Spirit of the Mo'o

Reptiles and serpents of all shapes and sizes have been my favorite beings since I was a little girl. I was enamored with snakes in rural Oregon; I found it delightfully devious to put them in my teachers’ desks.

As a kid, I remember reading about mythological flying creatures in my Child Craft Encyclopedia. China's flying serpents-dragons were in the oldest writings of that culture. India's "Ramayana" describes humans and their "serpent-god" ancestors, and African myths refer to dragon-like beings who brought civilization to humankind. Ancient texts from Sumer (3000 BC) describe sapient, fiery, flying serpents. There are numerous other examples from Japan, China, Australia, etc. My all time favorite has long been Quetzalcoatl of Meso-American literature. Reading Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey as a young adult was also influential.

Papermache (old phonebook) over chicken wire -- the beginning.

When we bought our retirement property in the Puna District on the Big Island of Hawaii (2012), I drew out a possible design along our long driveway for landscaping -- that, not surprising, included an aptly descriptive (and prophetic?) title, "Path of the Serpent."

"So," he asked, "do I get wings?"

In Hawaiian mythology the Mo'o are the most mysterious creatures found in some of the oldest stories and are associated with a deep ancient magic. Citing from an article by Shannon Wianecki (Maui No Ka 'Oi Magazine) Mo'o possess profound powers, are omniscient and are also shape-shifting beings who guard and protect fresh water pools. Most Mo'o are female, but a fierce Mo'o on Moloka'i is a male protector..

According to language experts, "the word mo'o" also refers to spine and a succession or lineage, and a mo'oleo is a story...a progression of words strung together like a vertebrae.

Recently while clearing a large section of overgrown jungle area of invasive shrubs, weeds and vines, we discovered a rather interesting deep hole (puka) in the lava that we are now shaping to become a fountain/pond feature -- and what could be more appropriate to guard it -- a six-foot long Mo'o, who now takes up residence in our spacious open-air art studio. A few days ago while I was sculpting his face, he asked if he was going to have wings which prompted a significant change in design -- but who is going to say "no" to a Mo'o...not me! (As the water feature and the Mo'o develop, we will post new pictures.)

"The Sacred Spine" - Shannon Wianecki; "Wise folks don't mess with Mo'o" - Bob Krauss; "Mo'o Dragons of Hawai'i" - Mike Limatoc, "Flying Serpents and Dragons" - R. A. Boulay