Medicinal Practices

The way in which the Kanaka Maoli people treat illness and injury is a series of tasks directly tied to their religious beliefs. At the first sign of injury, the Maoli people would communicate with spiritual forces and think healing thoughts to attempt to restore wellness. They would also use la'au (a type of native plant), minerals, and animals to call upon the spirits. If these first attempts were unsuccessful, the family elder would be sought out for help. If they too were unsuccessful in healing any ailment, the sick person would be taken to the medical priest (the kahuna lapa'au) and then if the family possessed the necessary resources, they would be taken to the Healing Temples. It was rare that someone could not be healed at the Healing Temples. These temple workers were taught special practices such as bone setting, medicine prep, baby delivery, and how to engage with the spirits. There was little these temple workers didn't know how to do.

After the arrival of Captain James Cook and his crew, the Hawaiian people were exposed to Western illnesses that their medicines simply didn't work on. These contagious diseases the Hawaiians were exposed to reduced their population to 40,000 in only 100 years.