| Description | Throughout the Pacific, kava is synonymous as the elixir or drink of the gods. Known in various words ranging from kau, sakau, kava, ava and yaqona, the ritual commonality is similar. This video revisits the sacred kava ritual from a retelling of the indigenous spirituality and worldview as far as yaqona, chiefs, mana, power and the people are involved. Yaqona or kava is the best known traditional drink of the Fijians today. You cannot have a meeting or social gathering without it. For all gatherings where traditional customs are observed, one will see a yaqona ceremony. It is used to welcome visitors, install chiefs at initiations and at the completion of communal work; celebrations of births, marriages, at deaths and in almost all phases of life in villages. Not only it is consumed in social gatherings and traditional ceremonies, it has also been used in after-church gatherings by members to express customary respect and consideration for one another. In pre Christian Era, the way yaqona was used was totally different. It was for chiefs only, as they represented the gods. The yaqona or wainivanua was presented to the chiefs in temples early in the morning before any work could begin. The yaqona represented all that belonged to the land. Once the chief accepted it by drinking it in the temple, everyone was free to touch and use everything in the land (vanua). When the ceremony was going on in the temple, total silence was observed all over the land. As the people went to work, the king and chiefs continued to sit around the yaqona bowl discussing the affairs of the vanua. Thomson Basil wrote in his book "The Fijians. A study of the Decay of Custom." 1968, that yaqona serves as a catalyst for social activities and still continues to be so. ....The chief's yaqona circle supplied the want of newspapers; the news and gossip of the day were related and discussed; the chief's advisers seized upon the convivial moment as the most favourable opportunity for making known their view; matters of high policy were often decided; the chief's will, gathered from a few careless words spoken at the yaqona ring, was carried from mouth to mouth throughout his dominions. | ||
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| Manage No | VI00000831 | Running Time | 11.46 minutes |
| Country | Fiji | ||
| ICH Domain | Oral traditions and representations, Performing Arts, Social practices, rituals, festive events | ||
| Videos Photographer | Kelera Dikakua, Ilaitia Senikuraciri | Year | 2018 |
| Place | Serua Province and Cakaudrove Province, Fiji | File Size | 895.6 MB |
| Definition | 1920 X 1080 | File Format | .mp4 |
| Copyright | iTaukei Institute of Language and Culture |
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iTaukei Institute of Language & Culture (TILC)
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The Sacred Kava Ritual
Throughout the Pacific, kava is synonymous as the elixir or drink of the gods. Known in various words ranging from kau, sakau, kava, ava and yaqona, the ritual commonality is similar. This video revisits the sacred kava ritual from a retelling of the indigenous spirituality and worldview as far as yaqona, chiefs, mana, power and the people are involved.
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Ancient sounds in Fiji
Ancient sounds in Fiji is still echoed in traditional chant, traditional dances, polyphony, and sacred psalms. It is found to be unique from western sounds and sounds in many parts of the world. Most current Fijian music has adopted western sounds, this includes church hymns, folk songs, serenades, and also Tongan sounds which is practiced in serevakalau known as Polotu and also pesi (Lauan folksongs). Aporosa a traditional cartographer form Beqa stated that there was no Fijian alphabet, but instead was the practice of oral transmission through traditional dances. Lyrics, cartographer and sound were transmitted through vision (Bulivou, 1985). Once ancient sounds were not composed, it was inherently transmitted through the vanua as a gift, and intrinsically maintained its mana in the vanua livelihood.
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