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Tangaroa – the sea

by  Te Ahukaramū Charles Royal

Ki te Māori, ko te moana te takenga o ngā mea katoa. I hīia ake te whenua i te moana, i ahu mai te tangata i te ika oneone. Heoi, arā anō te wairua orotā a Tangaroa. He maha ngā kōrero ā ngā tūpuna mō te tātāhau a Tangaroa ki te hunga kāore ia i pai.


The importance of the sea

Mai anō he iwi noho moutere te iwi Māori me ngā iwi o Te Moananui-a-Kiwa. Koia pū te take ka whai hiranga te wai me Tangaroa i te tirohanga a te Māori ki te ao. He kōrero anō e kī ana ko te moana te takenga o te oranga o ngā mea katoa; he ika ngā motu i hiia ake i te takere o te moana; i hua mai te tangata i te moana.

He maha ngā kaupapa i nui ai te mana o te moana ki te Māori me ngā iwi o Te Moananui-a-Kiwa. He pātaka kai, he mahinga rawa te moana. Tērā ētahi moutere o Te Moananui-a-Kiwa ka pōkia e te moana ia tau. Koinei ka mataku, ka wehi aua iwi kāinga i te moana. I te taunga o te Māori ki Aotearoa, nā te nui o ngā rawa o te whenua, ka iti haere te mana o te moana. Hāunga tērā, ka mau tonu te wehi a te iwi Māori mō te moana.

Te orokohanga

Nā Ruatepupuke rāua ko Mataora ngā toi o te whakairo me te tā moko i huhuti i te takere o te moana. He whakapapa ā te Māori ka whakaheke mai i te ika, te ika oneone (amphibian), tatū rawa ai ki te tangata. Ko ngā whakairo i ngā wharenui puta noa i te motu ka whakaatu i tēnei ariā - ngā ūpoko nui, ngā matimati e toru, ngā tinana ka rite ki te tuna.

Ngā kōrero a te Māori

He whakapapa ā te Māori ka heke iho i ngā ika, ngā tipu o te moana. He nui ngā pakiwaitara mō ngā nekenekehanga i te takere o te moana. Ko tētahi o ngā tino kōrero mō Tinirau te tipuna o ngā ika, i mauāhara ki a Kae, nāna i patu te tohorā a Tinirau.

Ngā momo wai

Ki tā te Māori he rerekē tēnā me tēnā wai. Hei tauira, he wā ka marino te moana, he wā ka tātāhau. He hiringa nui kei te wai, he maha ōna āhua. Kei reira te oranga me te mate. Ko tōna ingoa ko Tangaroa. He whāiti rawa te ingoa ‘atua o te moana’ mōna.


Creation

Tangaroa – nā Rangi rāua ko Papa

Ko Tangaroa tētahi o ngā tamariki e 70 a Papatūānuku rāua ko Ranginui. Nō te wehenga o ō rātou mātua, ka puta ngā tamariki ki te ao.

Tangaroa – te tāne a Papa

Kei ētahi kōrero ko Tangaroa te tāne a Papatūānuku, ā, ko Ranginui tōna hoa tauwhāinga. Ko tēnei kōrero nā Hūkiki Te Ahukaramū o Ngāti Raukawa ki a Te Mākarini (Sir Donald McLean) i te tau 1856:

Ka moe (a) Rangi i a Papatūānuku, te wahine o Tangaroa, i pūremutia e Rangi … Ka puta ki waho ko … Tānenui-a-rangi … Ka whakaaro rātou kia puta iho te rā i te kēkē o Rangi. Ka mea (a) Tānenui-a-rangi ‘Tēnei te rā kei runga e whiti ana.’ Ka mea (ia), ‘Me toko tō tātou matua kia waiho ko te wahine ko Papa hei matua mō tātou.’ Ka mea rātou, ‘Tokona, wehea rāua, kia tau kē te wahine kia tau kē te tāne, kia tupu ai tātou ki te Ao.’ Kātahi ka tokona te rangi. E tū iho ana a Rangi; e takoto nei a Papa. 1

Nā te nui o te wāhi ki te wai i tēnei pūrākau, tērā peā i ahu mai tēnei kōrero i ngā motu o Te Moananui-a-Kiwa. Ka wehea e Tāne ngā hoa pūremu, ka hoki a Papa ki raro i te wai, ko te whenua anake kei runga ake i te wai. He kupu te whenua mō te papa whenua e takoto iho nei me te ewe. Arā anō tērā ingoa mō te moutere, he motutere, arā, he motu e tere ana i te wai.

