One Hawaiian tradition I like to do is to help the couple put together a hoʻokupu (pronounced hoe-oh-coo-poo) gratitude offering. This is not some prayer to an imagined island god or such. Instead Hawaiian spirituality is rooted in gratitude to the land and the ocean as the source of life. The point of ritual is to bring your own focus and attention to that which is truly important – love and life, and where they come from.
Hoʻokupu is a small bundle of ti leaves with various things inside as an offering of gratitude to the land. Suitable things include:
- Sea Salt symbolizes purification and blessing
- Ginger symbolizes clarity and prosperity
- Coconut symbolizes connection to family and the ancestors
- Taro represents the cycle of life, sustenance and interconnectedness
- Kukui nut symbolizes light, knowledge and protection
- Seaweed symbolizes the ocean, safeguarding the relationship between the land and the ocean
- Ulu (breadfruit) is a traditional Hawaiian staple and symbolizes prosperity and food security
- Turmeric is believed to cleanse both spiritually and physically
One thing to take notice of here is that if you were to bring turmeric, it should be as a piece of the plant or flower. For ginger, it should be a piece of ginger root. Anything you bring should be something you acquire here. If all you have time to find is a little sea salt, that will be fine. The real point of this ritual is the expression of gratitude, by you, for all the good in life that have been given to you.
One last comment about the hoʻokupu ritual. The most important thing is your intent in offering respect and gratitude to the land.
One local kumu writes:
“The most appropriate offering that any person can make can be made without any tangible item being left behind. The most perfect offering is one’s aloha (love), ha (breath), and olelo (speech). To love a place, and breathe out that love in the form of a spoken promise to cherish and protect it, that is the most perfect offering.”
What may be the best thing for you to bring would be a simple hand written note, folded up, that expresses your gratitude for the beauty and aloha that Hawaii has given you. We can put that in the bundle along with any other items you wish to be included. Your word and aloha are the most precious thing you can give back to the land.
I bring the ti leaves for the hoʻokupu, and you bring things to put in it. I will also bring paper on which you can write a note of gratitude on the spot if you don’t find your way to bring anything
