in human(kind).

2. Mind. Intelligence. The thinking, motivating, feeling part of man, often as distinguished from the body.

3. Life. Will. Consciousness. Thought. Regarded as separate from matter.

4. Frame of mind. As "high Spirited"

5. Vivacity, courage, vigor, enthusiasm.

6. Enthusiastic loyalty, as in "school Spirit".

7. Real meaning, true intention. As in "he followed the Spirit if not the letter of the law"

8. A pervading animating principle. Essential or characteristic quality. Prevailing tendency or attitude. As in "the Spirit of the Renaissance."

9. Holy Spirit. The Divine Spirit. The Holy Ghost. The third person in the Trinity.

10. A breath of air or wind.

11. A divine, animating, influence or inspiration

On the 'Spirit of Punahou'

and the

Punahou Class of 1959 Memorial Grove

"An individual person's as well as an entire society's ability to continually adapt and evolve is directly enabled by the underlying architecture (faith system) which must feature values and human interconnectedness that release the Human Spirit to soar and dream. The 'Spirit of Aloha' nurtures the Human Spirit at the highest need levels of human beings, the needs to participate, create, contribute, to be respected, to be valued, and to love and to be loved.

Just as the sweet fresh waters of Ka Punahou (the New Spring) well up continually from within the ground, the Punahou Spirit springs from the 'Spirit of Aloha'. The Punahou Spirit is very much alive both in Kahu Akaka's sermon given at Kawaiaha'o Church on March 13, 1959 on the day of achievement of Statehood for Hawaii, and in Charles Kekumanu's heartfelt expression of the meaning of the word Aloha to him.

Each of us has our own definition of the word Aloha, but all definitions of the word Aloha have the human spirit at their core.

We honor the unique 'Hawaiianness' of Punahou and we hold this sacred. We feel Aloha in our hearts resulting from the fond memories we all have resulting from sharing the Punahou experience together.

The 'Spirit of Aloha' and the 'Spirit of Punahou' both continue to nourish us every day as we live our lives, provide for ourselves and for those around us among our families and friends and in our communities, as we receive sustenance back from loved ones and the community around us, as we forgive others and ourselves, and as others forgive us.

This is the 'Spirit of Punahou' to me." (by Jon Larson, Punahou '59)