Fiji-Kava-Ceremony - Learn Our Rituals

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The Fiji-Kava-Ceremony

The fiji-kava-ceremony known locally as "SEVUSEVU" is one of the various practices of Fiji where kava is presented and received. It is the first ceremony conducted when two groups meet and acts as opening up the path for other interaction. Discover the protocol involved in a typical fiji-kava-ceremony, and the distinctive titles used when refering to our various tribes.

While the function is to introduce and welcome a visiting party, the volume of kava rendered by villagers as they perform the ritual can either be a medium or a very large stump of the kava plant.

However as we have ventured away from our 'bush' stores and now have to buy off traders, the custom generally is for a kilogram or two of "WAKA', as the root of the kava plant is called.

Unpounded "waka" is generally preferred as it denotes the purity of the "sevusevu", but if this is unavailable; pounded kava will suffice. But you had better hope it is good quality, as the burden of losing face can be hard to overcome with every further contact with our peoples.

Fiji kava ceremony Chief in full regalia

Click here to learn how to present a sevusevu.

You see the Fijians - and I suppose mankind - cherish laughter and merrymaking, just as long as they're not the subject of derision. And you can be sure they polish their art and lifestyles in an attempt to ensure this supremacy.

Prior to a sevusevu presentation, it is incumbent on the presenter to be aware of the "distinctive title" of each grouping of our peoples, even if they have to ask as part of their preparatory work.

While clans and sub-clans of villages have their distinctive titles, reference to their village title is acceptable when the forenames are not known. In some cases villages have no distinctive titles using instead the title of the chiefly village that governs them.

THE FIJI-KAVA-CEREMONY PARAPHERNALIA

At each fiji-kava-ceremony the following are required:

1. Pounded kava and water,

2. Kava Strainer,

3. Tanoa; a wooden bowl carved explicitly for this purpose, with a length of woven coconut coir attached to a "bulivula" (Ovula ovum) - akin to a golden cowrie seashell,

4. Kava bowls; fashioned exquisitely from coconut shells,

5. A person to mix the kava, flanked by two others on either side of him,

6. A person to deliver the kava bowl to the main guest, and for dignitaries

7. A group to chant the kava dance mantra, for the cup bearer to dance his way to deliver the VIP's bowl of kava.

Now for the first fiji kava ceremony...

THE "SEVUSEVU"

If the welcoming party is aware of the visiting delegation, it is customary they present their "sevusevu" first before the visitors reciprocate.

After this "sevusevu" presentation, a round of kava drinking ensues from the mixture made ready before the "sevusevu" was presented.

Alternatively, if the visitor arrives unannounced then the visiting delegation ought to present their "sevusevu" first.

After the visitors or welcoming party have presented their "sevusevu", it is received with great solemnity by the leader of the unit, or one of his nominees.

After the "sevusevu" presentations have ended, small talk then ensues which should lead into the matter to be discussed. It should be noted that at some point before the meeting is ended, both parties' kava "sevusevu" should be drunk, as fulfillment of the reception.

Now for the second type of fiji kava ceremony...

THE "YAQONA VAKATURAGA" or "CHIEFLY FIJI-KAVA-CEREMONY"

This is a more elaborate fiji-kava-ceremony reserved for dignitaries.

After the "sevusevu" is presented to the dignitary by the welcoming party, the first bowl of kava for the dignitary to drink is then presented, all while a kava mantra is chanted by a designated group.

Each high chief of our islands has his own kava mantra, and this is accorded him whenever he is welcomed. On occasions when visiting dignitaries are welcomed one of such mantras is chosen.

"Na iWase Ni Yaqona" or The Symbolic Food Gesture

After the dignitary has drunk the first bowl followed by his seal of approval by having his herald drink the second bowl, the leader of the welcoming party then drinks a bowl - again confirmed by his herald - and at this juncture the "tanoa" of kava should be empty.

Care should thus be taken before mixing the kava to first decide the number of bowls to be served, so as to empty the "tanoa" at the right time.

After the "yaqona vakaturaga" is drunk, a basket of (baked) root crops along with a roasted pig or turtle or if these are unavailable, a carcass of beef or fish is then placed before the dignitary, as a sampling of the foods he/she will dine on.

A designated member of the welcoming party then approaches the basket of food and while kneeling beside it, utters the presentation discourse by addressing the dignitary and extolling the privilege of the visitation.

At the end of this presentation it is then time for the dignitary to speak, first, to thank those present for the reception, then to divulge a bit of the reasons behind the visit. This gives the people a chance to prepare themselves for the discussions that follow.

After the dignitary has spoken, the people's designated spokesman offers a thank you speech ("ULIVI NI VOSA"), the gist of which is a reconfirmation amongst those gathered of the reverence placed on the visitation and their plea that the dignitary's stay is a pleasant one, that it will bring 'good living' and the pleasure of the forces that guides us.

Generally ending the fiji-kava-ceremony is a "MEKE" which is a choreographed dance of between 9 to 100+ dancers. This exuberant revelry of joy and finesse is normally held to break the solemnity of the foregoing, when all had been still and paying attention.

We hope you will visit someday, experience our Fiji-kava-ceremony but above all help lift the Kava Bans that are killing our unborn babies.