Published:

11/16/2010 05:06pm

Hawaiian Huna and the Spring Equinox: The Science Behind Spring Cleaning

Huna is the modern label for an ancient system of empowerment and flexibility of the mind-body-spirit. The lineage of Huna I was taught from my father was passed to him from the Bray family in Kailua-Kona. It has a more psychological and energetic focus. However, there is a connection to the aina (land) and the environment that is present, not only in the teachings of Huna, but in the Hawaiian culture.

According to one of my Kumu (teachers), John Kaimikaua, in ancient times in Hawai`i, you would not proceed down a path of action unless you were pono (right) with yourself, the aina (land) and aumakua (higher consciousness or spirit). The word pono does not mean right as in you’re right and I’m wrong. Rather it refers to a state of being. When you are pono, you have a confidence and congruency that is unwavering. Before action, the ancients would make sure they had that feeling of pono with themselves, their environment, and higher consciousness. In other words, they had to be right with themselves.

These three aspects needed to be in harmony because, if one was out of harmony, the others would eventually be thrown out of harmony too. It was also known that all are connected and worked with each other to create our experience of reality. There are many teachers who focus on making the planet a better place, and for some, the motivation comes from being out of balance with the planet right now, so we do see what happens when we are not pono.

So what does this have to do with the equinox and you, for that matter? Well, in modern times, we don’t tend to notice our environment. I am fortunate in that I get to travel all around the world to teach Huna to hundreds of people. In fact, as I write this, I am flying to San Diego to teach a Huna workshop this weekend.

When I arrive in a new city, I notice people walking through the airports with little to no awareness of where they are. They get off the plane and begin to make their calls and can walk right though an area never noticing it. In ancient times, people had to live with the land, and in Hawai`i specifically, the people had to be pono with the land to make sure that the resources would be there for the future. You might think back to the last time you visited a new place. Were you aware of your surroundings? Were you pono with the resources around you?

During this equinox, it is valuable to take notice of your environment and what this time means to you. You can work with your environment, which is a natural state of being on the planet, to help you with your path.

My doctorate degree is in psychology, and through my studies, I have found that many people seek a way to clean out the “baggage” they have kept over the years. Maybe it’s from a deep feeling of wanting to be pono. Maybe, just simply put, it’s because people want to be happy. In either case, the energy of spring is a great time for this, and there is a way to tap into this easily and effortlessly because you are already connected to the energy.

Now, if we are connected to our environment, as the ancient cultures believed, when something occurs in the environment, it affects us individually. In a recent training, I mentioned this, and a student said, “I’m not sure if that is true.” I smiled and used the example of the moon.

Anyone in health care would verify that, during a full moon, more babies are born, crazy things are more likely to happen, and ER’s are busier (just a few examples). Well, if the moon affects us, other major events must affect us too. These events may just be a little more subtle.

In Western thinking, we have terms like Spring Cleaning. There are practical reasons for this, such as moving from winter to spring gives the opportunity to clean as the snow melts away. However, there are also personal reasons for this Spring Cleaning as well.

During this cycle on the planet, the energy present is related to a cleaning and a re-birth (for lack of a better term). This re-birth is the flowers blooming and the trees beginning to have leaves again. An