According to ancient Hawaiian myth, Milu is the god of the dead and ruler of Lua-o-Milu. He is now thought to share analogs with

Hades Hades (; , , later ), in the ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, is the god of the dead and the king of the Greek underworld, underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea ...

. Under his command, are a host of beings known as spirit catchers who would trap wandering ghosts and bring them to his afterlife domain. He fought alongside

Ulupoka In Fijian and Polynesian mythology, Ulupoka is the god of evil and demons. According to legend, during a great battle between the gods, Ulupoka was beheaded by the other gods, but due to his divine nature, he did not die. The gods took Ulupoka's h ...

against Pele. In one legend, a chief harrowed of the loss of his wife, has his prayers answered and receives guidance from a deity who shows him the way into Milu's kingdom. They journey far out and find a tree split in two. Next they slide down it into the Earth's lower regions. Here, the deity hid behind a rock and covered the chief with odd smelling oil then sent him out by himself. Once the chief found Milu's palace, he noticed a group of spirits who were so distracted in the game they were playing, he was able to join, and luckily, when they did realize he was near them, they mistook him for a stinking ghost. When the crowd was finished, they wanted to play another game, hence the chief proposed they should all pull their eyes out and paid his attention to those belonging to Milu. He later caught them in a coconut cup and blinded the god. Now he was able to escape to

Wākea In the Hawaiian religion, Wākea, the Sky father weds Papahānaumoku, the earth mother. The two are considered the parent couple of the ruling chiefs of Hawaii. ''Wākea'' was the eldest son of Kahiko ("Ancient One"), who lived in Olalowa ...

's heaven, where the

Underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld. ...

's inhabitants could not set foot. Eventually a deal was made and Milu's eyes were returned, on the condition that the chief's wife's soul be brought back.

References

Hawaiian gods Underworld gods {{deity-stub