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Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi
Hawaii’s
Back Yard
Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi





Mind, Body, Soul

A Big Island health retreat looks to
bring different kinds of wellness
practices together

EVERY now and then, Sylvia Sepielli would invite one of her chums -- a yoga instructor, aromatherapist or another professional in the realm of health and fitness -- to Mauna Lani Spa at the Big Island's Mauna Lani Resort for special sessions with staff and guests.

If you go ...

What: Ke Kumu O Mauna Lani

Place: Mauna Lani Resort, Kohala Coast, Big Island

Dates: May 27-31

Cost: Four-night Ke Kumu Room and Event Packages include accommodations at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & Bungalows, welcome reception, daily workshops from May 27 to 30, interactive demonstrations by the hotel's executive chef, Edwin Goto, and food connoisseur Joan Namkoong, and the Spa Garden Party on the final evening.

Kamaaina room packages start at $1,340, double occupancy. Welcome reception, $75. Day pass to the workshops, $50. Three-day pass for the workshops, $130. Spa Garden Party, $95. Four-day event package including workshops, welcome reception and the Spa Garden Party, $300.

Call: 808-885-6622 on the Big Island or 800-367-2323 from the other islands

On the Net: www.maunalani.com

"Whenever they would visit, they would be referred to as 'Sylvia's friends,'" says Sepielli, the designer and operator of the spa. "A few years ago, Kurt Matsumoto, general manager of the resort's Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & Bungalows, suggested that I invite several of my friends at the same time to do a big 'Sylvia's friends' program. He also asked Danny Kaniela Akaka, Mauna Lani's resident historian and cultural director, to invite some of his friends -- kumu (teachers) in the Hawaiian healing arts -- and voilˆ! Ke Kumu O Mauna Lani was born."

Launched in 2003, this inspiring wellness retreat returns May 27 through 31 after being on hiatus last year while the hotel was undergoing a $10 million refurbishment. A tribute to personal well-being, healing and renewal of mind, body and spirit, it is being planned as an annual event.

This year, participants will be able to learn from and mingle with locally and nationally renowned leaders in health and the healing arts during five days of presentations and parties. Enrollment at the workshops is kept small, allowing for plenty of personal interaction with the presenters.

Ke Kumu O Mauna Lani means "Mauna Lani, at the Source."

"We want to become known as the place to get first-line information about health, fitness, stress reduction and aging," Sepielli explained as one of Ke Kumu's coordinators. "At this year's seminars, you'll see how traditional healing culture and cutting-edge medicine both have their place and can work side by side. For example, I recently read a book entitled 'The Scalpel and the Silver Bear: The First Navajo Woman Surgeon Combines Western Medicine and Traditional Healing,' by Dr. Lori Alvord, and knew we had to invite her to Ke Kumu."

Ancient Hawaiian healing practices also will be key components of the program. Eight Hawaiians are among the distinguished specialists who will be headlining workshops this year. They are:

» Kaualoku Aiu: A kumu hula who will present hula as a way of life and an extension of the soul.
» Danny Kaniela Akaka: Who will lead discussions with local healers, kupuna (elders) and kahu (Hawaiian spiritual leaders) on the history and legends of Mauna Lani and spiritual healing on the Big Island.
» Sam Kama: A master weaver who will demonstrate his intricate craft.
» Ulu Garmon: A healer who will explain the spiritual strength she receives by preserving the land, plants and animals.
» John Kaimikaua: A kumu hula and chanter who will focus on the spiritual aspects of Hawaiian healing and chanting.
» Raylene Lancaster: A storyteller who will share legends, myths and real-life experiences through words and hula.
» Margaret Machado: Who will share her views on lomilomi massage and its place in the modern world.
» Butch Richards: Who will talk about the healing powers of Hawaii's indigenous plants.


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COURTESY KE KUMU O MAUNA LANI
Danny Kaniela Akaka will lead discussions with local healers, elders and Hawaiian spiritual leaders during the Ke Kumu O Mauna Lani event on the Big Island, May 27-31.


"HANDS DOWN, the most popular sessions at the first Ke Kumu were those presented by our Hawaiian kumu," Sepielli says. "Their messages were profound, yet they spoke of the simplest things -- love, nature, man's place in this world, honoring the beliefs and practices of our kupuna (elders)."

