Kava

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l e g e n d a r ye l i x i r

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Kava: The art, tales and controversiesof Polynesia’s 3,000-year-old medicine.



The origins of kava are steeped in mythological

tales of mourning and spiritual beings. On the Pentecost

Island in Vanuatu, there’s the story of the distraught orphaned

boy who buried his twin sister only to return a week later to

her grave to find the growth of a mysterious plant; or the tale

of the Samoan deity Tagaloa, who hailed kava as the “nectar

of the gods.” Recognized by many as a medicine birthed from

the heavens or a symbolic phallus that gives life to an other-

wise barren and remote land, kava has impacted generations

of Polynesians who deem it “the water of life.”

Traced back thousands of years throughout the Pacific,

kava—the common English term—has been used as a cere-

monial gift for a special occasion or as a sign of respect before

visiting someone’s home. Although kava is used throughout

Polynesia, its name appears in at least 80 different iterations,

including ‘awa in Hawai‘i, ava in Samoa and yaqona in Fiji.

“A lot of our rituals and protocols involve [kava],” says

Inoke Seru Suguturaga, the manager of the Fijian village at the

Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie, O‘ahu, and a native of the

village of Mokani in Fiji. “Whether you’re a visitor to one of the

villages within Fiji or a local heading to your cousin’s house for

(Right) Harvesting the kava plant can take place any time of the year, but once the roots have been extracted, it then takes another three years before the next roots are harvestable. (Center) During the kava ceremony, the root is ground (above left) strained then methodically added to cold water.





Traditionally, kava is prepared by either chewing, grinding or pounding the roots. Grinding is accomplished by hand against a cone-shaped block of dead coral; the hand forms a mortar and the coral a pestle. The ground root is

combined with only a little water, as the fresh root releases moisture during the grinding process. Pounding is normally done against a large stone with a small log. The product is then added to cold water and consumed as quickly as possible.

dinner, the sevu sevu (presentation of the kava root) is shared

among the visitors and their hosts. It’s to show respect,” he

continues. “You present your sevu sevu to the chief or host

and if they accept it, that means they are allowing you to visit.”

Derived from the pepper family Piperaceae, which

includes more than 2,000 species of herbs, shrubs, small

trees and woody climbers, kava is made from the plant Piper

methysticum, a hardy, slow-growing perennial that can reach

heights of more than 9 feet tall. In “Kava—The Pacific Elixir,”

Vincent Lebot, Mark Merlin and Lamont Lindstrom write

about the birth of kava, explaining how local men uprooted

the plant then pounded it into smaller pieces on a stone.

Virgin girls (or boys in southern Vanuatu) were then obliged

to masticate the root then place it on a banana leaf or into a

large bowl filled with cold water. After it was strained, kava

was served in halved coconut shells to the assembled drink-

ers. By the 19th century, although the method had been car-

ried out for thousands of years prior, colonial administrators

and missionaries claimed the practice unsanitary and it has

since nearly disappeared.

Today, kava is cultivated through its root, which is

pounded into a fine powder then strained and served to

Kava consumers can expect to feel a tingling sensation on their tongue and eventually numbness and relaxation throughout their entire body. Used primarily in Fiji as a social drink, kava is often abused by those looking for a “quick buzz.”


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Kava plants are harvested around four years of age. The plant’s root is classified

under two categories: crown or lateral. (Above left) Crown roots are large-

diameter pieces while lateral roots (above right) are smaller in size and resemble

more a typical root. (Above center) After harvesting, the roots are trimmed into

smaller pieces then dried in sunlight.

distinguished guests. As participants sit in a circle around

meticulously carved kava bowls, the drinking order proceeds

and serves as a model of chiefly hierarchy or head of the

household. In a less-than-formal setting, kava is used as an

end-of-the-day drink without regard to one’s social status.

“To a lot of people, it tastes like muddy water,” says Dr. H.C.

“Skip” Bittenbender, an extension specialist at the University

of Hawai‘i at Mānoa for coffee, kava and cacao. “But it’s a great

way to relax.”

Kava consumers can expect to feel a tingling sensation

on their tongue and eventually numbness and relaxation

throughout their entire body. Used primarily in Fiji as a social

drink, kava is often abused by those looking for a “quick

buzz.” In the early to late 1980s, when kava became popular in

Western culture, demand grew for kava-manufactured prod-

ucts. By the late 1990s, kava products were found in abun-

dance, and reports of liver failure quickly followed throughout

parts of Europe and the United States. Bittenbender says the

difference that scientists found with the concentrated kava

supplements was its simple cultivation method.

“What had happened was they were using the entire plant,”

Bittenbender says. “When you do that, the leaves and parts of

the root are toxic … Polynesians have known that for thousands

of years. The companies didn’t think to consider that.”

“Kava, like anything else, is best done in moderation,”

Suguturaga warns. “Our ancestors had not designed [kava] for

the purpose of drinking in excess. I can understand some man-

ufacturers’ perspective, for they want to get the most mileage

out of the plant; but they should have done their homework.”

Previous studies of kava supplements have determined

that the chemistry of kava — when processed properly — is

far less perilous than the effects of alcohol. Kava is neither a

hallucinogen nor a stupefacient. Rather, it is a mild narcotic,

a soporific, a diuretic and a major muscle relaxant. Owner of


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Fiji Kava in Honolulu, Daya Nand, lauds the use of kava for its

overall medicinal healing and euphoric-mood benefits.

“Kava is good for the mind and body,” says Nand, an Indo-

Fijian whose popular kava shop is found on Honolulu’s busy

Dillingham Boulevard. “It’s nothing like alcohol; many people

often make that mistake. It makes you relaxed, happy but

your mind stays sharp.”

Like Suguturaga and Bittenbender, Nand believes the drink

in moderation is a practice he would like to see continue with

each new generation.

“I’m happy to share it with others who are interested,”

Nand says smiling. “That’s what kava is all about.”

Suguturaga agrees. Although he has reservations about

the widespread and casual usage of kava in Fiji and through-

out Polynesia — as opposed to the “sacred” validity that is

seldom practiced today — Suguturaga believes the communal

effect of the kava drink supersedes its reputation for having

tranquil and anti-anxiety healing benefits.

“In Fiji we have a saying: gunu yaqona mo manoa,”

Suguturaga says. “It translates to ‘drink kava to become mel-

low.’ In Fijian culture, kava is used to solve many problems and

issues. We use kava to gather around and discuss any con-

cerns and ultimately resolve them and move on.”

Kava — a drink associated with creating peace and har-

mony among chiefs, locals and outsiders — has grown into

a symbol of esteem and civility that Suguturaga is proud to

relate to his Fijian culture.

“One of the reputations that Fijians have is that we’re very

happy people,” Suguturaga says. “Kava is a part of that in a

way because we take the time to show mutual respect among

each other. When you establish respect, it creates a type of

protocol of resolution and creates peace.”

“One of the reputations that Fijians have is that we’re very happy people. Kava is part of that in a way because we take the time to show mutual respect ... When you establish respect, it creates a type of protocol of resolution and peace.”

Water is slowly added to grounded kava. In Fiji, a formal yaqona (kava) ceremony often accompanies important religious, social and

political functions, which usually involve a ritual presentation of the bundled roots as a sevu sevu (gift), and then drinking of the yaqona itself.

—InOKe Seru Suguturaga

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Kava