Pihanakalani ~ Haleakala Volcano ~ The House of the Sun

Beautiful work Shannon, and I love the description a lot!

That´s embarassing, To call you Shannon!!! But I know you are relaxed enough to forgive me, Sharon!!! ;-)))

Beautiful scenery and image))))

Oh wow this is beautiful nice work Sharon…gina

HI Sharon ~amazing image of pure beauty here.. reminds me of “Purple Mountains Majesty”.. so beautiful !!!! a fav fav:))))))

Great view!

..............I traveled all day and now rests,,,,,,

if it has rose many feet higher than its present elevation, then it will do it again.

Spectacular image of this beautiful and historic crater, oh how beautiful !!

Wow, looks like another planet, it must be amazing to see this and feel the emotion from it.

Excellent story behind it and well composed, Sharon.

WOW…Amazing,Sharon!!!!

What amazing colors in this scenic shot!!

Stunning …Wish I could go there…

wonderful scene

BEST VIEW LARGER!

Wow!!! This is so amazing!! The sheer dimensions of this are mind-boggling! The beauty and power of nature are so beautifully captured in this image!! Well done my friend!!! (I would love to see something like this some day!)

Amazing!

i so very much enjoyed reading your description, thank you so much for the wonderful information. this is stunning and amazing !! so beautiful !!

So unique Sharon. And forbidding! Great job (as usual!).—Steve

Fantastic scene capture, dear Sharon!

WOW !!! this is such a wonderful image, very well done, xx

gorgeous work.

Beautiful!

This is gorgeous! And thank you for the history, too. I love your work, Sharon. You make Hawaii come alive for me when I cannot be there (which isn’t often). On our trip this July to the Big Island, we drove from Kona to the northwest through the Parker Ranch and on to the town of Waimea. Along the way I snapped photos of Haleakala in the distance. Truly an awesome sight for us!

congratulations on your feature

What a beautiful view…...... the Hawaiian islands must be amazing….... not just gorgeous beaches, but trpical forests, waterfalls and volcanos on a hot spot….. in a beautiful place you live! :-)

How Beautiful! I’m looking forward to see all this beauty next week!!!
Your description is very interesting and after reading I cant wait to see it :))
Great capture on an amazing view Sharon! Aloha…

Sharon, here’s my image here at RB (I hope I do this correctly):

My husband and I went to Hawaii for our 25th anniversary and had the privledge of seeing this amazing crater. This is such a beautiful shot, Sharon. It’s an amazing place. You have brought back some fine memories for me. Thank you for sharing this wonderful piece.

Ala hea ka la
Haleakala ~ The Sacred House of the Sun

‘Ae, it is always fascinating how challenging it is to convey the spirit of a place and dimensions in a photograph for those who have not yet seen the magnificent summit of Haleakala and to imagine that from the summit at 10,023 feet above sea level, one gazes out over the clouds and down into a massive depression approximately 7 miles across, about 2 miles wide, and nearly 800 m (2,600 ft) deep and that from near this point on a clear day you may gaze out over the clouds drifting over the ocean, you may catch a glimpse of the Big Island to the east and look out over Kanaloa (Kaho’olawe Island) to the south, the island of Lana’i toward the west and the western part of the lovely island of Maui and Mauna Kahalewai far far below. There are sixteen pu’u – volcanic cinder cones. One of those cinder cones, Pu’u o Maui, the highest cinder cone, rises 500 feet from the crater’s floor.

“These Pu’u form a sacred alignment from the summit of Haleakala to the tip of Haneo’o, (a land section near Hana) and continues for about 30 miles into the ocean. Along this path on the eastern side of Haleakala, there are over 300 He’iau, sacred temples of worship, the highest concentration of He’iau in the Hawaiian Archipelago. Hawaiian culture praises the sun’s existence from sacred points along this ancient path.

All who visit Haleakala should strive to become sensitized to the subtleties of nature and the culture of this sacred place. It is my wish to help educate the visitors who come to our island. It is important. Considering the aggregated eons of history at Haleakala, this summit demands respect.

Haleakala is a place of prayer, it is Ala hea ka la, the path to calling the sun.
In ancient times, and most recently precontact, only the Kahuna, (high priests), and their Haumana, (students), were permitted to ascend the summit. They came here for meditation and receiving spiritual wisdom. It is said to be a place where the tones of ancient prayer are balanced within a vortex of energy for spiritual manifestations.” Reference Information Source

It is enlightening for everyone to realise that these ‘mountains’ are actually mountains within a mountain and are within the mouth of a massive shield volcano, it’s location above one-third of the atmosphere. And then to consider also that for those of us who live on Maui, which is called and considered to be an island, we gaze at this beautiful and sacred volcano every day. The beautiful island of Maui is the uppermost visible portion of an enormous seamount, most of which is submerged, rising from the depths of the vast and beautiful Pacific Ocean floor. It is truly extraordinary.

Ala hea ka la
Haleakala ~ The Sacred House of the Sun

Hawaiian protocol for entering sacred sites:

E ui no ka ‘ae ~ Ask permission

E Mahalo Aku ~ Give thanks

E komo me ka hoano ~ Enter with Reverence

I ka hele aku, e ho’oma’amau i ka wahi ~ When you leave, return it as you found it

Hawai’i ~ Aloha Na’au

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Thankyou for your time in detailing for us.. I have to dig up some images from my trip to Diamond Head, I was in the USAF, on R and R in 1969; again, in June 1971 from Okinawa. I went to a rock concert by climbing up the side, so I wouldn’t have to pay! Thanks for the memories…. Great image..

The scale of things in this picture (looks like a different planet, or like the set of a Star Trek episode :-)) is hard to guess at, until you see the tiny roads! Really great photo, thank you for the information as well – it’s excellent of you to show the world that your beautiful islands have more than beautiful beaches.

NIcely done! Such a wonderful Image and history of the house of the sun:)