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There was widespread belief in ghosts in Polynesian culture, some of which persists today. After death, a person's ghost would normally travel to the sky world or the underworld, but some could stay on earth. In many Polynesian legends, ghosts were often actively involved in the affairs of the living. Ghosts might also cause sickness or even invade the body of ordinary people, to be driven out through strong medicines. ==Ghost spirit== In the reconstructed Proto-Polynesian language, the word " *qaitu"〔 *q in reconstructed Proto-Polynesian words indicates a glottal stop.〕 refers to a ghost, the spirit of a dead person, while the word " *tupuqa" has a broader meaning including all supernatural beings. Some of the ancient Māui legends that are common throughout the Polynesian islands include the idea of a double soul inhabiting the body. One was the soul which never forsakes man, and the other the soul that could be separated or charmed away from the body by incantations was the "hau". In some societies, the tattoo marks on the Polynesian's face indicated their cult. A spiral symbol meant that the man favoured the sky world, but before ascending there on a whirlwind his ghost had to travel to his people's homeland, situated in the navel of the world. Different markings indicated that the ghost chose to live in the underworld. The Hawaiians believed in "aumakua", ghosts who did not go down into Po, the land of King Milu. These ghosts remained in the land of the living, guarding their former families.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Aumakuas, Or Ancestor-Ghosts )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「Ghosts in Polynesian culture」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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