Story: Māori creation traditions

Tāwhirimātea

Tāwhirimātea

This mural depicts Tāwhirimātea, god of the winds and weather, struggling to control his children, shown as blue spiral forms. Te Rā, the sun, is in the top left corner, and Te Marama, the moon, is in the opposite corner. At top right is a reference to the separation of Rangi and Papa. The blue waves and fronds above Tāwhirimātea suggest his brothers Tangaroa and Tāne.

Using this item

Metservice New Zealand
Mixed media by Cliff Whiting

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page:

Te Ahukaramū Charles Royal, 'Māori creation traditions - Common threads in creation stories', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/artwork/2444/tawhirimatea (accessed 29 March 2024)

Story by Te Ahukaramū Charles Royal, published 8 Feb 2005