i,
Tonga, Tahiti, New Zealand and the Hervey group make this youngest Maui
"the discoverer of fire" or "the ensnarer of the sun" or "the fisherman
who pulls up islands" or "the man endowed with magic," or "Maui with
spirit power." The legends vary somewhat, of course, but not as much as
might be expected when the thousands of miles between various groups of
islands are taken into consideration.

Maui was one of the Polynesian demi-gods. His parents belonged to the
family of supernatural beings. He himself was possessed of supernatural
powers and was supposed to make use of all manner of enchantments. In
New Zealand antiquity a Maui was said to have assisted other gods in the
creation of man. Nevertheless Maui was very human. He lived in thatched
houses, had wives and children, and was scolded by the women for not
properly supporting his household.

The time of his sojourn among men is very indefinite. In Hawaiian
genealogies Maui and his brothers were placed among the descendants of
Ulu and "the sons of Kii," and Maui was one of the ancestors of
Kamehameha, the first king of the united Hawaiian Islands. This would
place him in the seventh or eighth century of the Christian Era. But it
is more probable that Maui belongs to the mist-land of time. His
mischievous pranks with the various gods would make him another Mercury
living in any age from the creation to the beginning of the Christian
era.

The Hervey Island legends state that Maui's father was "the supporter of
the heavens" and his mother "the guardian of the road to the invisible
world."

In the Hawaiian chant, Akalana was the name of his father. In other
groups this was the name by which his mother was known. Kanaloa, the
god, is sometimes known as the father of Maui. In Hawaii Hina was his
mother. Elsewhere Ina, or Hina, was the grandmother, from whom he
secured fire.

The Hervey Island legends say that four mighty ones lived in the old
world from which their ancestors came. This old world bore the name
Ava-iki, which is the same as Hawa-ii, or Hawaii. The four gods were
Mauike, Ra, Ru, and Bua-Taranga.

It is interesting to trace the connection of these four names with
Polynesian mythology. Mauike is the same as the demi-god of New Zealand,
Mafuike. On other islands the name is spelled Mauika, Mafuika, Mafuia,
Mafuie, and Mahuika. Ra, the sun god of Egypt, is the same as Ra in New
Zealand and La (sun) in Hawaii. Ru, the supporter of the heavens, is
prob