100% Organic cotton | Organic dye | Designed in Hawaiʻi | Made in the USA | Dimensions: 70" long x 44" wide
Love dust. Passion pollen. Erotic ʻehu. So many monikers for the hīnano, the famous blossom and its potently perfumed pollen! From the fragrant bowers of Puna to the sea-drinking hala of Naue, this pua hanohano (glorious flower) is celebrated all across the island chain. The hala tree (Pandanus tectorius) is dioecious, meaning male and female flowers are on separate plants. It is the male hala flower that yields copious amounts of the heady pollen we know as the original Hawaiian aphrodisiac. Not only is it aromatic, it also has a very real effect when consumed or applied to certain parts of the body at, ahem, certain times. We know of one man who kept this tantalizing pollen in a salt shaker on his bedside table and always had a pack of ladies following him around. Traditionally, it was sprinkled under malo as a talcum powder and used to scent kapa and various kinds of mats. The hīnano blossom is actually several flowers joined together, each sheltered by a cream colored bract. These fragrant bracts were woven into fine mats called puahala in some places. A metaphor for love, passion, and even status, hīnano is found in countless mele. Naʻenaʻe ka hīnano ka hanu o ka makani - Fragrant is the hīnano, the breath of the wind.