Footnotes
  1. Tirohia a Te Ahukaramū Charles Royal, Native traditions by Hūkiki te Ahu Karamū o Otaki, Jany 1st 1856. Ōtaki: Te Wānanga-o-Raukawa, 2003. › Back

Tinirau and Kae

Nō mua rā anō te kōrero mō Tinirau rāua ko Kae, kei Aotearoa, kei ngā moutere hoki o Te Moananui-a-Kiwa. Ko Tinirau te tipuna o ngā ika katoa. Ko Te Motutapu-o-Tinirau tōna kāinga. Ki ētahi, kei raro tēnei kāinga i te moana. Kīia ai te iwi o Kae, ko Te Aitanga-a-Te Poporokewa (Ngā Uri o Poporokewa – he tohorā).

Te tohi i a Tūhuruhuru

Ka whānau mai a Tūhuruhuru, tama a Tinirau rāua ko Hine te iwaiwa, ka haere a Tinirau ki te rapu tohunga hei whakahaere i te tohi. Ko tōna haerenga tērā ki Te Tihi-o-Manono, ki reira ka tīkina a Kae hei tohi i a Tūhuruhuru. Ko tō rāua hokinga tērā ki Te Motutapu-a-Tinirau. Ka tohia te tamaiti rā. Ka tono a Tinirau ki a Tutunui tana tohorā mōkai, ka tapahia tētahi wāhanga o tōna kiko hei utu i a Kae. Ahakoa te waka i whakaratoa e Tinirau hei whakahoki i a ia ki tōna kāinga, ka hiahia a Kae mā te tohorā kē a ia e mau ki tōna kāinga. Ahakoa tana āwangawanga ka whakaae a Tinirau. Ka tohu ia ki a Kae, kia tata ki uta ka oraora te tohorā, me maunu a Kae.

Te matenga o Tutunui

Tē aro atu o Kae, arahina ana e ia a Tutunui ki uta, pae rawa. Kātahi ka haehaea, ka taona te tohorā ra ki ngā umu o te iwi o Kae. Kawea ana e te hau te kakara o te kiko o Tutunui ki a Tinirau. Ka whakarite a Hine te iwaiwa i tētahi tira wāhine tae atu ki a Raukatauri te atua o te pūtōrino - kia haere ki te kāinga o Kae ki te hopu i a ia. Nā tō rātou kūare ki tōna āhua ake, ka meatia atu rātou kia whakangahautia te hau kāinga kia kata, e kitea ai ngā niho tāpiki o Kae.

Ka hopukina a Kae

Nō te taenga atu o te tira wāhine rā ki te kāinga o Kae, i te huihui ngā tāngata ki te whare tapere mō ngā whakangahau o te pō. E noho ana a Kae i tōna nohoanga ka tata ki te whatitoka o te whare. Ka haka ngā wāhine rā, ka kōrero i ngā pūrākau, tē kata a Kae. Kia mahi rā anō rātou i te oni ka kata a Kae, ka kite ngā wāhine rā, ko Kae tērā me ōna niho tāpiki. Nāwai ā, ka warea a Kae me tōna iwi i te moe. Kātahi ka mauria a ia e ngā wāhine rā ki te moutere o Tinirau, ki roto i tētahi whare ōrite ana ki tōna ake. Nō tana ohonga ake ka pātai ia he aha te take kei te noho a Tinirau kei roto i tōna whare. I reira ka patua a Kae e Tinirau, ka ea te patunga o Tutunui.


Ruatepupuke and the origin of carving

He nui te kōrero mō te tūhuratanga o te whakairo i te takere o te moana, mō te mauheretanga o Te Manuhauturuki, te tama a Ruatepupuke. Nā Tangaroa a Te Manu i mauhere, ka whakairi ki te maihi o tōna whare kei te moana uriuri. Ko te marangatanga tērā o Ruatepupuke ki te rapu i tana tama.

