View source for Huna (New Age)

{{Short description|New Age religious movement}}
{{other uses|Huna (disambiguation)}}
{{New Age beliefs sidebar}}
'''Huna''' ([[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]] for "secret") is the word adopted by the [[New Age]] author [[Max Freedom Long]] (1890–1971) in 1936 to describe his theory of [[metaphysics]]. Long cited what he believed to be the spiritual practices of the ancient [[Native Hawaiians|Hawaiian]] [[kahuna]]s (priests) as inspiration; however, contemporary scholars consider the system to be his invention designed through a mixture of a variety of spiritual practices from various cultures, with roots in [[New Thought]] and [[Theosophy (Blavatskian)|Theosophy]] rather than in traditional Hawaiian beliefs.{{sfn|Chai|2011|pp=101–02}}

==History==
Max Freedom Long went to Hawaii in 1917 to work as an elementary school teacher. He became interested in the religious beliefs and practices of the ancient [[kahuna]]s and modern practitioners of traditional, indigenous Hawaiian religion, but none of the ceremonial people talked to him so he was unable to penetrate to the inner workings of this religion. In the [[Hawaiian language]], the term ''[[kahuna]]'' is used for any expert. Kahuna include experts in diagnosing illness, herbal medicine, canoe building, temple building, wood carving, star-gazing, agriculture, and others.<ref name=Kamakua6-7>Kamakua, Samuel. ''The People of Old: Ka Po'e Kahiko'' (Bishop Museum Press, 1991) pp. 6–7.</ref>

Long left Hawaii in 1931, convinced that he would never learn these secrets. In 1934, he woke with a revelation that the secrets were encoded into the Hawaiian language itself. He called the religious system he developed from this revelation ''Huna'' (the [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]] word for secret) and wrote his first book in 1936 to chronicle his beliefs.

In 1945, Long founded Huna Research. In 1953, he published ''The Secret Science at Work'' as a Huna textbook, and in 1965 ''The Huna Codes in Religions'', examining parallels between his invented system and religions such as [[Hinduism]], [[Buddhism]] and [[Christianity]].<ref name = lewis/>

==Principles and beliefs==
===Max Long===
Long believed he had discovered an ancient truth, not just about Hawaiian spirituality but linking back to India and ancient Egypt. He believed Hawaiians were a lost tribe of Berbers, and wrote that spiritual adepts migrated to Hawai‘i from Egypt, passing on to the priests of India some of their basic beliefs.{{sfn|Long|1954|pp=125–26}} Long also linked Huna to [[Theosophy (Blavatskian)|Theosophy]] and [[New Thought]] movements of the time, writing that [[Christian Scientists]] understood positive thinking better than any group he knew,{{sfn|Long|1954|p=364}} and encouraged his readers to subscribe to [[Unity Church]]’s magazine, ''Daily Word''.{{sfn|Long|1954|p=366}}

Huna emphasizes practical living and harmony with three levels of consciousness or selves, a low, middle, and higher self, which were supposedly recognized by ancient kahunas.{{sfn|Melton|2001|page=755}}  Long called these selves the ''unihipili'' (subconscious, inner, emotional, intuitive), ''uhane'' (waking consciousness, rational) and ''aumakua'' (super-conscious, connection with the divine).{{sfn|Long|1954|pp=14–15}} These are not the  Hawaiian meanings of these words,<ref name="Lee 1999 56">{{cite book  | last = Lee| first = Pali Jae| title = Ho'opono| publisher = Night Rainbow Publishing| year = 1999| location = Honolulu | pages = 56| oclc=44516946}}</ref><ref name=Lee2007>{{cite book  | last = Lee| first = Pali Jae| title = Ho'opono – Revised Edition: The Hawaiian Way to Put Things Back in Balance| publisher = IM Publishing| year = 2007| location = Mountain View, HI|edition=2nd| pages = 89–93| isbn =978-0-9677253-7-6}}</ref><ref name=Pukui>{{cite book | last = Pukui | first = Mary Kawena |author2=Samuel H. Elbert| title = Hawaiian Dictionary | publisher = University of Hawaii Press | location = Honolulu | year = 1986 | isbn = 0-8248-0703-0 }}</ref> which are traditionally defined as "the spirit of a dead person", "spirit" or "dirge", and "family or personal gods" respectively.<ref group=note>For full, unabbreviated definitions, please consult the cited dictionary references for each term.</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=ʻuhane |url=https://hilo.hawaii.edu/wehe/?q=uhane#w2w2-16279 |website=Wehewehe Wikiwiki |publisher=Ka Haka ʻUla O Keʻelikōlani College of Hawaiian Language}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=ʻunihipili |url=https://hilo.hawaii.edu/wehe/?q=unihipili#w2w2-16473 |website=Wehewehe Wikiwiki |publisher=Ka Haka ʻUla O Keʻelikōlani College of Hawaiian Language |access-date=28 May 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=ʻaumakua |url=https://hilo.hawaii.edu/wehe/?q=aumakua#w2w2-11111 |website=Wehewehe Wikiwiki |publisher=Ka Haka ʻUla O Keʻelikōlani College of Hawaiian Language |access-date=28 May 2023}}</ref>

