Photo by Susan Benay

I usually walk in Lanikai in the mornings to begin my day and to ‘freshen’ my eyes to the pulse and splendor of our island paradise. I always take my camera along as each Hawaiian sunrise shines brilliantly for the lens and I try not to miss capturing even a single one.

One particular morning this past year, rather than walk my normal route in Lanikai, I had a feeling to walk in Kailua Beach Park, which is nearby. Seeing a different shoreline perspective, the sunrise promised to be beyond breathtaking as wispy clouds swept across the horizon. I prepared my camera, expecting “only” to capture an amazing fiery sunrise.

As I looked through the lens at Kailua Bay, I saw silhouettes of a group of people in the ocean just off the shore. They were gathered in silence in a circle facing the first red sliver of the rising sun. They were standing in the water with only their heads showing. I could feel that something very special was happening. The rhythmic lapping of the small waves on shore underscored the feeling.

It seemed to be a sacred ritual or initiation of some kind.

Curiously, while this ritual was happening all the normal early morning beach activities were going on around them; fishing boats launching, sunrise beach walkers, swimmers, and a musician, playing guitar.

I moved back into an ironwood grove of trees to a respectful distance and took my first photograph. The image was beautiful and compelling.

The sun began to rise more fully and the water became illumined with a shimmering golden-persimmon color with violet shadows. The darkened figures remained perfectly still while facing the ascending sun. After several minutes, one by one the figures emerged from the water in line formation being greeted by someone on the shore. It struck me that the overall image looked ancient, almost as a snapshot from the dawn of time…mysterious. The colors of the sunrise created an aura of magic around the silhouettes. I couldn’t look away. In the end, I laid down my camera and continued to watch in reverent silence.

As I found out later, what I had just seen was a sacred ceremony of a Hula Halau graduation in the ocean waters—a sight rarely seen. It was sublime and powerful.

The beauty of the pictures I took echoed the sacredness of this Hawaiian tradition. I felt privileged to have seen this sunrise ceremony. It deepened my understanding and love of the hula. Hula is a rich vibrant cultural tradition of the islands that I treasure even more greatly after seeing this early dawn ritual.

In Hawaii, on any given day, you can be out for a simple morning walk and happen upon something that is so special that the memories will enrich your heart forever!