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The Itaukei Mata System of Knowing: Vura

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The Itaukei Mata System of Knowing: Vura THE ITAUKEI MATA SYSTEM OF KNOWING: VURA AND TU TO SOURCE AND SUPPORT A SUSTAINABLE BULA SAUTU IN A VANUA VAKATURAGA [AN EPISTEMOLOGICAL JOURNEY THROUGH TUBOU-LAKEBA METAPHORICAL EXPERIENCES] by Wame Jackson Peni Tabilai A thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Copyright © 2014 by Wame Jackson Peni Tabilai Oceania Centre of Arts, Culture and Pacific Studies Faculty of Arts, Law and Education The University of the South Pacific October, 2014 DECLARATION Statement by Author I, Wame Jackson Peni Tabilai, declare that this thesis is my own work and that, to the best of my knowledge, it contains no material previously published, or substantially overlapping with material submitted for the award of any other degree at any institution, except where due acknowledgement is made in the text. Signature…………………………………. Date………………………………………. Name: Wame Jackson Peni Tabilai Student ID No.: S11036795 Statement by Supervisors The research in this thesis was performed under our supervision and to our knowledge is the sole work of Mr. Wame Jackson Peni Tabilai. Signature…………………………………. Date………………………………………. Name: Frank Thomas (PhD) Designation…………………………………………………………………………….. Signature…………………………………. Date………………………………………. Name: Akanisi Kedrayate (PhD) Designation…………………………………………………………………………….. DEDICATION life is a journey a search a seeking for answers a remembering of ashes a building of dreams of visions life is a destination a purpose a calling to serve a commitment to work an altering of ways of the status quo This thesis is dedicated to the loving memory of my father, Rupeni Tabilai, an exemplary civil servant of the yavusa Matanibulu of Ovea, Bau in Tailevu who, in his life-time, taught me the value of hard work, perseverance and reliance on God. i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Research is a journey meant to be shared with others. Meeting the requirements of a Master of Arts thesis would have been impossible without the support and encouragement of people and organizations acknowledged herein. I was therefore blessed to have had two enthusiastic and creative academics to supervise my work: Dr. Frank Thomas and Dr. Akanisi Kedrayate. My sincere gratitude also goes to my sponsor: the USP’s Research Office and the very supportive Dr. Jito Vanualailai and team. On the same note, I thank the FALE’s Postgraduate Committee for funding my ‘field’ work, the UU204 team for the moral support, and all the friendly and helpful staff at the FALE’s main office, the Finance section and, the USP library. There have also been those whose contributions, little as they may seem, can never go unacknowledged. To Shana Khan, wherever you are, and Lalita Sharma, of OCACPS, thank you so very much for directing me to research, and at the USP. The USP’s Pacific studies team: the Postgraduate research chair, Dr. Lea Lani Kauvaka and, again, Dr. Thomas, thank you for pushing me to ‘explore my space’ and invest in my ‘creativity’ – notions that have largely challenged me to dare to navigate beyond the traditional and the ordinary. Amongst these mentioned, I have my own dear brother, Waisea Tabilai, to acknowledge for the prophetic ‘voice’ throughout my journey and, together with a family friend, Livai Tukana, for always lending me their ever-attentive ears. There were also angelic others whose encouragement, and words of wisdom, possibly unbeknownst to them, helped me put together my ideas for an MA thesis: Dr. Cresantia Koya-Vakauta, Dr. Unaisi Nabobo-Baba, Dr. Salanieta Bakalevu and Dr. Sereima Naisilisili, at different points and, for very brief moments, have influenced my thoughts. Significant also were Pacific ‘voices’ introduced to me via their writings, initially, before I was honoured to ‘meet’ three of them in person: our very own Professor (Dr.) Konai H. Thaman, Dr. David Gegeo and Dr. Kabini. F. Sanga, writers whose combined ‘stories’ gave me the conceivable ideas that developed into this research. Last, but not least, I acknowledge the people of Tubou-Lakeba in Lau, both iVanua and iWai, in the present and of the past, the Vanua vakaTuraga whose talanoa have been represented in my thesis and, particularly, my eighty-four year old and sixty-six year old ‘grandmother’ and mother, respectively: women thoroughly socialized into the Tubou-Lakeba tradition. Many thanks go to Momo Soakai, Na Fane and cousin Levulevu, for hosting me during the two short weeks of my stay in Levuka-Lakeba; the ‘owners’ of Vunisavisavi and Katubalevu and, Kameli Vuiyasawa (of the Daulakeba) and Jone Naisara (of the Tui Tubou) and; the two divisions of the AOG Tubou church, for the open-doors, warm-hearts and constructive contributions. Finally, next to God and close to my heart, my ‘lewa ni Tubou’ Lavenia, the ‘wind beneath my wings’. ii ABSTRACT The iTaukei of Viti, formerly known as Fijians, have a mata or envoy system of engaging at the intra- and inter-Vanua levels that works to keep vanua-people connected as a Vanua (of a named/claimed place) whole. Theoretically, the ancient Vanua developed into Vanua vakaTuraga (lit. ‘Land/Place having Chiefs/Men’), centuries later, possibly, at the arrival of a Turaga migration that was readily ‘grafted’ into the ‘first taukei’ (first peoples to be ‘yoked-with’ the land/place) of Viti society. Essentially, the Turaga people (as active ‘explorers’ of the oceanic space, at the time) were ‘given’ land by the Vanua people who, by then, had become so land-based that ‘conquerors of the deep’ were soon recognized as vu-gods who vu-maiLagi (originate from Lagi [the heavens]). These ‘land-takers’ of the Turaga migration, theoretically, became the vulagi-stranger kings phenomenon hence, setting off what I call the iTaukei privileging system of ‘cross-cultural’ engagement. That was, as I presume, the beginning of what became the iTaukei chiefly and political system of Vanua leadership. The iTaukei mata system of Vanua representation, as a system of knowing ‘put’ in place to facilitate knowledge sharing and the pursuit of what the Vanua conceptualizes as bula sautu (lit. ‘life [lived in] peace and plenty’, and meaning ‘well being’), will be argued as critical to the knowledge building exercise. Scientific research, therefore, becomes the vehicle whereby ‘silenced’ narratives and traditions embodying important indigenous knowledge may be ‘voiced’. Herein, time-proven notions and ‘theories’ are ‘forced’ to go through the rigorous process of scientifically validating ‘knowledge’, and which will prove useful to its traditional ‘owners’ and the institution of research itself. This constructionist research, as a re-kune (searching and conceiving, again) for the answers to the research questions framed to meet the ‘needs’ of this research project, have used a mix of qualitative methods contextualized with the view of decolonizing the methodology. Using phenomenology, ethnography and philosophical reflection, the participant-observation method was adapted for this research as veitalanoa, and employing the vakaLakeba, to bring the literature, data collected from the ‘field’ and metaphorical thought into a rara place of dialogue. The narration of stories collected from the researched community, coupled with the linguistic and philosophical analysis of their conceptualizations of the vanua, vuravura, taukei, mata and sautu conceptions, as intrinsic to their worldview, have formed the core body of knowledge upon which a sound theory of representation is formulated. Empowering people via a “mata method” for researching indigenous peoples of the Pacific, particularly the iTaukei, becomes the critical finding that will inform future research projects, given how the privileging system of engagement it embodies works to encourage collaborative initiatives in society, and academia. A “mata way to sautu”, therefore, will boost iTaukei efforts directed at self-representation, and for liberation. iii ABBREVIATIONS A.D : after death (of Christ) AOG : Assemblies of God BP : before present Dr. : Doctor of Philosophy (as used in academia, unless otherwise stated) et al. : and other people FALE : Faculty of Arts, Law and Education lit. : literally MA : Master of Arts OCACPS : Oceania Center of Arts, Culture and Pacific Studies p : page pp : pages rep : representative(s) St. : Saint USP : University of the South Pacific UU204 : ‘Pacific Worlds’(a generic second year degree course offered at the USP by the Pacific Studies department) VKB : Vola ni Kawa Bula VRF : Vanua Research Framework iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Dedication……………………………………………………………………………..i Acknowledgement……………………………………………………………………ii Abstract………………………………………………………………………………iii Abbreviations………………………………………………………………………...iv Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………….v CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION………………………………………………......1 1.1 Introductions: Bucini ni Veiwekani………………………………….1 1.1.1 Vanua-people (a Vei people) – Live in Mata, act as Mata……3 1.1.2 A Vuravura-Worldview – the Universal Worldview………….4 1.1.3 The Taukei-Vulagi Dichotomy – Ground for Veivakataukeitaki..6 1.1.4 The iTaukei Tamata ‘Self’ – the Human-person, the Human- race………………………………………………………………7 1.2 The Context……………………………………………………….......9 1.2.1 Tubou-Lakeba – a Representation of historical ‘Times’……..9 1.2.2 Living at the Maliwa-Spaces and in the Gauna-Times….......11 1.2.3 Bula Sautu – the Biblically Correct Perspective………………13 1.2.4 Bula Sautu – a Possible pre-Christian Perspective……………14 1.2.5 Vura and Tu – iTaukei Ontological and Epistemological Tools…………………………………...................................15 1.2.6 Metaphorical Experiences
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