Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 21, Number 4, 1 April 2004 — Kamehameha's lessons in health and humanity [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Kamehameha's lessons in health and humanity

By Claire Hughes , Dr.PH., R.D. Kamehameha the Great is remembered for unifying the Hawaiian Islands, and immortalized for his prowess, athleticism and success on the battlefield. His battlefield strategies are still remembered and studied. But perhaps less well known are the many humanitarian contributions of Hawai'i's first king. Kamehameha's Law of the Splintered Paddle, Kānāwai Māmalahoa, is an example. Kamehameha proclaimed this law to protect everyone, particularly the elderly, the weak and children, from intentional harm by other persons. Kānāwai Māmalahoa was reaffirmed after battles and skirmishes to protect blameless villagers from plunder and abuse by their former and new leaders. Kamehameha expected his chiefs to rule with respect for the maka'āinana. As his younger brother Kalanimālokulokuikepo'okalani was leaving Hawai'i to govern the Hāna district on Maui, Kamehameha instructed his brother to take care of the people and the chiefs. Do not plunder the maka'āinana or take what they have labored to produce, he was told. Kamehameha instructed his brother to cultivate his own food and to fish for himself. Kamehameha knew that if his brother's good works were appreciated by the Hāna peo-

ple, his new responsibility would go peacefully. His brother listened well, and carefully instructed those who went to Maui with him against taking crops, hogs or sugar eane from the people. The people of the Hāna district recognized the young ali'i's excellent work and actions, and soon named him Keli'imaika'i (the good chief), a name that he kept until his death. Kamehameha placed great importance on self-suf-ficiency and maintaining productive farms and villages to feed the maka'āinana. He was known for touring his lands, surveying the villages and encouraeme the farmers and artisans. īn the 1 8th centurv.

the first Western visitors to Hawai'i marveled at 1 the ingenuity and hard work of the Hawaiians, recording wonderfully complimentary descriptions of their obvious farming skills and remarkable

man-made waterways. Kamehameha also understood the relationship of good food, water and exercise to a healthy nation. He himself was known to eat 1 sparingly at times, so he could be fit and healthy. Kamehameha knew, firsthand, that a warrior's strength and endurance depended on being wellnourished. Thus, a requirement for training periods was that warriors fish and cultivate their own food.

As a young warrior, Kamehameha worked hard to develop his athletic skills under several instructors,

who reinforced health practices to assure endurance, agility and speed. He gained recognition for his powerful physique and well-formed features. In his youth, he and his younger brother

Kalaimamahu were considered to be amona the handsomest of men.

Kamehameha's legacy has left us many important lessons in health, fitness and nutrition, as well as leadership for Hawaiians in the 21st century ■

Mn'ni fi o

lllustration: Aaron Kawai'ae'a