Fafie was a deified high chief of Fakaofo, fourth in the traditional king-list, who was honored as the tutelary god (aitu) of the Sulu clan and was worshipped even before his death; he is said to have become king of Fakaofo on the death of Leua, before which more than two hundred people had already given him allegiance and offered him sacrifice. As a god he took the form of a great canoe and lived in voyaging canoes, ruling the destinies of those who travelled between the atolls and Samoa or the neighbouring island groups. A coral slab was raised to him beside that of Tui Tokelau at Atafu, while at Fakaofo his god-house and slab were set apart from those of Tui Tokelau and Te Moana. His name also figures in traditions of Tokelauan settlement at Uvea (Wallis Island), to which he is said to have voyaged before returning home.