Nā Mohi Ruatapu rāua ko Hēnare Pōtae o Ngāti Porou tēnei rerenga kōrero:

Ko ngā kōrero tēnei o Rua-te-pupuke nāna te whakairo i kite, te take i kitea ai he haerenga nō tana tamaiti, nō Te Manuhauturuki ki te whakatetere waka. Ka hopukia mai e Tangaroa taua tamaiti, ka kawea ki tōna kāinga ka meatia hei tekoteko nō runga i tōna whare. Nō te ngaromanga ka haere tōna matua ki te rapu…rokohanga atu e ia e noho ana tōna tamaiti i runga i te whare ...
Ka tae ia ki roto ki te whare e kōrero ana ngā poupou whakairo ki a rātou anō. Ka rongo ia e kōrero ana ngā poupou, ko ngā mea o waho i noho puku. Mahi ana hoki ia i taua whare … tō noa te rā ka tae mai a Tangaroa rātou ko tōna whānau, ka moe i roto i tō rātou whare. Kei te haka, kei te kū, kei te whai, kei te tākaro, tā te tini tāna mahi, whano tata ki te awatea ka moe. Kua ao te rā kei te pōuri anō te whare …
Kua tae a Rua-te-pupuke kei te roro o te whare e noho ana, me te toki i tōna ringa hei patu. Ka tahuna e ia te whare ki te ahi, ka rere mai ngā tāngata ki waho, a Kanae … I muri ko Maroro … I muri ko Kōkiri … Ko ngā tamariki katoa a Tangaroa i mate katoa … Ka tangohia e ia ngā poupou o waho o taua whare, nō ngā mea kāore e kōrero, nō reira i kore ai e kōrero ai te whakairi i nāia nei. 1
Footnotes
  1. Journal of the Polynesian Society 37 (1928): 261. › Back

Water as the source of life

Puta i te ao kei tēnā iwi, kei tēnā iwi āna kōrero, tikanga, ahurea ka pā ki te wai – tōna āhua, ōna momo, tōna kaha, tōna mārire. He rite te wai ki te ahi, arā, he oranga kei roto ka haere ngātahi me te orotā. Ka whakamahi ngā tohunga i te wai hei ārahi, hei tiaki i te tangata, i whakapono hoki rātou, arā atu anō ngā taha o te tangata ka tareka e te wai te horoi, kāpā ko te taha kikokiko anake.

Taha wairua

He maha ngā kōrero a tēnā iwi, a tēnā iwi ka kī, ko te wai te takenga o ngā mea katoa. Inarā ka kōrero te Māori mō te taha wairua.

Ko te taha wairua, koia tērā ko te ‘ao tūturu’, arā, te ao ka kitea ā-kanohi me te ao kei tua o tērā. E ai ki ngā tūpuna, ko tā te tangata he āta titiro, he āta whakarongo ki tōna ao, kāpā ki āna ake nekenekehanga ia rā. Ki te wāhia te kupu ‘wairua’ ka tū mai ko ngā kupu ‘wai’ me ‘rua’, arā, ‘ngā ao e rua’. Hei tēnei ariā, he kupu whakarite te wai mō te wairuatanga.

Ko ētahi pea ka whakapae, ko te ‘taha wairua’ koia tērā ko te takenga o ngā mea ora katoa, ka mutu he wai tōna āhua.

Ngā momo wai

He tikanga tā te wai mō tēnā take, mō tēnā take, e whai iho nei:

  • waikino – he wai mōrearea pērā i te moana pohepohe, i te awa waipuke rānei
  • waitapu – he wai mō ngā mahi tapu, mō te tā i te kawa
  • waimāori – he wai horomata, pūrena i te mauri; hei horoi, hei whakawātea tapu
  • waitai – wai moana, mātaitai
  • waimanawa whenua – he wai ka pupū ake i te whenua
  • waikarakia – he wai mō te whakahaere karakia
  • waiwhakaika, waikotikoti – he wai mō te tapahi makawe.

Hononga, rauemi nō waho

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How to cite this page: Te Ahukaramū Charles Royal, 'Tangaroa – the sea', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/mi/tangaroa/print (accessed 29 March 2024)

He kōrero nā Te Ahukaramū Charles Royal, i tāngia i te 12 o Hune 2006