The Creation of the Tongan Islands, People, and Kings

The Creation of the Tongan Islands, People, and Kings

(A Legend from Tonga)

Tangaloa, the god of art and invention, sat in his sky home of Bolotu, where death was not known and decay did not exist. He looked down at the vast south sea. “I am hungry. Hungry for fish." He got out his great turtle hook and let it go down, down, down to the sea far below. Soon something big and heavy pulled on the line.

Tangaloa

Tangaloa pulled and pulled, but he could not pull up the hook. He peered down at the ocean and laughed. He had not caught a fish. He had caught an enormous rock! No, a whole row of rocks. He yanked and tugged. He could not shake loose his hook. He laughed again and rubbed his empty stomach. “Today I will not eat,” he said. "Today I shall have great fun making islands."

Tangaloa pulled up the very bottom of the sea, just as the rocky tip was about to break through the surface, the fishing line broke. Instead of remaining one long continent, the land broke into dozens of islands.

If you wonder if this story is true, go to Tongatapu and there you will see a rock with a hole about two feet in diameter. This is the hole that held the great fishing hook of Tangaloa. If your doubts still are not satisfied, go speak with Tu‘i Tonga, the divine chief. Until only a few years ago, he still possessed this mighty hook. Unfortunately, when his house caught on fire and burned right to the ground, the sacred basket that held the hook was burned to ashes. Those who know this fishing story know also that the hook was made of tortoise shell from Samoa and strengthened with a whale bone.

After fishing up islands, the great Tangaloa Matua decided to create something to live on the beautiful islands. He called his two sons, Tangaloa Tufunga and Tangaloa Etumatatupua. The sons sat next to their father, who was sitting cross-legged, carving. They waited a long time. Until their father spoke, they would remain silent.

Tangaloa set down the wood he was carving. He pointed the long knife at the pile of shavings. “Look, my sons. I will shake down these wooden shavings. Let them mix with the water. Good. Now," he said to one of his sons, “become a little brown plover and fly down and tell me what you see."

His son became a plover and flew down to earth. Unfortunately, all he saw was wooden shavings floating on the sea. This he reported to his father.

Day after day Tangaloa Matua continued carving and shaking the shavings down to earth. Each day his son flew down as a plover. But each day he reported that nothing had changed.

Finally, one day when he flew down to earth. Matua’s son was amazed to see that the shavings had become a lovely little island. He flew back to his father. “What a beautiful island you have created!”

Tangaloa Matua smiled. "Good. Now put this seed in your beak. Plant it on that island.”

Soon the seed grew at creeper vine. The vine grew and grew until it covered the island. The plover flew down. He peeked at the root until it split in two. Then the root quickly rotted. All this the plover reported back to his father.

Again Tangaloa Matua smiled. “Now you will be surprised. Fly back one more time. Look carefully in the warm damp place where the root is rotting."

The plover returned to the island and found a big juicy white worm. He pecked it. The worm split in two. From the top, a man came out. This man the gods called Kohai. The lower part of the worm also turned into a man. This man was called Kuau. The little plover felt something stuck to his beak. He shook his head. A tiny piece of the worm fell off. This third piece turned into a man called Momo.

Very pleased with what had been created, the gods then named the island Eueiki, the first island inhabited by men. These first men of Tonga began the long line of the earliest rulers, the Tu‘i Tongas. Kohai was the first man. But he came from a worm. Ahoei would be the first true man, for he would be born from a woman, a beautiful woman who mated with the great god Tangaloa His birth, the birth of Ahoei, would continue the divine line of Tongan kings. It would also cause many troubles!

Ahoei is still considered the first ruler of Tonga. Both Tongans and Western historians have calculated that Ahoei lived in AD. 950. He began the divine line of Tu‘i Tongas,  the royal kings of Tonga. The members of this royal family ruled one after the other until the death of King Laufilitoga. This forty-eighth and final Tu‘i Tonga died in 1865.

This first true man and first Tu‘i Tonga, Ahoei, was half human and half divine. Ahoei's mother was the beautiful earth maiden Ilaheva Ve‘epopua. Little is known about how she came to be.

Ahoei’s father was the god Tangaloa. This brazen young god, Tangaloa, came down to earth from heaven by climbing down a huge ironwood tree. The ironwood tree liked to tease Tangaloa. The tree was so tall its branches scraped the clouds. Sometimes it caused the rain to fall. It dared the lizards and geckoes to scamper up. It dared Tangaloa to climb down to the world.

There on earth, Tangaloa saw an irresistible scene. The beautiful maiden, Ilaheva, was wading in the tide pools searching for shellfish. Her long black hair flowed down her smooth golden back like seaweed flowing in a gentle ocean current. Her dark flashing eyes sparkled with delight as she discovered bright blue starfish hiding under coral rocks. Tangaloa stared at her. He felt as if his heart were suddenly being tossed and tumbled in the waves of the sea.

When he was in heaven, all Tangaloa could think about was returning to earth. That is exactly what he did. There the beautiful woman, Ilaheva, waited where the waves kissed the shore. Tangaloa visited her often. But he had his own wife and children in the sky. He was lonely for his sky family. His trips down the ironwood to see Ilaheva became fewer and fewer until there were none at all.

But Ilaheva found that she would soon have a child. A beautiful boy was born to her. She named him Ahoei, "day of exclamation." The boy grew to handsome manhood. Eventually, he asked to visit his father.

Ilaheva knew the journey to the heavens would be dangerous. It was important for Ahoei to know his father. The wise mother oiled her son's body with sweet-smelling sandalwood oil. She then draped a tapa cloth over his shoulders. He was ready for his dangerous journey. She showed Ahoei the ironwood tree once so often used by his father.

Many other instructions Ilaheva gave to her son to protect him. All of these instructions Ahoei followed.

Sadly, when Ahoei's divine step-brothers saw him they immediately hated him. They were afraid this earth brother would be favoured by their father. Enraged with jealousy and fear, they killed Ahoei. With one swift slice, they cut off his head, threw it into the bushes, and ate his body.

Ahoei’s father, the great god Tangalna, learned of this brutal slaying. He ordered his sons to find Ahoei’s head. He set it in a sacred kava bowl. Then he commanded his sons to vomit into the howl. All night the step-brothers were ordered to stand around the have bowl.

At dawn, a strange light filled the skies. Something began moving in the bowl. Ahoei rose up from the bowl, whole and healed.

Tangaloa commanded his sons: "Ahoei came here in peace and friendship. You treated him with hate and jealousy. Go down to earth. All of you! Ahoei shall be the earthly king ruling over all of you. He shall be known as Tu‘i Tonga, the King of Tonga. He and his children shall rule Tonga forever.”

Source:

Pacific Island Legends: Tales from Micronesia, Melanesia, Polynesia and Australia.

Nancy Bo Flood, Beret E. Strong, William Flood

1991

Pages: 185 - 189