So Supernatural: LEGENDS OF HAWAI'I – Madame Pele

Host: Racha Pecorero & Yvette Gentile
Guest: Lopaka Kapanui, Native Hawaiian storyteller
Date: November 21, 2025

Overview

This special episode explores the supernatural and legendary culture of Hawai‘i, with a focus on Madame Pele—the volcano goddess and figure of tremendous reverence in Hawaiian tradition. With celebrated native Hawaiian storyteller Lopaka Kapanui, the hosts dive into stories of personal encounters with spirits, the ancestral connections to Pele, and the ways in which ancient spiritual beliefs continue to shape family, culture, and healing on the islands. Lopaka shares his personal accounts, lineage, and storytelling expertise, making this a vivid, intimate, and often humorous journey through mythology, family tales, and generational healing.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Lopaka Kapanui’s Background and Method

• Passing Down Ancestral Knowledge
  • Lopaka was taught Hawaiian lore orally by his mother, with no written or recorded notes.

    “I talk, you listen, and you absorb it.” (03:36, Lopaka Kapanui)

  • Memory and oral repetition were central:

    “Now tell me everything I just said, like, repeat it.” (03:36)

• Channeling Stories
  • He describes almost “blacking out” during storytelling, channeling knowledge from ancestors.

    “A lot of times when it’s over, like, my wife will tell you, I don’t even remember anything happening. I blackout.” (04:20)

The Nature of Psychic Ability & Spiritual Encounters

• Universal Intuition
  • Lopaka says everyone is inherently psychic, especially women, and spirits often try to communicate but humans are too distracted.

    “Everybody’s inherently psychic … at its core, your natural psychic ability is called intuition. … Intuition is a lot stronger in women.” (06:38)

• Personal Accounts of Spiritual Contact
  • Both hosts and Lopaka recount feeling spirits, including loved ones and ancestral presences, especially in vulnerable moments.

    “She is there all the time. … but we have to get ourselves to a certain point where we’re not so laden down with all this extra stuff.” (09:23, Lopaka)

Lopaka’s First Encounters with Spirits

• Childhood Near-Death Experience
  • Story of seeing the spirit of a boy, Scotty, in hospital, and hearing conversations between spirits and his grandmother during surgery.

    “I can hear my friend Scotty going, ‘No, no, no, I’ll take him.’ … And my grandmother’s voice going, ‘No, no, I will take him.’” (12:15)

  • His mother explained the spiritual sensitivity as being “because you’re Hawaiian.” (13:09)

The Legend of Madame Pele

[16:06–24:49]

• Mythical Origins
  • Pele and her siblings were born from different parts of their mother Haumea.
  • Lifelong rivalry with her sister Namakaokaha‘i, the ocean goddess, over familial and elemental domains.

    “Pele and her siblings are born from different parts of their mother’s body, Haumea. … her older sister is Namakaokaha‘i, the goddess of the ocean.” (16:54)

• The Journey Across the Pacific
  • Pele is exiled for burning her sister’s land, pursued by Namaka.
  • Details of visiting islands and leaving spiritual guardians, e.g., the legend of the “Crouching Lion” as Pele’s waiting dog.

    “So the dog climbed on this hill and waited so long he turned to stone…So today, that’s the crouching lion.” (21:20)

• Pele’s Deification
  • After being killed by her sister, Pele’s bones are deified, transforming her into a goddess.

    “They deify her into an aumakua, into a god. And so that’s how she becomes Pele, the goddess of fire.” (23:01)

  • The volcanic eruptions are her “mahi” (menstrual cycle), a metaphor for destructive and regenerative cycles.

    “When the volcano is erupting, they won’t say the volcano is erupting; they will say Pele is having her mahi.” (24:08)

  • Duality of Creation and Destruction:

    “She’s a destroyer, a cure, an eater of land and soil. But when everything’s over, it’s new life again.” (24:30, Lopaka)

Personal and Local Encounters with the Supernatural

[27:14–34:40]

• Menehune (“Little People”) Stories

  • Racha describes seeing unexplained footprints, Lopaka confirms Menehune legends are prevalent in the area and shares eyewitness stories.

