THE YAQONA CEREMONY

  Left - Tanoa - ceremonial yaqona mixing bowl:  right:  Bilo ni yaqona - coconut shell yaqona drinking cup;

To learn about Fiji, you must also learn about their customs which are an integral part of their way of life.  One of the biggest customs is the Yaqona Ceremony.  Yaqona, which is also known as Kava, comes from the dried root of the pepper plant and is a tranquilizing, nonalcoholic drink.   The yaqona is ceremonially prepared according to local traditions (by pulverizing the root into a powder and then mixing it with your hands with water in a tanoa or wooden bowl). Everyone then partakes of the drink in a simple ceremony.  

Rusi of the Fiji Visitor's Bureau pointing out the waka root for sale in the market in Nadi.  Cost is about $8 US.

Presentation of the kava in a coconut shell.   Clap once, drink, hand it back, clap three times is the tradition!

THE CEREMONY

When you are offered a bilo, the cup with the kava, you clap once, say "Bula" and then drink it all at once.  After drinking the kava, you pass the cup back and you clap three times.  Unlike many countries where old traditions are brought out for the tourists and then put away because they are no longer used in current day life, the Kava  or Yaqona Ceremony and drinking kava is an important part of every Fijian's life .

If you visit a village, it is expected that you bring with you a gift of the waka root and explain the reason for your visit.  This custom is called sevusevu. 

MEKES

Fijians love to sing and dance and the term Meke refers to a combination of dance, song and theater performed telling the stories of their past.  Unlike the more sensual Polynesian dancing, the mekes sometimes describe their violent past.

FIREWALKING

In Fiji, both the Fijians and the Indians practice firewalking with the exception being that the Fijians walk on heated stones and the Indians walk on the hot embers.   The tradition was brought over with the Indians and is taken very seriously.

TAPA CLOTH

The bark of the mulberry tree is used to prepare tapa cloth.  The bark is pounded until it is very thin and then it is stencilled.   It is used in all sorts of products or can be framed.  

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