Nan Sapwe

deity · Micronesia · Pacific

Nan Sapwe (Nahn Sapwe, Nansapwe) is the thunder god and supreme celestial sovereign of Pohnpei, whose authority spans the layered heavens and shapes the island's political order. In the most widely told cycle of Pohnpeian sacred history, he is the divine father of Isokelekel, who overthrew the oppressive Saudeleur dynasty. When the Saudeleur lord imprisoned Nan Sapwe for seducing his wife, the thunder god withdrew to Katau and later gave his aged clanswoman Lipahnmei a tart lime to eat, making her pregnant with the avenging hero.

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