In addition, Long redefined the Hawaiian concept of ''[[Mana (Oceanian mythology)|mana]]'', (privileged as a divine power in traditional Hawaiian belief), and presented it instead as a vitalizing life force, which can, with knowledge of the three selves, be used in a manner of "personal empowerment" to heal body and mind and achieve life goals.<ref name = lewis/>

===Later teachers===
Subsequent Huna teachers have placed the movement firmly in the [[New Age]], with Serge King claiming that Huna came originally from [[Extraterrestrial life|aliens]] from the [[Pleiades]] who were remnants of the mythical advanced civilizations of [[Mu (lost continent)|Mu]] or [[Lemuria (continent)|Lemuria]],{{sfn|King|1985|pages=[https://archive.org/details/kahunahealinghol00king/page/10 10–11]}} and Pila Chiles associating the islands with the New Age versions/interpretations of [[chakras]], [[vortexes]] and [[ley line]]s.<ref name="Pila">{{cite book |title=Secrets and Mysteries of Hawaii |last=Chiles |first=Pila |year=1995 |publisher=[[Health Communications]] |isbn=1-55874-362-6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/secretsmysteries00pila/page/51 51, 71] |url=https://archive.org/details/secretsmysteries00pila/page/51 }}</ref>

According to critics, Serge King [[Cultural appropriation|misappropriated]] and attempted to redefine<ref name=Rothstein>Rothstein, Mikael, in Lewis, James R. and Daren Kemp. ''Handbook of New Age''. Brill Academic Publishers, 2007 {{ISBN|978-90-04-15355-4}}</ref>{{sfn|Chai|2011|p=102}} the names of three Hawaiian gods for his idea of "the three selves": "[[Kū|Ku]]," "[[Lono]]," and "[[Kāne|Kane]]".<ref name="King1990">{{cite book |title=Urban Shaman |last=King |first=Serge Kahili |year=1990 |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] |isbn=0-671-68307-1 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/urbanshaman00king/page/52 52–81] |url=https://archive.org/details/urbanshaman00king/page/52 }}</ref><ref name=Pukui/>

King listed seven principles of Huna, which are given in the table below. King also calls what he does "[[Neoshamanism|shamanism]]" and cites "West African shamanism" as an influence.<ref>[http://www.huna.net/Media/skbio.htm Serge King's Biodata], Aloha International</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Seven principles of Huna
|-
! Hawaiian !! Traditional definition<ref name="Hawaiian Dictionary">{{cite web |title=Hawaiian Dictionary |url=https://wehewehe.org/?l=en |website=Hawaiian Electronic Library |access-date=16 August 2023}}</ref> !! King's definition<ref name="King1990"/>
|-
| ʻIke || To see, know, perceive || "The world is what you think it is."
|-
| Kala || To free, loosen || "There are no limits."
|-
| Makia || Motto, purpose ||  "Energy flows where attention goes."
|-
| Manawa || Time, season, date || "Now is the moment of power."
|-
| [[Aloha]] || Love, compassion || "To love is to be happy with (someone or something)."
|-
| Mana || Supernatural power || "All power comes from within."
|-
| Pono || Goodness, morality || "Effectiveness is the measure of truth."
|}

