In
Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
an
mythology
Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...
, Bulu (pronounced: ''Mbúlu'') is a name for the 'world of spirits' (presumably the
underworld
The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld.
...
). In the month called ''Vula-i-Ratumaibulu'', the god
Ratumaibulu In the mythology of Fiji, Ratumaibulu is a god of great importance who presides over agriculture. In the month called ''Vula-i-Ratumaibulu'', he comes from Bulu, the world of spirits, to make the breadfruit and other fruit trees blossom and yield ...
comes from Bulu, the world of spirits, to make the breadfruit and other fruit trees blossom and yield fruit. Ratumaibulu is a
god
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
of great importance who presides over
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
.
Another source refers to a "place called '
Nabagatai In Fijian mythology, Nabagatai is a village on the road to Bulu, where the souls of the dead live (Williams and Calvert 1858:245).
See also
*Bulu (Fijian mythology)
*Burotu In the Melanesian mythology of Fiji, Burotu is the paradise-underworld. N ...
' on the road to 'Bulu', the separate state or land of souls".
[''The Quarterly Review'', page 170. (year of publication unknown)]
The most westerly point of the island of
Vanua Levu
Vanua Levu (pronounced ), formerly known as Sandalwood Island, is the second largest island of Fiji. Located to the north of the larger Viti Levu, the island has an area of and a population of 135,961 .
Geology
Fiji lies in a tectonically ...
was the place from which the departed spirits started out for Bulu, the eternal abode of the blessed (Freese 2005:70).
See also
*
Burotu In the Melanesian mythology of Fiji, Burotu is the paradise-underworld. Newly dead souls are judged by Degei, and a few go to Burotu. The rest go to Murimuria.T. Williams, J. Calvert, ''Fiji and the Fijians'', Heylin, 1858.
See also
* Bulu, said to ...
*
Pulotu
Pulotu is the resting place of those passed on in the Polynesian narrative of Tonga and Samoa, the world of darkness "lalo fonua" (as opposed to the human world of light).
Tonga
In the Tongan narrative, Pulotu is presided over by Havea HikuleÊ ...
Notes
References
*''
Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada
The ''Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada since 1907. The title in French is ''Journal de la Société royale d'astronomie du ...
'', 1907.
*John Freese, ''The Philosophy of the Immortality of the Soul and the Resurrection of the Human Body''. Facsimile reprint of 1864 edition. Kessinger Publishing, 2005, .
*T. Williams, J. Calvert, ''Fiji and the Fijians'', Heylin, 1858.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bulu (Fijian Mythology)
Fijian mythology
Afterlife places
Underworld