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POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES. 
word aau. In some places it might be rendered heart 
according to our idiom, as in the thoughts of the heart 
or mind—-the desire of the mind, or soul—or, the anger 
of the soul. For soul and spirit, however, they have 
distinct terms, varua, and the ancient word vaiti ; but 
it does not appear that they were accustomed to con¬ 
sider the soul or spirit as experiencing, in conjunction 
with the body, either mental or moral sensations. All 
the varied passions, and the mental exercises of which 
they were sensible, they spoke of as connected with the 
aau or ohu^ a term literally signifying the whole of the 
abdominal viscera—for each separate organ in which, 
they have a distinct name. 
To the head they attributed nothing in connexion 
with intellect, nor to the heart with regard to moral 
feeling. To the organ which in the language of ana¬ 
tomy would be called the heart, they attributed no other 
susceptibilities than those which are common to other 
parts of the body. This led them generally to contend 
that the thoughts were in the body, and not in the brain; 
stating, in proof of the accuracy of their opinion, that 
the bowels or stomach were affected or agitated by 
desire, fear, joy, sorrow, surprise, and all strong affec¬ 
tions or exercises of the mind. They were, probably, 
confirmed in this definition by the fact of such being the 
belief of their ancestors. 
In reply, we usually informed them, that we were 
accustomed to speak of the heart as the seat of the 
affections and moral principles, though by the heart 
we often meant nearly the same as they intended by 
the word aau or obu, but that we considered our 
sensations and mental perceptions to be connected 
with the ’ brain. ’ It was in vain that we endeavoured 
