The old tapa cloth, made from the bark of trees, had a simple image of the ocean painted across it. For the audience of the story, the waves seemed to come to life in their imagination each time the storyteller told the ancient tale.
“In the beginning, there was only ocean,” the storyteller said as the little waves rose and fell, “until an island emerged: the mother island, Te Fiti.”
Upon the tapa, the listeners could almost see the appearance of an island goddess, rising up from the ocean and growing in size as the storyteller continued. “Her heart had the power to create life itself. And she shared that power with the world.” The lovely goddess lay on her side, the curves of her body becoming mountains and valleys. It appeared to be the birth of a perfect world. A spiraling heart blazed at the very center of the island and a force radiated from it, sprouting beautiful trees and plants.
“But in time,” the storyteller continued, “some began to covet Te Fiti’s heart, believing if they could possess it, the heart’s life-giving power would be theirs alone.” A variety of wicked creatures appeared below the image of Te Fiti, eyeing her heart. “And one day, the most brazen of them all voyaged across the vast ocean to take it.”
A small boat appeared upon the tapa, sailing across the rippling waves with a giant man, full of muscles and carrying a fishhook, at the helm. The man jumped off the boat, leapt into the sky, and magically transformed into an enormous hawk. Soaring through the sky, the hawk flew toward the lush island of Te Fiti with great purpose and determination.
Once it landed on the island, the hawk turned into a chunky green lizard. It quickly and quietly scampered through the dense foliage, its tail slithering behind. When it reached large rocks, it transitioned into a tiny bug to remain unseen and squeezed between them. The bug emerged on the other side and turned back into the man. Behind the shadows, the man anxiously eyed the spiral surrounding the pulsing heart at the island’s center.
“He was a demigod of the wind and sea,” said the storyteller. “A trickster, a shape-shifter with a magical fishhook. And his name was Maui.”
Gripping his enormous fishhook, Maui stuck its point beneath the heart and pried it from the spiral. He proudly flipped it into the air before catching it. Then, to Maui’s surprise, the ground began to shake.
In the listeners’ minds, the trees on the tapa withered and died as life drained from the land, and the island began to turn to dust. Maui somersaulted off a rocky outcropping and raced to the island’s edge. High above the ocean, he jumped off a cliff and, in mid-air, transformed back into a hawk. With a few mighty flaps, he reached his boat.
“Maui tried to escape, but he was confronted by another who sought the heart: Te Kā, a demon of earth and fire!” said the storyteller. Her voice grew deeper and more dramatic. She took a moment to savor making her audience wait.
Te Kā, a massive lava monster, rose up out of ash clouds with great fury, screaming and screeching in anger. Bright volcanic lightning flashed all around, and bits of hot lava spewed from its top as it started toward Maui. Maui brandished his hook and leapt at Te Kā. The two collided, causing a blinding explosion.
“Maui was struck from the sky, never to be seen again. His magical fishhook and the heart of Te Fiti were lost to the sea ... ,” the storyteller said.
The drawing on the tapa showed Maui’s hook and Te Fiti’s heart as they fell into the rippling ocean waves and disappeared.
Gramma Tala, the storyteller, stood, holding the tapa cloth up for her audience of children to see. Her eyes peeked mysteriously over the tapa, and as she continued with the tale, her voice got louder and louder, building to the finish.
“... where, even now, a thousand years later, Te Kā and the demons of the deep still lurk, hiding in a darkness that will continue to spread, chasing away our fish, draining the life from island after island, until every one of us is devoured by the bloodthirsty jaws of inescapable death!”
Silence fell as most of Gramma Tala’s toddler audiences looked up at her with tears in their eyes, terrified. A small boy in the front row sighed and fainted, collapsing to the floor! But one of the girls leaned forward, thrilled by the story. She clapped her hands and smiled excitedly, as if begging for more. The little girl’s name was Moana.
“But one day, the heart will be found,” continued Gramma Tala, “by someone who will journey beyond our reef, find Maui, deliver him across the great ocean to restore Te Fiti’s heart ... and save us all.”
Just as Gramma Tala prepared to launch into another story, Chief Tui hurried in. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Mother, that’s enough.” He scooped up Moana and gave her a hongi, lovingly pressing his nose and forehead against hers.
“No one goes beyond our reef,” he said, reminding the children of the island’s most important rule. “We are safe here. There is no darkness; there are no monsters—” He accidentally knocked into the side of the fale, a hut with a thatched roof, causing the tapa screens with the images of monsters painted on them to unravel and wave around. The kids shrieked with fear and jumped on Tui, knocking him over.
“Monster! Monster!” they screamed.
“It’s the darkness!” shouted one of the many frightened kids.
“This is how it ends!”
“I’m gonna throw up!”
They continued to scream and pile on top of Tui, kneeing him as they panicked.
