Hākōkō

The wrestling ring was called kahua mokomoko, the place where people assemble to wrestle. It was marked by poles with kapa streamers and bird feathers, and large crowds of boisterous spectators. Very large crowds attended these contests and many times wagered their possessions on the outcome.

Wrestling, with its many variations, was a very popular sport in ancient Hawaiʻi. Hākōkō and kula-ku-laʻi are the most common words used to describe it.

Competitors took their positions in the center of the crowd. At the referee's signal, they grabbed hold of each other and struggled to trip each other with their feet, which was the most common method of throwing an opponent. A winner was declared when a wrestler was thrown to his knee or when any other part of his body touched the ground.

A common way hākōkō was contested was from a catch-as-catch-can position. The wrestler would use his favorite hold on his opponent, if he could apply it, and then would throw him. Another method started with one wrestler putting his right hand on his opponent's neck and his left hand on his opponent's waist. His opponent did likewise.

A second variation had the two wrestlers facing each other, clasping hands with interlaced fingers held at about head height. Without unclasping hands or touching any other part of each other's bodies, they attempted to push each other off a mat or outside a designated area. The one who pushed his opponent out won.

Underneath all of these ran a deeper discipline called lua. The lua involved throwing an opponent with the least possible effort, dislocating an arm or leg, or applying pain to an opponent until he cried quits. It was taught only to those who were slow to anger. Those who were engaged in the lua studied anatomy, nerve and muscle centers, hypnotism, physiology, and telepathy. It was not open to everyone.

The legend connected to hākōkō is this:

For the more than 500 years since Wahaula was built, ruling priests prayed there and human sacrifices were offered on a high platform.

Legend tells of a Hawaiian youth who once journeyed into Puna from an adjoining district. The youth was caught by the residing priests within the area who sacrificed his body at the heiau.

His bones were thrown into the lua iwi, the bone pit. The bone pit fronted on a section of the shoreline into which the ocean washed over the bones of the many human sacrifices.

The youth's spirit separated from his body, returned to the youth's home and sought out his father and told him about the boy's death. The spirit pleaded with the father to rescue his son's bones from the lua iwi.

Hawaiian custom utilized human bones for fish hooks, spear heads, etc. The father knowing this, hastily left to retrieve his son's bones. As the father reached the district boundary he was met by an olohe, a professional wrestler. Immediately they were locked in battle. Finally, the powerfully built father pushed the wrestler into a crack in a large rock. The opening closed on the olohe and held him fast. That same crack is pointed out to this day.

The father proceeded quickly to the lua iwi of Wahaula. Carefully watching between the incoming waves, he recognized the bones of the boy and rescued them. He carefully wrapped them and took them home. There the youth's bones were laid to rest, forever free from molestation.

Players: Two.

Objective: Throw your opponent to the ground. A point is scored when a wrestler lands on his knee or any other part of his body touches the ground.

Rules: At the referee's signal, wrestlers grab hold of each other. Tripping with the feet is the most common method of throwing. The match is won when a wrestler is brought down.

For the interlaced-hand variation — players face each other, clasp hands with fingers interlaced at about head height, and attempt to push each other off a mat or outside a designated area. No tripping. No grappling. The one pushed out of bounds loses.

Sources

Andrews, Lorrin. A Dictionary of the Hawaiian Language

Pukui, Mary K. Hawaiian Dictionary

Malo, David. Hawaiian Antiquities

Emory, Kenneth. 

Whitney, Caspar.