A wicked chief of Far Kahiki seized the sun and made him prisoner. He put the sun in a great cave and blocked the entrance with huge lava rocks. “Let darkness rule the world!” he shouted and laughed at the evil he had done. “Be ready, my warriors,” he warned. “Someone may try to free the sun. I have set a bird watcher at the cave mouth to warn us if he hears a sound. We must be ready to rush out, for we shall keep the sun forever prisoner.”
Darkness ruled the earth. The kapa would not dry, plants died, and sickness spread because of lack of sunlight and good food. Men shivered as they crept about on cold, dark islands.
On O‘ahu a council was called. Men groped their way to the meeting place and tried to make a plan. “What shall we do,” they asked, “to rid the world of darkness? Someone must free the sun.” Then all were silent. How could they reach Kahiki over the dark ocean? And what of the watchful bird? What of the evil chief with many warriors?
At last Ka‘ulu spoke, largest and bravest of all the men. “I will try,” he said solemnly. “If I die, I die! But if I should succeed we shall be free of darkness.”
“Yes, Ka‘ulu,” the others said. “You are a huge man and brave. You are the one to go, while we stay here and pray the gods to give you wisdom and great power.”
While they prayed Ka‘ulu waded bravely through the ocean. The water came to his ankles, then to his knees. On and on that huge man waded and came at last to Far Kahiki. There he saw gleams of light. The sun! His light shone out through tiny openings around the lava rocks.
Following those gleams Ka‘ulu stole silently toward the cave. He saw the chief’s bird, perched above. With one swift motion he seized the bird and killed it. Then he rolled away the rocks. As the sun crept out, Ka‘ulu caught him and threw him up with mighty power to shine once more upon the world.
He waded off, then stopped to shout, “E, you evil chief! Where is your prisoner?”
The wicked chief woke at the call and shouted to his warriors. As they rushed from their sleeping house they were dazzled by bright sunlight. They ran to the cave. The bird was dead, and lava rocks rolled down the mountain slope. There rode the sun far, far above them, out of reach.
Since that time the sun shines every day upon our world.
Told by Mary Kawena Pūku‘i