“No, no! There is no darkness,” Tui said as one of the kids kicked him in his side. “As long as we stay within our reef”—another little knee slammed into his gut—“we’ll be fine!” Tui grunted, catching his breath and attempting to calm the children down.
“The legends are true; someone will have to go!” shouted Gramma Tala, feeding the frenzy of fear.
“Mother, Motunui is paradise,” said Tui, breaking free from the pileup of toddlers. He dusted himself off and finished his thought. “Who would want to go anywhere else?”
Off in the corner of the fale, little Moana stood in front of the tapa with her big eyes fixed on the image of Te Fiti. As the cloth blew in the wind, Moana could see the vast ocean sparkling between the palm trees in the distance.
It seemed that the ocean was calling to her as the waves danced and waved before breaking on the shore. Moana smiled and stared, mesmerized by the beautiful blue water. Then, without anyone noticing because of all the commotion, she quietly slipped out of the fale.
在一塊由樹(shù)皮制成的古塔帕布上,勾勒著一幅簡(jiǎn)單的海景圖。每當(dāng)故事敘述者訴說(shuō)那古老的故事時(shí),畫(huà)中海浪似乎在聽(tīng)眾們的想象中涌動(dòng)起來(lái)。
“起初,世界只是一片汪洋,”故事敘述者說(shuō)道,小海浪也跟著起伏,“后來(lái),一座島嶼出現(xiàn)了,那便是我們的母親島——特菲提。”
隨著故事敘述者的講述,聽(tīng)眾們幾乎可以看到一位海島女神出現(xiàn)在塔帕布上,只見(jiàn)她從海洋里徐徐升起,身形逐漸變大。“她的心擁有造物的神力,而且她還與世界共享這種力量。”這位美麗的女神側(cè)臥著,她的身體曲線化作了山脈和溪谷。一個(gè)完美的世界應(yīng)運(yùn)而生。她那顆螺旋狀的心在海島中央閃閃發(fā)光,一股神力從中散發(fā)出來(lái),滋養(yǎng)出美麗的樹(shù)木和花草。
“可后來(lái),”故事敘述者繼續(xù)說(shuō)道,“有人開(kāi)始覬覦特菲提之心,認(rèn)為只要擁有這顆心,就能獨(dú)霸它的造物神力。”一群邪惡的家伙聚集在特菲提島下方,虎視眈眈地盯著特菲提之心。“一天,他們中最無(wú)恥的那些壞蛋駛過(guò)浩瀚的海洋來(lái)?yè)寠Z它。”
一艘小船出現(xiàn)在塔帕布上,在微波粼粼的海面上航行著,掌舵的是一位肌肉健碩、手持魚(yú)鉤的巨人。他跳下船,一躍沖天,神奇地變成了一只巨鷹,在空中翱翔,然后野心勃勃地朝蒼翠繁茂的特菲提島飛去。
巨鷹一著陸就變成了一只粗壯的綠蜥蜴。他悄悄地快速穿過(guò)茂密的叢林,尾巴拖在身后滑行著。爬到巨巖前,他又搖身一變,成了一只毫不起眼的小臭蟲(chóng),在巖石縫間穿行著。小臭蟲(chóng)到達(dá)另一邊后就變回了人形。他躲在幽暗處,密切注視著一個(gè)漩渦,這漩渦正包圍著島中央那顆跳動(dòng)的特菲提之心。
“他是主宰風(fēng)和海的半神,”故事敘述者說(shuō)道,“是魔術(shù)師,手持神奇的魚(yú)鉤法杖、精通變形。他就是毛伊。”
毛伊握緊巨型魚(yú)鉤,精準(zhǔn)地刺向那顆心,將它從旋渦中撬了出來(lái)。他得意地把特菲提之心往空中一拋,還沒(méi)來(lái)得及接住它,大地就開(kāi)始劇烈搖晃,毛伊大吃一驚。
“沒(méi)了特菲提之心,特菲提島必將天崩地裂,陷入可怕的黑暗之中。”故事敘述者繼續(xù)講道。她的聲音越來(lái)越大,透出一股末日之感。
在聽(tīng)眾們的腦海中,塔帕布上的特菲提島生機(jī)盡逝,草木凋敝,整座島嶼也開(kāi)始分崩離析。毛伊一腳蹬在一塊裸露的巖石上翻了個(gè)筋斗,朝岸邊沖去。他從海洋上空高高的懸崖上一躍而下,在半空中又變回巨鷹,用力地?fù)淅饬藥紫鲁岚?,就飛回了他的船上。
“毛伊正欲逃離,卻碰上了另一個(gè)來(lái)?yè)寠Z特菲提之心的人——地火之魔惡卡。”故事敘述者說(shuō)道。她的聲音變得愈發(fā)深沉,愈發(fā)激動(dòng)人心。她還細(xì)細(xì)回味了會(huì)兒,讓聽(tīng)眾們干等著。
惡卡這個(gè)巨大的火山惡魔從火山灰云中騰空而起,怒不可遏地嘶吼著。他朝毛伊沖去,明亮奪目的火山電光四射,滾燙的巖漿從它頭頂噴濺而出。毛伊揮舞著魚(yú)鉤,縱身沖向惡卡,兩強(qiáng)相撞,碰撞產(chǎn)生的光芒讓人眼睛都睜不開(kāi)。
“毛伊在半空中被撞落,之后便蹤影全無(wú)。他神奇的魚(yú)鉤法杖和特菲提之心也一并落入海里……”故事敘述者講道。
塔帕布上,毛伊的魚(yú)鉤和特菲提之心一起沉入波浪起伏的大海中,然后消失不見(jiàn)了。
塔拉祖母——這個(gè)講故事的人——起身舉起塔帕布給孩子們看。她神秘地瞥了一眼那塊布,然后繼續(xù)講道,她的聲音越來(lái)越大,給故事結(jié)尾營(yíng)造氣氛。
“……然而,直到現(xiàn)在,一千年過(guò)去了,惡卡和海洋深處的惡魔仍然潛伏著。他們躲在持續(xù)蔓延的黑暗之中,驅(qū)趕著我們的魚(yú)類,讓一座座島嶼生機(jī)盡逝,直到我們所有人都被死亡之神的血盆大口吞噬才算結(jié)束!”
