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Tales from the mythologies of Creation, Māui and Aoraki

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Tales from the mythologies of Creation, Māui and Aoraki

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This video legend tells the story of Māui and how he fished up the islands of New Zealand.

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Tales from the mythologies of Creation, Maui and Aoraki

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Whakapapa - Through knowing their whakapapa, whānau gain their identity, history and knowledge about where they come from and where they belong.

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Wellington Harbour's taniwha by Manatu Taonga

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Wellington Harbour's taniwha by Manatu Taonga

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Find out about Whātaitai and Ngake: two taniwha said to inhabit Wellington Harbour

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Wellington Harbour's taniwha - Roadside Stories

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Shadow puppet retell of gake and Whataitai: Taniwha of Wellington Harbour

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Shadow puppet retell of gake and Whataitai: Taniwha of Wellington Harbour

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By Benjamin Clark

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Ngake and Whataitai: Taniwha of Wellington Harbour Shadow Puppet Movie

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By Kiwi class at Plateau School, Te Marua, Upper Hutt

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Hear the legend of the taniwha Awarua of Porirua by

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Fun Pre-School Songs Finger Plays & Dances

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As a narrative assignment the year 5 children had to re-write the legend of Te Awarua o Porirua. They all had a go, and through a process, selected the one that best represented the story. We then allocated paragraphs to groups, and they created a picture to go wiht it.

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This photograph shows two islands in Wellington Harbour: Mokopuna (foreground), and Matiu (Somes Island). Also in Wellington Harbour is Mākaro (Ward Island), which is not visible in this view. Matiu and Mākaro are named after Kupe's daughters, whom he is said to have left behind. The New Zealand coast has many place names associated with things that Kupe left behind - including a son, dogs, taniwha (water monster), sails, fishing nets and a canoe bailer. By naming places and leaving his children and possessions, Kupe established a stake in the land and blazed a trail for other explorers after he had returned to Hawaiki. Kupe himself never came back to New Zealand.

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This photograph shows two islands in Wellington Harbour: Mokopuna (foreground), and Matiu (Somes Island). Also in Wellington Harbour is Mākaro (Ward Island), which is not visible in this view. Matiu and Mākaro are named after Kupe's daughters, whom he is said to have left behind. The New ...

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More information about Kupe from Te Ara 

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More information about Kupe from Te Ara 

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It is said that Kupe the great explorer was the first person from Polynesia to discover Aotearoa and he named many places during his journey.

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By Matapuna Training Centre

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Mauri, Kaitiakitanga

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Mauri is the life force and life supporting capacity which connects all things. This story tells how the mauri in a stream can be affected and restored. (Te Reo version is 00:00- 22:17) English version from 22:18- 45:00)

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Te Ara offers an explanation of mana, tapu and mauri

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The concepts of mana, tapu and mauri relate both to people and to the natural world.

Mana

Mana refers to an extraordinary power, essence or presence. This applies to the energies and presences of the natural world. There are degrees of mana and our experiences of it, and life seems to reach its fullness when mana comes into the world.

The most important mana comes from Te Kore - the realm beyond the world we can see, and sometimes thought to be the 'ultimate reality'.

Tapu

Certain restrictions, disciplines and commitments have to take place if mana is to be expressed in physical form, such as in a person or object. The concepts of sacredness, restriction and disciplines fall under the term tapu. For example, mountains that were important to particular tribal groups were often tapu, and the activities that took place on these mountains were restricted.

Mauri

Mauri is an energy which binds and animates all things in the physical world. Without mauri, mana cannot flow into a person or object.

The flow of mana

The idea that mana can flow into the world through tapu and mauri underpinned most of Māori daily life. For example, sacred stones possessing mauri were placed in fishing nets, where they were able to attract fish. The stones were placed in bird snares for the same purpose. When fish arrived in the nets or birds in the snares, Māori saw something more than just the creatures before them - they saw energy within these physical forms. The harvest of fish was the arrival of Tangaroa, god of the sea, which meant the arrival of mana.

Mauri stones were also used to prepare people who would receive mana. In the traditional whare wānanga (school of learning), small pebbles (whatu) were used in a student's initiation ceremony. It was believed that when the student swallowed the pebbles, the mauri in them was taken into the stomach, establishing the conditions whereby mana in the form of knowledge and learning could come into the person. This is the theory behind Māori meditation practices, known as nohopuku (to dwell inwardly, in the stomach).

Taniwha

Taniwha are ferocious creatures or guardians, representing the life force (mauri) of a place in physical form. They were seen as a constant presence in waterways, ensuring that fish and other resources remain plentiful.

Tohunga (priests and other experts) were able to harness mauri and cause it to enter a boulder, a tree or a fish. This had such a powerful effect that the object seemed to take on a life of its own. There are many stories of trees moving against river currents and having a supernatural aspect, leading to a belief that these objects were taniwha.

Taniwha and chiefs

Taniwha were closely linked to the local chief, who was also known as a taniwha. The fertility of a region was seen as directly linked to the mana of that land and its chief, who would control the taniwha in the river. This is important in the concept of tangata whenua (people of the land). Only tangata whenua could control the mauri, and therefore the fertility, of their region.

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The concepts of mana, tapu and mauri relate both to people and to the natural world. Mana Mana refers to an extraordinary power, essence or presence. This applies to the energies and presences of the natural world. There are degrees of mana and our experiences...

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Read the legend of Ngake and Whātaitai the taniwha of Wellington harbour

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Read the legend of Ngake and Whātaitai the taniwha of Wellington harbour

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By TKI

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Ngake and Whātaitai the taniwha of Wellington harbour / Māori Myths, Legends and Contemporary Stories / Te Reo Māori / Support materials / Home - Mātauranga Māori