Product Description:
Bring unique art to your space with this digital downloadable print! Upon purchase, you will receive a high-resolution file via email—no physical print will be shipped. Simply download, then print at home or through your favorite printing service in whatever size fits your needs.
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This digital file is for personal use only. You are welcome to print and display it in your home, office, or as a gift. However, commercial use is strictly prohibited. Commercial use includes, but is not limited to, reproducing the artwork for sale, distributing it in bulk, or otherwise profiting from the illustration. All artwork is protected by copyright law. If any unauthorized commercial use is detected, I will be required to take legal action.
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Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes, fire, and lightning, is one of the most revered figures in Hawaiian mythology. She is believed to reside in Halemaʻumaʻu crater at the summit of Kīlauea, Hawaiʻi Island’s most active volcano.
According to traditional stories, Pele journeyed to Hawaiʻi from Kahiki (a distant ancestral homeland), traveling with her siblings, including Hiʻiaka, goddess of hula and healing. After a series of clashes with her sister Nāmakaokahaʻi, the goddess of the ocean, Pele settled on the Big Island, where her fires could not be extinguished by waves.
Pele represents both destruction and creation. Her volcanic eruptions are seen as devastating, yet they continuously generate new land, reflecting the natural cycles of life and renewal. She is known to take many forms, from a radiant young woman to a wise old crone. In many legends, she tests people’s kindness by appearing as a wanderer; those who show compassion are rewarded, while those who are cruel suffer her fiery wrath.
Despite missionary suppression in the 19th century, Pele remains central to Hawaiian cultural identity. Offerings like ʻōhelo berries and chants are still made at her crater, and her stories are vital to understanding Native Hawaiian values of aloha, responsibility (kuleana), and respect for nature's power.
• Beckwith, Martha. Hawaiian Mythology. University of Hawaii Press, 1970.
• Kalākaua, David. The Legends and Myths of Hawaii. Charles L. Webster & Co., 1888.
• Pukui, Mary Kawena. ʻŌlelo Noʻeau: Hawaiian Proverbs and Poetical Sayings. Bishop Museum Press, 1983.
• Kameʻeleihiwa, Lilikalā. Native Land and Foreign Desires: Pehea Lā E Pono Ai? Bishop Museum Press, 1992.
• Trask, Haunani-Kay. From a Native Daughter: Colonialism and Sovereignty in Hawaiʻi. University of Hawaii Press, 1999.