Note 5 — The Story of Kahahana.
Reading edition
The legend relates that when Kaopulupulu saw his son set upon and pursued by Kahahana’s retainers, he called out to him, “I nui ke aho a moe i ke kai! No ke kai ka hoi ua aina.” This was one of those oracular utterances in which Hawaiian priests and prophets were as adept as any of their brethren in other lands. Its literal meaning is—“It is far better to sleep in the sea; for from the sea comes life, or the means of living.” Those who heard it and reported it found the fulfillment of the prophecy when Kahekili, coming over the sea from Maui, conquered Oahu and caused Kahahana to be slain. Others sought the fulfillment in the conquest of the group by Kamehameha coming from Hawaii; others found it in the arrival of the foreigners, coming over the ocean with new ideas, knowledge, and arts. ↑