==Reaction==
Max Freedom Long wrote that he obtained many of his case studies and his ideas about what to look for in kahuna magic from the Director of the [[Bishop Museum]] in Honolulu, [[William Brigham]]. According to an article in the peer-reviewed ''Hawaiian Journal of History,'' there is no credible evidence that the two men met (citation requested). Even if they did, Brigham was not an expert on kahunas and did not document in his own writings any of the incidents Long ascribed to him, including walking on hot lava. In his letters and manuscripts, Brigham stated that Hawaiians were "an inferior race," and implied they were lazy. He referred to [[Liliʻuokalani|Queen Liliʻuokalani]] as a "she devil," "[[squaw]]," and "[[nigger]]."{{sfn|Chai|2011|pp=101–21}}

[[Native Hawaiians|Native Hawaiian]] scholar [[Charles W. Kenn|Charles Kenn]], recognized in the Hawaiian community as a ''kahuna'' and expert in Hawaiian history and traditions,<ref>{{cite book  | last = Stone| first = Scott S.C.| title = ''Living Treasures of Hawaii 25th Anniversary of the Selections of Outstanding Persons as Honored by The Honpa Honwanji Mission of Hawai'i'' | publisher = Island Heritage| year = 2000| location = Honolulu| pages = 24}}</ref> was friendly with Max Freedom Long but said, "While this Huna study is an interesting study, … it is not, and never was Hawaiian."<ref name="Lee 1999 56"/>

Pali Jae Lee, a research librarian at the Bishop Museum, and author of the classic book, ''Tales From the Night Rainbow'', conducted extensive research on Max Freedom Long and Huna. She concluded, based on her interviews with Hawaiian elders, "Huna is not Hawaiian." Lee cites Theodore Kelsey, a [[Living Treasure of Hawai'i]] renowned for his work as a Hawaiian translator who wrote a letter to Long in 1936 (now in the Hawai'i State Archives) criticizing his use of the terms "unihipili" and "aumakua."<ref name="Lee 1999 56"/><ref name=Lee2007/>

Author Nancy Kahalewai, a teacher of lomilomi massage, wrote that "traditional lomilomi practitioners do not teach this philosophy. In fact, most insist that it is not from the native Hawaiian culture at all."<ref>{{cite book  | last = Kahalewai| first = Nancy| title = ''Hawaiian Lomilomi: Big Island Massage'' |edition=2nd | publisher = IM Publishing| year = 2004| location = Mountain View, HI| page = 139| isbn =978-0-9677253-2-1}}</ref>

Wells College Professor Lisa Kahaleole Hall, Ph.D., a Native Hawaiian, wrote in a peer-reviewed journal published by the University of Hawai'i that Huna "bears absolutely no resemblance to any Hawaiian worldview or spiritual practice" and calls it part of the "New Age spiritual industry."<ref name=Kahaleole>Hall, Lisa Kahaleole. "[http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/bitstream/handle/10125/13881/v17n2-404-413-dialogue2.pdf?sequence=1 'Hawaiian at Heart' and Other Fictions]," ''The Contemporary Pacific'', Volume 17, Number 2, 404–13, 2005, University of Hawai'i Press
</ref>

Mikael Rothstein, an associate professor of religious history at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, is the author of several books on religious history and new religious movements. He wrote about Huna in a peer-reviewed anthology:
<blockquote>Rather than integrating Hawaiian religion, however, New Agers seem to carry out a radical reinterpretation of this tradition, or simply invent traditions that were never Hawaiian. ... New Age representations redefine Hawaiian concepts in order to align them to basic New Age trends.<ref name=Rothstein/></blockquote>

==Organizations==
Huna Research Inc was founded by Long in 1945. On his death in 1971, he was succeeded as its head by Dr. E Otha Wingo (in accordance with a request by Long), and moved its headquarters to Missouri, where Wingo was a professor. It has fellowships in Canada, Australia, England, Germany and Switzerland, in addition to the United States.<ref name="lewis">{{cite book | last = Lewis | first = James | title = The Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religions | publisher = Prometheus Books | location = Buffalo | year = 2002 | isbn = 1-57392-888-7 |pages = 406–07}}</ref>

Huna International was formed as a religious order in 1973 by King. It has three branches: Aloha International, Voices of the Earth and Finding Each Other International.<ref name=lewis/>

