Indigenous cultures are learning from each other this week, as Kaua‘i Native Hawaiians play host to a group of young Ainus from Japan. Ainus are indigenous people living on the northern island of Hokkaido, which the Ainus call Ainu Moshiri.
Indigenous cultures are learning from each other this week, as Kaua‘i Native Hawaiians play host to a group of young Ainus from Japan.
Ainus are indigenous people living on the northern island of Hokkaido, which the Ainus call Ainu Moshiri.
Like the Native Hawaiians, the Ainus are in danger of losing their language and cultural identities as the world modernizes around them.
The purpose of this exchange is for the younger generation of Ainus to meet with and learn from Native Hawaiians about holding onto centuries-old customs and practices, said the Rev. Noriaki Fujimori, resident minister of Waimea Higashi Hongwanji.
At the same time, in Native Hawaiian tradition the greatest gift (wealth) that is recognized is children and water, said Puna Dawson, one of the Kaua‘i hosts.
“To have the gift of the Ainu children is the greatest gift their parents could ever afford us,” she said. “Therefore, the lesson for me is the children have much to share with us, and in this sharing maybe the exchange will come when our children visit there with the Ainu elders,” said Dawson.
The hongwanji and host families are housing the visitors, and the hongwanji hosted a welcome gathering Thursday.
There are 14 Ainu students, ages 15 to 20, and three adult chaperones.
The group spent time in Waipio Valley on the Big Island earlier this week. While on Kaua‘i, they will learn to throw fishing nets in Anahola Bay, with Nelson Kaai; paddle canoes; and learn much more about Kaua‘i’s native culture on both sides of the island.
The Japanese government is paying much of the cost of the trip, Fujimori said.
The purposes of the trip also include allowing the participants to learn from nature. The Ainus’ traditional lifestyle included living in harmony with nature, though the younger generation has become alienated from their culture and is in danger of losing their connection with the natural environment, Fujimori said.
Learning to build sustainable communities is another important facet of the trip, he continued.
Today, a culture of consumerism is dominant all over the world. Food and materials from rich countries abound, and local foods, materials, and even cultures are fading, he explained.
However, traditionally, indigenous people have respected local foods and materials from local natural resources instead of relying upon exports. Ainu youth will meet with and learn from Native Hawaiians who are practicing cultural traditions using local goods and locally grown products.
It is also hoped that the young Ainus will see how a multicultural society as exists on Kaua‘i can exist peacefully.
“Today, we can easily see fighting among people from different ethnic backgrounds,” Fujimori said. “In such a world, it is important to learn about how we could live together with our differences.”
The Ainu people live together with Japanese people on Hokkaido.
It is hoped that the experiences of the young Ainu people provides them an opportunity to learn from people of diverse cultural backgrounds, he added.
On Kaua‘i, the group will also learn coconut weaving, hula, and how to make hula implements and instruments, among other activities. After the Kaua‘i visit, the group will stay a few nights on O‘ahu before returning to Japan. In Waipio, students learned and practiced traditional Native Hawaiian ways of life, including chanting to ask permission from nature and human hosts before entering the area. They gathered fruits and vegetables, cooked traditional Hawaiian dishes, learned to make traditional musical instruments, and learned how Hawaiians for centuries practiced hygiene in a remote valley with running water but no electricity or telephones.