    “There are Menehune in that area from Waileiki to … Calvary by the Sea.” (27:48)

• Manifestations of Pele

  • Recounting sightings of Pele in human guise, often appearing to test or help people.
    • Pele as an old Hawaiian woman seeking food or a ride:

      “When the old Hawaiian woman appears for a ride or for food…whatever she wants…those two or three minutes she’s saving you from something worse.” (47:02, Lopaka)

• Humorous/Adult Legends

  • Telling of the “Kohelepelepe” (“Flying Punani”) story, linking the geography of Koko Head Crater to a tale of Pele’s sister’s sacrifice to save her from a violent lover.

    “She removes her own personal body part and waves it in front of the pig god… The second it lands, he’s just…going to town on it.” (33:13, Lopaka)

Cultural Identity, Family, and Healing

[35:56–57:37]

• Hosts’ Family Heritage

  • Racha and Yvette’s personal connection to Hawaiian culture, despite not having native blood per DNA, centers on upbringing and spirit.

    “I’ve always been taught to respect the Hawaiian culture… it’s the only culture I know.” (36:41, Racha)

  • Their mother chose Hawaii to raise biracial children, seeking healing from the racism she endured elsewhere.

    “She felt Hawaii was the melting pot.… And she knew from that instance that this is where I want to raise my children.” (37:03, Yvette)

• The Work of Ancestors After Death

  • Discussion of inviting all ancestors for prayers and healing, not just “nice” ones; the obligation of family to support descendants spiritually.

    “No matter what the circumstance was in life, they’re still your family. So you ask everybody. … they have to come and protect you.” (50:05, Lopaka)

• Breaking Generational Trauma

  • Lopaka and hosts share candid stories of childhood pain, the challenge of forgiveness, and the importance of loving oneself to break cycles of harm.

    “I was so intent on seeking, receiving his love that I forgot to love myself.” (52:57, Lopaka)

  • The universality of “ohana” (family) in Hawaii, where love and connection can transcend bloodlines.

Notable Quotes & Powerful Moments

• On Ancestral Communication:

  “You talk to them the way you did in life, same way you talked to them before. You speak to them now.” (50:51, Lopaka)

• On Forgiveness and Breaking Cycles:

  “If you don’t have [love for yourself], how can you love anybody else? ... Maybe those people who abused us, they didn’t get that.” (53:00, Lopaka)

• On the True Test of Love:

  “Loving yourself and loving people … and thinking about ways to make other people’s lives easier… that’s hard.” (56:48, Lopaka)

• On the Symbolism of Pele:

  “She’s this fiery woman that, of course, we know, but she’s also very loving, all encompassing. … Once you’re her family, that’s it, and woe betide the person who screws with Pele’s family.” (57:49, Lopaka)

• On the Cultural Power of Hawaii:

  “Once it gets a hold of you, you become Hawaiian in ways you don’t think you are Hawaiian, but you are.” (40:41, Lopaka)

Key Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment/Topic Highlight | |-----------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:36 | Oral tradition and how Lopaka learned to tell stories | | 06:38 | On psychic ability and intuition | | 09:23 | Communicating with spirits, presence of deceased loved ones | | 12:15 | Childhood near-death experience and spirit visions | | 16:54 | Origins of Pele and her myth | | 21:20 | The “Crouching Lion”/Pele’s dog legend | | 23:01 | Deification of Pele and meaning of volcanic eruptions | | 27:48 | Racha’s first-hand experience with Menehune | | 33:13 | The Flying Punani (Kohelepelepe/Koko Head) legend – adult humor in mythology | | 47:02 | Modern encounter with Pele as a kupuna (elder) and its underlying message | | 50:05 | Family, ancestors, and obligation to protect descendants | | 52:57 | Lopaka on self-love and breaking cycles of trauma | | 57:49 | Final reflections on Pele’s duality—loving, fierce, and protective of her family |

Tone and Atmosphere

The conversation is warm, reverent, honest, and full of laughter and respect, blending spirituality with humor and contemporary relevance. Both hosts and guest are tenderly candid about generational pain and healing, painting a vivid, living picture of Hawaii’s supernatural and cultural world.

Summary for New Listeners

This episode weaves personal stories, myth, humor, and spiritual insight into a powerful exploration of what it means to connect with ancestry, heal legacy trauma, and celebrate the awe-inspiring presence of Madame Pele in Hawaii’s land and people. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, the messages of respect, belonging, and cycles of renewal ring universal.