==See also==
* [[Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples]]
* [[Divine Science]]
* [[Ho'oponopono]]
* [[Marlo Morgan]]
* [[New religious movement]]
* [[Plastic shaman]]
* [[Religious Science]]
* [[Seicho-No-Ie]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite journal |last=Chai |first=Makana Risser |author-link=Makana Risser Chai |date=2011 |title=Huna, Max Freedom Long, and the Idealization of William Brigham |journal=The Hawaiian Journal of History |volume=45 |url=https://evols.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/bitstream/10524/33783/HJH45_101-122.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118125823/https://evols.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/bitstream/10524/33783/HJH45_101-122.pdf |archive-date=2021-01-18 }}
* {{cite book |last=Long |first=Max Freedom |title=The Secret Science Behind Miracles |location=Los Angeles |publisher=Kosmon Press |year=1948 |isbn=978-0-87516-047-4}} Republished as {{cite book |last=Long |first=M.F. |title=The Secret Science Behind Miracles |publisher=DeVorss |year=1954 |edition=5th |asin=B004L0HVQQ}}

==Further reading==
* {{Skeptoid | id= 4807| number= 807| title=Huna: New Age on an Island| date= 23 November 2021| access-date=15 May 2022}}
* {{cite book| title = Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine| last = Helwig| first = David| editor = Jacqueline Longe| volume = 2| edition = 2nd| year = 2001| publisher = Gale Group| isbn = 0-7876-5001-3| pages = [https://archive.org/details/galeencyclopedia0003unse/page/1011 1011–1012]| url = https://archive.org/details/galeencyclopedia0003unse/page/1011}}
* {{cite book |title=The Foundation of Huna: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Times |last=James |first=Matthew B. |year = 2010 |publisher = Kona University Press |isbn = 978-0-9845107-0-2 }}
* {{cite book |last=King |first=Serge Kahili |year=1983 |title=Kahuna Healing: Holistic Health and Healing Practices of Polynesia |publisher=[[Theosophical Society|Theosophical Publishing House]] / Quest Books |isbn=0-8356-0572-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/kahunahealinghol00king }}
* {{cite book |title=Mastering Your Hidden Self: A Guide to the Huna Way |last=King |first=Serge Kahili |year=1985 |publisher=Quest Books |isbn=0-8356-0591-4}}
* {{cite book |title=Huna: Ancient Hawaiian Secrets for Modern Living |last=King |first=Serge Kahili |year=2008 |publisher=Simon & Schuster |isbn=978-1-58270-201-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/elementallovesty00mart }}
* {{cite book |title=Growing into the Light  |last=Long |first=Max Freedom |author-link=Max Freedom Long |orig-year=1955 |year=2006 |publisher=DeVorss |isbn=1-4254-6352-5}}
* {{cite book |title=Huna Code in Religion |last=Long |first=Max Freedom |year=1965 |publisher=DeVorss }}{{ISBN?}}
* {{cite book |title=Introduction to Huna |last=Long |first=Max Freedom |orig-year=1945 |year=1975 |publisher=Esoteric Publications |isbn=0-89861-004-4 }}
* {{cite journal |author = Lynch, Frederick R. |date = Sep 1979 |title = "Occult Establishment" or "Deviant Religion"? The Rise and Fall of a Modern Church of Magic. |journal = Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion |publisher = Society for the Scientific Study of Religion | volume = 18 |issue = 3 |pages = 281–298 |doi= 10.2307/1385654|jstor = 1385654 }}
* {{cite book |editor-last=Melton |editor-first=J. Gordon |editor-link=J. Gordon Melton |year=2001 |chapter=Huna |title=Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology |volume=1 |edition=5th |publisher=Gale Research |isbn=0-8103-9489-8}}
* {{cite journal |author = Paltin, S. J.  |year = 1986 |title = Huna of Hawaii: a system of psychological theory and practice |journal = Hawaii Medical Journal |volume = 45 |issue = 7 |pages = 213–214, 217–218 |pmid = 3744806 }}
* {{cite book |title=Huna Psychology |last=Wingo |first=E. Otha |year=1973 |publisher=Huna Press }}{{ISBN?}}

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