One of the kahunas accepted a challenge from a spiritual priest.  The son of the priest had gone to a special altar where food was placed for a deity.  The son’s presence there was a sacrilege.  Tagalo Lagi sent down lightning and clove the boy in half, from his head to his legs. The grieving priest beseeched God to take into account that he had faithfully executed his ceremonial duties all his life, and that this was his only son. Tagalo took pity on him, and instructed the priest to fetch a plant that grew near a river, crush its root, mix it with water, pour it into a coconut cup, and spill it along the seam where the boy was cut in two.  When he’d done that, the boy came back to life, and the priest was joyous.  The act of bringing discordant sides together into one body became the basis for the kava ceremony.