H. Arlo Nimmo

An excellent book, being a biography of Pele and how she fits in to the ancient and current religion in Hawai’i. There are details for the anthropologist, and stories for those with just a passing interest. And as Goddess of Volcanoes, Pele gets regular attention every time one of the volcanoes in the Big Island erupts.

Today’s Hawai’i is probably the most diverse place on the planet, and the author provides some insights into the beliefs of the ancient and current Hawai’ians, the attitudes of the local non indigenous kama’aina population and some pointers for the visitor whose interests go beyond the theme park image of the islands.

The snippets of history are interesting. There are many gods and demi-gods, all of whom quarrel and fight among themselves. According the one story, “Pele loved Maui but for unspecified reasons they fought and Pele tore him asunder. Today his head and torso is one island known as Maui … Lana’I is Maui’s left arm. Moloka’I is his strong right arm… Molokini is the piko, or navel, of Maui”

The chapter I found most revealing is Chapter 7, The Pele Religion in Contemporary Hawai’i.

It starts of: “During the 1980s and 1990s Pele and some of her followers spent considerable time in the courtrooms of Hawai’i and the headlines of its newspapers. At issue was a proposal to drill for geothermal energy at volcano sites.”

It would be hard to think of anything more likely to rile Pele. A Pele Defense Fund was set up. The litigation was not successful, but the accompanying publicity was, and eventually the proposals were abandoned. The saga takes ten pages to describe, but it does show that Pele and the Pele religion is still an active force to be reckoned with in Hawai’i.… (más)

Trying to read this felt so much like a chore that, in the end, I had to give up. The author couldn't seem to decide upon a target audience. The pages were littered with footnotes that could easily have been included in the main body of text or moved to one of the three (!) appendices. A substantial portion of the book was dedicated to a section for notes, an index, and a bibliography that may or may not have pointed to more interesting reading, but I have yet to mine the references. The formatting was terrible. The writing was so dry that I was unable to take in more than three sentences at a time without choking. I'm afraid that, at least for me, this book was a no-go.… (más)

For fans of Hawaii, anthropology and mythology, this book is a jewel of information. Written as a "biography" of the goddess Pele, it covers her origins in (perhaps) Tahiti, her worship as the goddess of fire and volcanos, her place in the pantheon of Melanesian deities, her survival of the zeal of Christian missionaries, as well as the revival of her religion as it integrates into modern Hawaiian society. H. Arlo Nimmo's thoroughly researched book offers fare for both the casual reader and the anthropologist. Appendices and notes are available for further research if one wishes, but are best ignored if you don't want to get sidetracked.

For those of us without a scholarly bent, it is a fascinating read. And, it is a happy circumstance that Pele's cultural manifestations continue to prosper; that our techo-civilization has not diluted her being to little more than a folk-tale. I definitely recomment this book!… (más)

A well-researched and enjoyable survey of beliefs and practices concerning the goddess Pele. The author begins with a good discussion of the traditional mythologies and religion of the islands, and proceeds through early-contact accounts, to 20th-century attitudes (and new “mythologies”.) The assorted stories of Pele’s manifestations, whether benevolent or terrifying, were quite interesting; some may have been apocryphal or exaggerated, but the majority seem to have been reported by folk who honestly believed they had encountered Her.

I found the concluding chapter on Madame Pele’s new cultural roles, and the resurgence of indigenous religion both interesting and heartening.… (más)