Saveasiuleo is the God of
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 Hikule ...
(Old concept of Heaven) 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.
...
of spirits or ''Hades'' in
Samoan mythology Samoan culture tells stories of many different deities. There were deities of the forest, the seas, rain, harvest, villages, and war. There were two types of deities, ''atua'', who had non-human origins, and ''aitu'', who were of human origin.
Taga ...
.
He is the father of
Nafanua
Nafanua was a historical ''ali'i'' (chief/queen) and ''toa'' (warrior) of Samoa from the Sā Tonumaipe'ā clan, who took four ''pāpā'' (district) titles, the leading ali'i titles of Samoa. After her death she became a goddess in Polynesian relig ...
the Goddess of War in
Samoa
Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...
. Nafanua's mother is
Tilafaiga
According to a legend in Samoan mythology Tilafaiga was one of the twin sisters who brought the art of '' tatau'' (Samoan tattoo) to Samoa from Fitiuta in Manu’a. Tilafaiga's twin sister's name is Taema.
Tilafaiga and Taema can also be referred ...
, the sister of
Taema Taema is the name of a female figure referred to in different legends in Samoan mythology.
Samoa ...
another figure of Samoan mythology.
Saveasiuleo is sometimes referred to as Elo.
The spirits of gods were able to take the form of animals and human beings and Saveasiuleo is believed to take the form of an eel or appear as half man and half eel. His ancestors were rocks. One story says that his mother was Taufa and his father, Aloa. His brothers were Salevao and Ulufanuaseesee. The brothers agreed that Saveasiuleo would go and become king in Pulotu. Saveasiuleo would come up from his kingdom and wander the earth. There are different versions of stories told about him. He is referred to as a god and sometimes as a demon. One day Saveasiuleo met his twin nieces Tilafaiga and Taema swimming back to Samoa from Fiti where they had learned the art of tattooing. Saveasiuleo abducted Tilafaiga and she later gave birth to Nafanua, the goddess of war. The story of the sisters bringing a basket of tattoo tools for the
pea
The pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species ''Pisum sativum''. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and d ...
to Samoa is another well known legend.
Pulotu
According to Samoan beliefs, the entrance into the spirit world Pulotu is at the village of
Falealupo
Falealupo is a village in Samoa situated at the west end of Savai'i island from the International Date Line used until 29 December 2011. The village has two main settlements, Falealupo-Uta, situated inland by the main island highway and Falealu ...
, at the western end of the island of
Savaii.
Polynesian Reminiscences:or Life in the Pacific Islands by William Thomas Pritchard, p.401
See also
* Hikuleo, Havea Hikule{{okinao
*Polynesian mythology
The Polynesian narrative or Polynesian mythology encompasses the oral traditions of the people of Polynesia (a grouping of Central and South Pacific Ocean island archipelagos in the Polynesian Triangle) together with those of the scattered cul ...
References
Samoan deities
underworld gods