Hainuwele
Quick Summary
The myth of Hainuwele, originating from Ceram in the Molucca Islands, is a creation story centered on sacrifice. Hainuwele, a girl who grew from a coconut plant, provided for her community. However, she was killed, and her body was dismembered, with the pieces thrown across the island. From these pieces, coconut trees grew. This act of sacrifice is significant because it marked the transition to human sexuality and the determination of new life.12
This myth is an example of the dema deity complex, found in the mythology of tuber cultivators. The core theme involves the slaying of an ancestral deity, which leads to the creation of the human world and its defining characteristics, such as sexuality and the cultivation of food. The dismemberment of Hainuwele and the subsequent growth of plants from her body reflect the agricultural practice of propagating tubers by cutting them up and planting the pieces.21
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creation mythCreation and sacrifice… (Molucca Islands), a beautiful girl, Hainuwele, has grown up out of a coconut plant. After providing the community with their necessities and luxuries, she is killed and her body cut into several pieces, which are then thrown over the island. From each part of her body a coconut tree grows.…
Read More… (Molucca Islands), a beautiful girl, Hainuwele, has grown up out of a coconut plant. After providing the community with their necessities and luxuries, she is killed and her body cut into several pieces, which are then thrown over the island. From each part of her body a coconut tree grows.…
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mythJustification or validationIn a mysterious manner Hainuwele, a girl with extraordinary gift-bestowing powers, appeared. The people killed her at the end of their great annual celebration, and her dismembered body was planted in the earth. Among the species that sprang up after this act of planting were tubers—the staple diet of…
Read MoreIn a mysterious manner Hainuwele, a girl with extraordinary gift-bestowing powers, appeared. The people killed her at the end of their great annual celebration, and her dismembered body was planted in the earth. Among the species that sprang up after this act of planting were tubers—the staple diet of…
Read More