FIJIAN CUSTOMS IN PRACTICE

 FIJIAN CUSTOMS IN PRACTICE: A Guide to Family Ceremonies and Cultural Protocols for the Diaspora

How do you welcome a visitor, introduce a child to their ancestral family, or offer condolences when the relatives who taught you these customs live far away?

Fijian Customs in Practice is a guide for Fijians in the diaspora who want to take part in family and community occasions with understanding and care. Sai Lealea MNZM explains the relationships behind customary presentations and offers practical ways to prepare for visits, welcomes, births, weddings, funerals and reconciliation.

The book explores vanua and ai cavuti, the roles of hosts and visitors, and the meaning of presentations such as iSevusevu, roqoroqo, reguregu and matanigasau. It includes questions to ask before an occasion, examples of words to learn and adapt, and a glossary of Fijian terms.

Customs vary between families and places. This guide encourages readers to seek the advice of elders and customary representatives, speak with respect, and help younger generations understand what they are witnessing. It is a practical companion to Sai Lealea’s Ai Cavuti for anyone seeking to keep Fijian connections alive across distance.

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AI CAVUTI: Revised 2026 Author's Edition

A I Cavuti: Chiefly Titles of Provinces & Districts in Fiji

Discover the rich heritage and traditional leadership structure of Indigenous Fiji through A I Cavuti. 

This informative guide explores the chiefly titles, provinces (yasana), districts (tikina), and cultural affiliations that form the foundation of Fijian society. Drawing on traditional knowledge and customs, the book explains how Fijians identify their ancestry, social status, and cultural roots through the system known as Ai Cavuti. 

Ideal for students, researchers, cultural enthusiasts, and anyone interested in Fijian history and tradition, this book provides a valuable reference to the chiefly titles and customary hierarchies found throughout Fiji's 14 provinces.

Key Features

• Overview of Fiji's traditional social and chiefly structures
• Detailed reference to provincial and district chiefly titles
• Insights into Indigenous Fijian heritage and customs
• Useful resource for cultural studies, genealogy, and research
• Easy-to-reference format for students and visitors to Fiji [amazon.in], [yumpu.com]

This book serves as a practical guide to understanding the cultural identity, ancestral connections, and traditional leadership systems that continue to shape Fijian society today.

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The Sharks of Vunilagi: A Pacific Thriller

The sea spared him once. The island changed him forever.

When English sailor Thomas Vale survives a shipwreck in the remote Fiji islands, he believes his greatest battle is over. Instead, he is drawn into the dangerous world of Vunilagi—an island divided by warfare, ancient loyalties and sacred traditions.

Taken in by the formidable Ratu Qoro, Thomas marries the chief’s daughter, Adi Litia, and is reborn as Tomasi. Over the years, he gains a family, a people and a place among the island’s warriors. But acceptance comes at a terrible price: to belong, he must take part in customs that once filled him with horror.

The arrival of Christian missionaries forces Tomasi to confront the man he has become. Yet abandoning the old ways proves almost impossible—until his own daughter, Mereani, is captured in battle and marked for a ceremonial feast.

Tomasi risks everything to rescue her. Their escape carries them into the open Pacific, where a capsized canoe leaves father and daughter swimming for two nights through shark-filled waters. Guided by the ancestral sharks of Mereani’s people, they struggle toward the distant reef and the possibility of home.

But the sea has not finished with them.

Set against the beauty and danger of the Fiji Islands, The Sharks of Vunilagi is a gripping Pacific tale of shipwreck, cultural transformation, forbidden loyalties, faith, sacrifice and redemption. It is a story about the terrible choices people make to belong—and the extraordinary courage required to change.

A work of fiction inspired in part by a real tragedy at sea and by the enduring strength, spirituality and traditions of Fiji’s island communities.

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MY FIJI: POLICY, PEOPLE AND POSSIBILITIES

 MY FIJI: POLICY, PEOPLE AND POSSIBILITIES: Reflections and Policy Prescriptions for a Stronger, Fairer and More Prosperous Fiji

What kind of Fiji do we want to leave to future generations and what must change to achieve it?

MY FIJI: POLICY, PEOPLE AND POSSIBILITIES is a thoughtful and forthright examination of the constitutional, political, economic and social issues shaping Fiji’s future.

Drawing on decades of experience in public policy, governance, community leadership and advocacy, Sai Lealea MNZM considers some of the country’s most difficult questions: How can democratic government be strengthened? How should the rights and aspirations of the iTaukei people be protected? What reforms are needed to improve public accountability, economic participation and the management of Fiji’s natural resources? And how can Fiji build institutions that genuinely serve its people?

The book presents practical policy prescriptions across a wide range of national concerns, including:

• Constitutional and electoral reform
• Democracy, the rule of law and accountable government
• The future role and independence of the Great Council of Chiefs
• iTaukei land, fisheries, minerals and customary resource rights
• Reform of public institutions and anti-corruption arrangements
• Economic development, investment and industry ownership
• Education, housing and community development
• Fiji’s military, national security and civil governance
• Diaspora participation and Fiji’s place in the wider Pacific

Written from an unapologetically pro-democracy and pro-Fiji perspective, this is not simply a critique of past governments or existing laws. It is a call for courageous leadership, informed public debate and practical reform.

My Fiji will interest policymakers, political and community leaders, students, researchers, members of the Fijian diaspora, and everyone who believes that Fiji can become more democratic, prosperous, inclusive and confident in its identity.

This is one citizen’s contribution to the continuing national conversation and an invitation to all Fiji Islanders to help shape a better future.

Paperback and Hardcover editions available soon on Amazon!

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MANAGING A DIFFICULT DIVORCE

 

MANAGING A DIFFICULT DIVORCE: How to Protect Yourself, Protect Your Children, Make Better Decisions and Move Forward

by Sai Lealea MNZM

Divorce is difficult enough. A high-conflict divorce can consume your attention, your finances, your family relationships and your sense of perspective.

Managing a Difficult Divorce is a practical, compassionate guide to making better decisions when separation becomes emotionally charged, financially complicated or persistently adversarial. Drawing on personal experience and hard-earned lessons, Sai Lealea MNZM focuses on a simple objective: protect what matters, reduce unnecessary damage and build a workable path forward.

Inside, you will learn how to recognise repeating conflict patterns without diagnosing your former partner; communicate without feeding arguments; protect children from adult conflict; organise financial and property information; choose and manage lawyers and other professionals; decide when negotiation, mediation or court may be appropriate; document serious problems without letting the dispute take over your life; evaluate settlement realistically; and rebuild after the legal process ends.

The book is deliberately jurisdiction-neutral. It does not tell you what the law is in one country. Instead, it helps you ask better questions, prepare more effectively and know when local legal, financial, child-safety or specialist advice is essential.

This is not a book about defeating your former spouse. It is about getting through a difficult divorce with greater clarity, protecting your children and future, and reaching the point where the divorce no longer defines your life.

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