HocKEN. — Tlie Fiji Fire Ceremony. 667 



Art. LXVIII. — An Account of the Fiji Fire Ceremony. 

 By Dr. T. M. Hocken, F.L.S. 



IRead before the Otago Institute, 10th May, 1898.1 



Amongst the many incidents witnessed during a recent visit 

 to the tropical islands of Fiji probably none exceeded in wonder 

 and interest that of which I propose to give some account this 

 evening, and to which may be applied the designation of " tire 

 ceremony." It is called by the natives " vilavilairevo." In 

 this remarkable ceremony a number of almost nude Fijians 

 walk quickly and unharmed across and among white-hot 

 stones, which form the pavement of a huge native oven — 

 termed "lovo" — in which shortly afterwards are cooked the 

 succulent sugary roots and pith of the Cordyline terminalis, 

 one of the cabbage-trees, known to the Maoris as the " ti," and 

 to the Fijians as the " masaive." This wonderful power of 

 fire-walking is now not only very rarely exercised, but, at 

 least as regards Fiji, is confined to a small clan or family — 

 the Na Ivilankata — resident on Bega (=: Mbenga), an island of 

 the group, lying somewhat south of Suva, and twenty miles 

 from that capital. 



A small remnant of the priestly order at Eaiatea, one of 

 the Society Islands, is yet able to utter the preparatory in- 

 cantation, and afterwards to walk through the tire. 



It exists also in other parts of the world, as in parts of 

 India, the Straits Settlements, West India Islands, and else- 

 where. Very interesting accounts of the ceremony as seen 

 at Eaiatea and at Mbenga are to be found in the second and 

 third volumes of the " Journal of the Polynesian Society," 

 and in Basil Thomson's charming " South Sea Yarns." 

 These descriptions filled our small party of three — my wife, 

 Dr. Colquhoun, and myself — with the desire to witness it for 

 ourselves, and, if possible, to give some explanation of what 

 was apparently an inexplicable mystery. Our desires were 

 perfectly realised. 



The Hon. Mr. A. M. Duncan, a member of the Legislative 

 Council of Fiji, and agent at Suva of the Union Steamship 

 Company, to whom I carried a letter of introduction from Mr. 

 James Mills, the managing director of that company, was 

 most courteous and obliging, and promised his best efforts in 

 the matter. His energy and ready response succeeded, with 

 the result that a large party from Suva enjoyed such a day 

 as each one must have marked with a red letter. 



