He rākau kaha, whai mana te tōtara. Koinei pea te rākau whakahirahira ake o ngā rākau o te wao tapu a Tāne.
Whakarongo mai rā ki a Huirangi Waikerepuru o Te Āti Awa me āna whakamārama mō te whakataukī, ‘Ka hinga te tōtara o te wao nui o Tāne’.
Tuhinga
Kua hinga te tōtara o Te Waonui o Tāne and what are we saying in fact? And why? Because a tōtara is part of that forest and it is significant not only for its physical appearance, but what it provided for man's use. So the mere fact of using the tōtara in symbolising the magnificence of the tree, but also it signifies magnificence of man himself. So when you say kua hinga te tōtara o Te Waonui o Tāne, then you understand straight away that that person that has died is a man the very high standing in the community.
Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi
Reference: 47306
Image: Natural Sciences Image Library of New Zealand, Gy0014smt, by Peter E. Smith
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.