22 minute read
Whai Tapuwae
Just over 200 years ago, our tūpuna began the first in a series of heke from Kāwhia southwards that would lead them to settle and build new lives in Te Tauihu. These migrations are one of the most significant characteristics of our collective identity as ngā uri o ngā hekenga nui.
We have been building our pool of whakapapa and cultural specialists, to deepen our understanding of our collective history, the connections that bind us together, our whakapapa and our connection to whenua.
As we make important decisions about our future, we must be grounded in the knowledge of our past. It is vital that any decisions made for the future of ngā uri o ngā hekenga nui are made from a position of knowledge and understanding of our lines of connection, our whakapapa and our history.
In 2018 and 2019, we ran Te Rākau Pakiaka, a series of wānanga focused on whakapapa, identity and history. In 2021, we brought the two cohorts together to travel on a haerenga, to retrace the hekenga from Kāwhia to Waikawa.
Our purpose for undertaking the haerenga were many.
We wanted to re-ignite relations between whānau in the North Island living on historical lands to the whānau living in Te Tauihu today.
We wanted to broaden and strengthen the connections between the participants of the two Te Rākau Pakiaka cohorts, to develop a strong network of history and whakapapa specialists.
We wished to encourage them to reflect on the role they have in the legacy of the people of the heke, and to keep sharing with the whānau whānui of Wakatū the gift of knowledge gained – to build a roopū of not just knowledge holders, but knowledge sharers.
Like our tūpuna, we travelled on the haerenga not as individuals but as part of a collective. The places we visited are significant in our shared cultural history – they are places that we have talked, sung and cried about. On the haerenga we paused, reflected, commemorated and celebrated who we were, who we are, and who we will become. It gave us the opportunity to reflect on the aspirations of our tūpuna and consider what could have been realised if the full scope of the vision of our tūpuna had been achieved, and how we can keep working to now achieve this vision. ▶
The five mauri commissioned for the haerenga. Details below.
Photo: Virginia Woolf
Mitchell Ritai
Te whai tapuwae, te kite ngā pungarehutanga ahi, te noho ki ngā noninga kumu
Mitchell Ritai
Photo: Virginia Woolf
WORDS: MITCHELL RITAI
My connections to Te Tauihu are through my mother, Pamela Te Urumairangi Ritai. Her whakapapa connects us to Taranaki through Ngāti Mutunga, Te Ātiawa and Taranaki iwi, and also connects us to Te Tauihu through Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Tama, Ngāti Koata, Ngāti Rārua and Ngāti Toa iwi. My whānau always knew that we had connections to Te Tauihu and that the links had been very strong during my great-grandparents’ and grandparents’ day, but over time that connection had dissipated and my whānau and I did not get many opportunities to meet our extended Te Tauihu-based whānau. We didn’t get to learn any of the whakapapa or kōrero about why our whānau had such a strong presence in Waitohi (Picton) and Motueka. Neither did we have a solid understanding about our tūpuna who had been instrumental in establishing a legacy for us in Te Tauihu.
Through my participation in Te Rākau Pakiaka wānanga in 2018, I was extremely fortunate to be one of the recipients of a kete mātauranga that revealed the connection my whānau has to the hapū of Te Tauihu. And now through my experience on the haerenga in 2021, I’ve gained an even deeper insight into the trials and tribulations of our tūpuna during the time of the hekenga and settlement in Te Tauihu.
While it’s a challenge to summarise all that we experienced on the haerenga, I’ve tried to capture some of the highlights of the week. Everywhere we went we were warmly welcomed and hosted by the haukāinga. As well as being generous with their hospitality, they spent time with us discussing our shared histories and telling the stories about significant people, events and places. The experience was intense, emotional and spiritual. Each day was different, but we were anchored by the bonds we shared and by our daily rituals of starting and ending our days with karakia, and ensuring that tikanga was observed wherever we went.
Wakatū had commissioned Kahu Paki Paki, Joy Shorrock, Brian Flintoff and Soraya McConarchy to create five taonga that would act as mauri to protect the roopū during the haerenga. Each mauri was named after a heke or associated event:
– a stone pounder representing Te Heke Tukituki Āruhe
– a rākau whakapapa representing Te Heke Mai Raro
– a boar’s tusk necklace representing Te Heke Niho Puta
– a shark’s tooth māripi representing Te Heke Niho Mangō
– a woven mat representing Te Heke Whirinui
Wakatū had also commissioned rākau whakapapa and pūmoana to be gifted as taonga to each marae we stayed at. On our first night together, the taonga and mauri were blessed and were assigned guardians for the journey.