She designed Mauna Lani Spa around those same themes, and hopes Ke Kumu guests will experience its unique offerings during their free time. Focal points of the spa include two open-air, sun-warmed lava saunas; nine outdoor thatched hale (huts) for treatments; and a laau (healing) garden of indigenous plants once cultivated by Hawaiians for use as food, medicine, shampoo and body oil.

Among its signature treatments are seaweed therapy; lomilomi beginning with a Hawaiian chant; and lava watsu in Kahi Kikaha (place of soaring), a 1,000-square-foot pool built for aquatic bodywork in the laau garden near two natural lava tubes.

"Because the lava tube represents the womb of the aina (land), Kahi Kikaha was built to replicate a lava tube," Sepielli explains. "The lava watsu treatment has been likened to the relaxing, comforting feeling of returning to the womb."

When Mauna Lani Spa opened in 2001, she recalls, guests began asking many questions about traditional Hawaiian healing techniques, which served as another impetus for Ke Kumu O Mauna Lani.

"The idea was to bring together guests and authorities from various health and lifestyle fields in an intimate setting to build a platform for emerging health and wellness alternatives," Sepielli says.

"At Ke Kumu you can receive wisdom from kumu who grew up with the healing culture and live it as an integral part of their lives. You can gain insights from contemporary lifestyle masters and experience the joy of well-being. Ke Kumu extends an invitation of renewal; it welcomes attendees to enjoy its rich array of offerings and to take home what is meaningful for their own lives."


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COURTESY KE KUMU O MAUNA LANI / NOVEMBER 2003
Ke Kumu O Mauna Lani grew out of casual resort visits by yoga instructors, aromatherapists and other health and fitness experts who now "take over" the Mauna Lani grounds for a few days.


Event highlights

May 27

7 to 9:30 p.m. -- Welcome reception

May 28

7 to 8:30 a.m. -- Hawaiian Purification Ceremony
9 to 10:30 a.m. -- Raylene Lancaster
11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. -- Dr. Bertice Berry, sociologist, author, lecturer and educator
1:30 to 2:30 p.m. -- Robert Heiman, founder of Epicuren spa and salon treatment products, on SAIOE, a system of thought that allows you to become more in touch with your inner knowledge
1:30 to 2:30 p.m. -- Linda Ching, photographer and author of books on Hawaiian history, mythology and legends
3 to 4:30 p.m. -- William Cerventes, M.D., discusses the newest treatments for nonsurgical skin rejuvenation
5:30 to 8:30 p.m. -- Twilight at Kalahuipuaa, a "talk story" evening of storytelling, music and hula

May 29

7:30 to 8:30 a.m. -- Tim Powers, head of Mauna Lani Sports & Fitness Club, leads a fitness presentation and workout
9 to 10:30 a.m. -- Lori Alvord, M.D., first Navajo female surgeon and associate dean of student affairs and multicultural affairs at Dartmouth College
11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. -- Auntie Margaret Machado and Auntie Ulu Garmon
12:30 to 1:30 p.m. -- Edwin Goto, executive chef of Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & Bungalows, and Joan Namkoong, author and food writer
1:30 to 3:30 p.m. -- Jeffry Life, M.D., shares tips on how to eat and exercise to optimize your health and slow the aging process
4 to 5 p.m. -- Butch Richards
5 to 6 p.m. -- John Kaimikaua

May 30

7:30 to 8:30 a.m. -- Yoga by the sea
9 to 11 a.m. -- Robert Heiman, overview of Saturday's class and a discussion on how you can incorporate SAIOE into your life
11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. -- Kaualoku Aiu and Sam Kama
1:30 to 3 p.m. -- Ke Kumu Panel featuring Dr. Jeffry Life, Dr. Lori Alvord and Danny Kanieala Akaka, with moderator Sylvia Sepielli
7 p.m. -- Spa Garden Party

May 31

7:30 to 8 a.m. -- Workout with Tim Powers


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COURTESY KE KUMU O MAUNA LANI
Kumu hula Kaualoku Aiu's workshop explains hula's place in Hawaiian culture as more than a dance -- it's a way of life.




See the Columnists section for some past articles.

Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based free-lance writer and Society of American Travel Writers award winner.



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