Pele
Goddess of Volcanic Fire

Even today, visitors to Hawaiian volcanoes report seeing a wizened old woman who asks for a cigarette, lights it with a snap of her fingers, then disappears.  Others say that a red-robed women dances on the rims of the fiery mountains, although it is not certain whether this figure is an incarnation of the Goddess or only one of her worshipers.  Of all the world's Goddess, Pele is one of the few still living in the belief of her people, not as metaphor bust as metaphysical reality, to whom offerings are still made when volcanic eruptions threaten Hawaiian towns.

  She is the Goddess of Volcanoes, Lava and Volcanic Fire. She can be both benevolent and malevolent, and appears as a hag or young woman.  Pele is the daughter of the earth goddess Haumea. She came into being through a flame in the mouth of her mother.. 

She came to Hawai'i on a boat. She had some fights with her sister Na-maka-o-Kaha'i, the ocean goddess. Pele got killed in one of those battles and turned immortal. She then took refuge in the glowing cauldron of Mount Kilauea, where she receives the souls of the dead and regenerates them with fire. 

• Goddesses of the Islands

Activities to do:
Do the Volcano experiment, by creating your own volcano with plastercine or clay; then make a hole in the center to put the vinegar, red food colouring and baking soda, to make the lava flow.

Learn some movements to hula dance.  Make your own skirts to move in.