頓時(shí)屋內(nèi)一片寂靜,大多數(shù)蹣跚學(xué)步的小聽(tīng)眾們都被嚇壞了,他們抬起頭盯著塔拉祖母,眼里噙著淚水。坐在前排的一個(gè)小男孩嘆了口氣便昏了過(guò)去,竟一頭栽倒在地上!但其中一個(gè)小女孩卻身子前傾,聽(tīng)得津津有味,還拍著小手興奮地笑著,看上去意猶未盡。這個(gè)小女孩就是莫阿娜。
“總有一天,特菲提之心會(huì)被找回,”塔拉祖母說(shuō)道,“會(huì)有人離開(kāi)我們的礁石,找到毛伊,和他一起穿越廣闊的海洋,將特菲提之心歸位……拯救我們所有人。”
塔拉祖母正準(zhǔn)備講另一個(gè)故事時(shí),圖伊酋長(zhǎng)沖了進(jìn)來(lái),說(shuō)道:“哇哦,哇哦,哇哦!母親,您說(shuō)得夠多了。”他一把抱起莫阿娜,慈愛(ài)地將自己的鼻子與前額同莫阿娜的貼在一起,來(lái)了個(gè)碰鼻禮。
“誰(shuí)都不得離開(kāi)我們的礁石,”他提醒孩子們記住島上最重要的鐵律,“我們這兒很安全,不會(huì)有黑暗,也不會(huì)有怪物——”這時(shí),他不小心撞到部落茅屋的墻壁,使得塔帕布搖晃起來(lái),布上的怪獸開(kāi)始四處逃竄。孩子們嚇得驚聲尖叫,都跳到圖伊酋長(zhǎng)身上,把他撞倒在地。
“有怪獸!有怪獸!”他們尖叫道。
“這就是黑暗!”其中一個(gè)嚇壞的孩子大聲喊道。
“結(jié)局就是這樣!”
“我嚇得要吐了!”
他們壓在圖伊酋長(zhǎng)身上你一言我一語(yǔ)地嚷著,都驚慌失措地用膝蓋頂他。
“不,不是!這里不會(huì)有黑暗,”圖伊酋長(zhǎng)說(shuō),這時(shí)一個(gè)孩子踢了他的肋骨一腳,“只要我們不出礁石”——另一個(gè)孩子的膝蓋又猛地撞到他的肚子——“我們就絕對(duì)安全!”他喘了口氣,然后咕噥道,試圖讓孩子們冷靜下來(lái)。
“傳說(shuō)都是真的!必須有人去!”塔拉祖母吼道。這讓孩子們更害怕了。
“母親,莫圖魯尼島就是天堂。”圖伊酋長(zhǎng)邊說(shuō)邊從小家伙堆里掙脫出來(lái)。他撣了撣身上的塵土,決定就此打住。“誰(shuí)想去其他地方?”
在部落茅屋的一角,小莫阿娜站在塔帕布前,睜大眼睛一動(dòng)不動(dòng)地注視著特菲提島。塔帕布在風(fēng)中飄動(dòng),莫阿娜透過(guò)棕櫚樹(shù)間的空隙可以看見(jiàn)浩瀚的海洋在遠(yuǎn)處閃閃發(fā)光。
海浪跳躍起伏,然后拍打在海岸上,大海似乎正在召喚她。莫阿娜面帶微笑,出神地望著它,完全被這夢(mèng)幻般的藍(lán)色海水迷住了。接著,她悄悄溜了出去,由于屋里一片混亂,沒(méi)有人注意到了她。
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