The Makahiki festival was a very vital and significant part of ancient Hawaiian life. There were political, economical, religious, physical, and recreational reasons for it.
Four Things Happened
First, it was a time for the people, including the king, to rest and to abstain from work. It was a period of entire freedom from laborious tasks and strict kapus.
Second, it was a time when religious ceremonies, especially those that related to the temples were suspended. Worship services consisted mainly in making offerings of food to certain deities.
Third, it was a special time for prayers. The kings and chiefs sought to gain land through their fervent prayers. They asked their deities to bless them with good health, that their reign might be established forever, and that their lives might be long. They also prayed for the death of their enemies. The common people held their special prayers. They prayed that the lands of their aliʻi might be increased and that their different business undertakings might prosper.
And lastly, it was a time when the chiefs went around the districts of the kingdom to collect taxes. The people paid their taxes with garden vegetables and fruits, artifacts, and other products from the land and sea. After this obligation was completed, they were free to play and to feast.
'Aha'aina Ho'omana'o
Perhaps the one main purpose of the Makahiki festival was to observe the feasts.
The Makahiki festival was a time to rest, and a time to make a great feast of commemoration ('aha'aina ho'omana'o) for life and health of the body, and for the help received from the god. All manual labor was prohibited and there were several whole days of resting and feasting. Chiefs and people made many joyful Makahiki feasts at the end of each year. The custom (malama) of feasting came from very ancient times; and from the time that chiefs became rulers of the kingdom, yearly feasts ('aha' aina makahiki) were held in commemoration.
It was also a time for the people to pray to their gods and ask for divine care and help. From their gods came life, blessings, peace, and victory.
Physical, Emotional, Psychological
The Makahiki celebration provided the people an opportunity to take part in amusements and in sports to strengthen their bodies.
There are physical, emotional, and psychological reasons for the festival. The celebration provided an emotional outlet for the people and gave them a chance to relax from the strict kapu system. It also provided an avenue to develop their physical bodies, to revel and to renew their vigor and animal-like spirits, and to readjust their emotions. Further, it helped to produce a psychological balance and inner confidence to retain self-confidence especially under adverse conditions such as war.
These were the recognized reasons for the annual Makahiki festival. The celebration was a very vital and significant part of ancient Hawaiian life.
Makahiki Games
Sources
Malo, David. Hawaiian Antiquities
Kamakau, Samuel. Ruling Chiefs of Hawaii
Mellen, Kathleen D. The Lonely Warrior, The Life and Times of Kamehameha The Great of. Hawaii