Hei, Hawaiian String Figures: Spiritual Connections, Learning, and Research

• In Event: The Transformative Power of Indigenous Research: Realizing the Dream

Abstract

This article will describe my discoveries as a Hawaiian researcher with hei (string figures) as the media of recovery. String and string figures have helped me connect back to my ancestors and their ways of knowing and doing and have reminded me of the importance of kuleana (responsibility) and haʻahaʻa (humility), some of the values that have sustained my people with health and wholeness for generations. By connecting back to the moʻokūʻauhau (genealogy), moʻolelo (stories), and mele (chants) of my kūpuna (ancestors), I have been able to align my Indigenous research methodology with a more Hawaiian way of conducting research. I will discuss my findings on spiritual ways of knowing and doing.

Author

• Keith Kalani Akana, Office of Hawaiian Affairs