Hina Ascending to the Moon

Hina was one of the great ancestral goddesses of Hawai’i. She was considered to be the mother of all ocean life and is most revered for the sacred story of her journey into the Moon. The tale goes that Hina left the heavens and took on a human husband because she loved the Hawaiian Islands, which were known as the "Ring of Fire" due to all the volcanic activity. Hina had many children and spent many happy years on Earth. But then, her husband began to get increasingly demanding of her, and she began to realize that not even her children did anything to help her. Hina was left to take care of everything, including supporting the family by making and selling the most beautiful kapa.

Eventually, Hina escaped her abusive husband and ungrateful children and made it to the moon safely. Once there, she began to forget about her dreadful earth family as she set up a new, happier home for herself and continued to make her beautiful kapa, which always gave her such joy. And from time to time, she would send thunder and lightning down to the Earth for her own amusement.

And that is how the Moon became female. The people of the Islands call her "The Woman in the Moon" and say that when it rains, it is because Hina is spreading joy and happiness; when it storms, she is reliving the morning she escaped from her husband and family.