Saturday, April 18, 2026 · 天火 · tianmu.org
Oceanic
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Texts
Baloma — MalinowskiA classic ethnographic monograph on the beliefs about death, spirits, and the afterlife among the Trobriand Islanders of Melanesia.Hawaiian Folk Tales — ThrumAn anthology of classic Hawaiian folklore including tales of the Menehune, Kahunas, and the ancient legends of the Hawaiian islands.Hawaiian Historical Legends — WesterveltStories from the period of European contact with Hawaii, bridging the mythological past and the historical present.Hawaiian Legends of Ghosts and Ghost-Gods — WesterveltTales of the Hawaiian afterlife, spirit world, and those who returned from the realm of the dead by magic or cunning.Hawaiian Legends of Old Honolulu — WesterveltLegends and traditions centered on the sacred landscape of Honolulu and its surrounding areas, one of the richest mythological regions of the Pacific.Hawaiian Legends of Volcanoes — WesterveltThe legends of Pele, the Hawaiian Fire Goddess — her deeds, her family, her loves, and the volcanic fires she commands across the islands.Hawaiian Mythology — BeckwithThe definitive critical study of Hawaiian mythology, with parallels to other Pacific cultures and extensive variations of each tradition.Legends of Maui — WesterveltA collection of Hawaiian and Polynesian legends about the great culture hero Maui, who fished up islands, snared the sun, and sought immortality.Maori Religion and Mythology — ShortlandA study of Maori cosmogony, religious rites, and mythology, with comparisons to Aryan mythological systems.Noa Noa — GauguinGauguin's Tahitian journal, recording his encounter with the mythology and spiritual knowledge embedded in Polynesian culture.Oceanic Mythology — DixonA scholarly cross-cultural study of Pacific mythology and folklore, covering Polynesia, Micronesia, Melanesia, Indonesia, and Australia.Polynesian Mythology — GreyThe primary source for Maori mythology and traditions of New Zealand, as recorded from the priests and chiefs of the Maori people by Governor Grey.Te Pito Te Henua — Easter Island — ThomsonA Smithsonian monograph on Easter Island featuring images and translations of the rongo-rongo tablets, one of the few attested translations available.The Kumulipo — BeckwithThe Royal Hawaiian Creation chant with scholarly commentary, describing the emergence of life from the ocean and hundreds of generations of the primal gods.The Kumulipo — LiliuokalaniThe Royal Hawaiian creation chant, translated by the last Queen of Hawaii, describing the emergence of life from primal darkness through hundreds of generations.The Lore of the Whare-Wananga — SmithThe sacred teachings of the Maori Whare-Wananga, the college of esoteric knowledge, covering cosmogony, theology, and ancestral history.The Samoan Story of Creation — FraserThe Samoan creation narrative as published in the Journal of the Polynesian Society.Unwritten Literature of Hawaii — EmersonA comprehensive study of the Hawaiian hula tradition, its sacred songs, prayers, and ceremonial significance.