Thought Exercise #11: Due 11/19/13

"In Kanaka Hawai'i cosmology, Kanaka Maoli (real people, human beings) share family relationships with the entire universe. This is best understood first through the Kumulipo, which is a cosmogonic prayer as well as the genealogy of Kalakaua and Lili'uokalani....In this cosmology, humans are part of a vast family that includes celestial bodies, plants, animals, landforms, and deities....The distinction between animal and human is clearly drawn nowhere in this cosmology. Humans descend from landforms, kalo, animals, and humans."
--Jonathan Goldberg and Noenoe Silva, "Sharks and Pigs: Animating Hawaiian Soverignty Against the Anthropological Machine"

This cosmology reminds me of the ecological system of the earth. All around the earth, all creatures are interconnected in one way or another. As I learned from biology class, all life originates from the sun, since the plants gain their energy via photosynthesis, and life on earth ultimately depends on the energy source from the sun. Without the sun, life would not exist. Building upon the energy from the sun, all life on earth depend on one another for survival, even if it means hunting down each other to keep the population number in balance. Yet, as Mufasa from Walt Disney's The Lion King said tells his son:

Mufasa: Everything you see exists together in a delicate balance. As king, you need to understand that balance and respect all the creatures, from the crawling ant to the leaping antelope. 
Young Simba: But, Dad, don't we eat the antelope? Mufasa: Yes, Simba, but let me explain. When we die, our bodies become the grass, and the antelope eat the grass. And so we are all connnected in the great Circle of Life. 


And so, life goes on and on.