Note 114 — VIII.—COSTUME OF THE HULA DANCER
Reading edition
Footnote 114: (return) O awili o Malu-á.
The most direct and evident sense of the word awili is to wrap. It probably means the wrapping of the pa-ú about the loins; or it may mean the movable, shifty action of the pa-ú caused by the lively actions of the dancer. The expression Malw-á may be taken from the utterance of the king’s ilamuku (constable or sheriff) or other official, who, in proclaiming a tabu, held an idol in his arms and at the same time called out Kapu, o-o! The meaning is that the pa-ú, when wrapped about the woman’s loins, laid a tabu on the woman. The old Hawaiian consulted on the meaning of this passage quoted the following, which illustrates the fondness of his people for endless repetitions and play upon words:
Awiliwili i ka hale 119 o ka lauwili, e. He lauwili ka makanl, he Kaua-ula, 120 I hoapaapa i ka hale o ka lauwili, e: [Translation.] Unstable the house of the shifty man, Fickle as the wind Kaua-ula. Treachery lurks in the house of Unstable.