thumb|right|250px|Mararu: Offerings of gratitude to Tahitian goddess Hina. Woodcut by [[Paul Gauguin (1894).]]
Hina is the name assigned to a number of Polynesian deities. The name Hina usually relates to a powerful female force (typically a goddess or queen) who has dominion over a specific entity. Some variations of the name Hina include Sina, Hanaiakamalama, and Ina. Even within a single culture, Hina could refer to multiple goddesses and the distinction between the different identities are not always clear. In Hawaiian mythology, the name is usually paired with words which explain or identify the goddess and her power such as Hina-puku-iʻa (Hina-gathering-seafood) the goddess of fishermen, and Hina-ʻopu-hala-koʻa who gave birth to all reef life.
Hina continues to be a figure in many of the Polynesian religions and her stories serve as traditions that unite Polynesia, specifically the Hawaiian Islands.
Hina was the mother of Tuhuruhuru, for whom the ritual initiation ritual was performed by the Kae. After this is done, Tinirau lends Kae his pet whale to take him home. In spite of strict instructions to the contrary, Kae forces the whale, Tutunui, into shallow water, where it becomes stranded and is killed, roasted and eaten by Kae and his people. When he learns of this Tinirau is furious and sends Hinauri with a party of women (often they are Tinirau's sisters) to capture Kae. The sisters perform indecent dances to make him laugh so they can see his crooked teeth. Then the women sing a magic song which puts Kae into a deep sleep, and carry him back to Motutapu. When Kae wakes from his sleep he is in Tinirau's house. Tinirau taunts him for his treachery, and kills him (Grey 1970:69, Tregear 1891:110).
After they had been together for a while, one day Tuna told Hina that there would be a great downpour the next day. He would be washed up onto the threshold of her house in his eel-form. When that happened, Tuna said, Hina must cut off his head and bury it, and then regularly visit the place where the head had been buried.
Hina obeyed Tuna, returning faithfully to watch the place where she had buried his head. After many days, she saw a shoot sprout from the spot. Another shoot appeared, and the two shoots grew into a pair of coconut trees—the first coconut trees known to man.
In Mangaian tradition, the coconut's white flesh is called "Tuna’s brains", and it is said that one can see a face when one looks at the shell of a coconut.
Tuamotu and Tahiti
For a time, the goddess Hina lived as the wife of Te Tuna, the god of eels. But she grew tired of him and decided to seek love elsewhere. Telling Tuna that she was going to get him some delicious food, Hina left him and went onto land.
Hina went from place to place, seeking a lover. But all the men she met were afraid to take Tuna's wife, fearing the eel-god's vengeance. Finally she met Māui, whose mother Taranga urged him to take the goddess as his wife.
When the people round about learned that Māui had taken Hina as his wife, they went to tell Tuna. At first, Tuna didn't care, but the people annoyed him about it so much that he eventually vowed to win back his wife from Māui.
Along with four companions, Tuna rushed toward Māui's home, carried by a huge wave. But Māui's power turned back the wave and left Tuna and his companions beached on the reefs. Māui killed three of Tuna's companions, while one escaped with a broken leg. Tuna himself Māui spared.
Tuna actually lived in peace in Māui's home for some time. But one day, Tuna challenged Māui to a duel. Each would take a turn leaping into the others’ body and trying to kill him. If Tuna killed Māui, then Tuna would take his wife back. Tuna's turn came first: he made himself small and entered Māui's body. When he came back out, Māui was intact. Now it was Māui's turn: Māui made himself small and entered Tuna's body, tearing it apart. Māui cut off Tuna's head and, at his mother's suggestion, buried it in a corner of his house.
In time, a shoot sprouted from Tuna's buried head and grew into a coconut tree. That was how humankind acquired coconuts.
Hawaii
thumb|Wooden carved [[tiki|kiʻi of Hina (right) and Kūkaʻilimoku (left)]]
Even within Hawaiian mythology, Hina could refer to multiple different goddesses. Differentiating between these deities can be ambiguous and is highly debated. However, there are three specific Hawaiian deities named Hina who are widely known and can be distinguished from each other. The consorts of Hina include Chief ʻAikanaka, Sky Father Wākea and/or Akalana with whom she gave birth to several children including Māui.
Legends of Hina and Māui
Many stories about the goddess Hina, especially in connection with the moon, can be found in chapter 15 (“Hina Myths”) of Martha Beckwith’s Hawaiian Mythology.
The legendary birth of Hina's son, Māui, is described as a supernatural conception after Hina wore a red loincloth she found on the ocean shore. After birth, Hina wrapped locks of her hair around her infant son and set him on a bed of limu kala supported by jellyfish in the sea. Māui then traveled to Kuaihelani where he acquired his famous powers. Legend says when he returned, Māui performed incredible acts such as slowing the sun to make the days longer for Hina's work.