DAY ONE: KIRIKIRIROA
After months of planning, it was invigorating to finally be beginning the haerenga.Kirikiriroa was our meeting point. It was great tobe among our kaumātua again, to catch up with the roopū from Te Rākau Pakiaka 2018 and to meet the 2019 participants. We shared stories and whakapapa, and talked about what we were looking forward to over the next week.
Knowing that we would be following the footsteps of our tūpuna gave me a sense of nervousness and excitement. Our tūpuna had begun their journey, Te Heke Tahutahu Ahi, from Kāwhia to Taranaki in 1821, and here, 200 years later, we were going to be travelling the same pathway and visiting the same places. It felt like a momentous task ahead of me but I felt honoured to be undertaking this and keen to get started.
Joan Carew and Ngawhakaara Coldwell, pōwhiri at Makatū marae
Photo Rachel Taulelei
DAY TWO: KIRIKIRIROA TO MAKETŪ MARAE, KĀWHIA
We travelled to Maketū Marae in Kāwhia, where we were welcomed by the haukāinga. It was here we established the protocol to bring the mauri and taonga on to the marae, a ritual that was repeated at all the marae we visited. We gifted Te Tauihu o Te Waka, a rākau whakapapa, as the taonga.
After pōwhiri, we spent time with the kaumātua finding out more about the hekenga from the Tainui and Ngāti Koata perspective. We were taken to visit wāhi tapu, including the altar Ahuri, which sits on the summit of a small hill behind the marae, and two ancient markers of the Tainui waka Te Tumu o Tainui that sit at the foot of the hill. Kōrero was shared about the journey of the Tainui waka to Aotearoa, and those who led the voyage, Whakaotirangi and her husband Hoturoa.
Barney Thomas with Tangi Te Korowhiti, Maketū
Photo: John Dobson
We visited Tangi Te Korowhiti and Te Papa o Karewa, two prominent pōhutukawa trees that were said to have acted as haika or inland anchor points for the Tainui waka. We saw where Whatihua, a descendent of Hoturoa, had built his whare, Wharenui, as part of his ongoing contest with his brother Tūrongo, and we viewed the island where the brothers would often train. It was here that we were first introduced to the well-known Taranaki tupuna, Ruaputahanga, who was known as a puhi, an urukehu, and a wahine toa of Ngāti Ruanui and Ngā Rauru. Ruaputahanga married Whatihua and was known to carry the mauri for Kahawai with an ability to bring shoals of fish into shore for the iwi. Stories of Ruaputahanga would accompany us through our entire journey.
Kāwhia Aotea
Photo: John Dobson
We were taken just down the road to the landing site of the Aotea waka and where the people of Aotea waka established their first pā site, Turi Mātai Rehua, then we climbed a hill overlooking Aotea Harbour, where the taonga Korotangi was found in a swamp. Having heard stories of the Korotangi from an early age, it was a moving experience to see the location where it was retrieved, after being lost for many years. Our last visit of the day was to the Kāwhia foreshore and the final resting place of Whatihua, a significant tupuna for Tainui and a descendant from Hoturoa.
Rore Stafford with haerenga roopū and members of haukāinga, Kāwhia
Photo: Rachel Taulelei
DAY THREE: MAKETŪ MARAE TO ĀRUKA MARAE, TAHAAROA
The next morning, the roopū were taken to key sites for Ngāti Koata in the Kāwhia township, including Te Mimi o Koata, Te Puna o Koata, and Te Pouewe. Stories were shared about the Ngāti Koata tupuna Kāwharu, including his ominous size and his prowess in battle. We heard about his ability to walk across the Aotea Harbour pulling waka from one side to other, and Te Kōwhatu o Kāwharu, the place where he would rest his chin and wait for his enemies.
The roopū then travelled from Kāwhia to Tahaaroa, stopping on the way at Hautapu, where we were told the remains of Tupāhau were concealed. We were also told about how in the 1880s, Andreas Reischek, an Austrian natural historian, smuggled the remains of Tupāhau and other tūpuna out of the country back to Austria. The late Māori Queen Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu fought for their return to Aotearoa, and they are now at rest at Maunga Taupiri. We also stopped at Te Waihoanga, a sealed cave next to the road, which is the burial place for Tūhoe Pōtiki, the progenitor of Tūhoe people and a fearsome warrior.
We were welcomed by haukāinga at Āruka Marae in Tahaaroa, our resting place for the night. The pūmoana, Te Reo o Te Tauihu, was gifted as a taonga for the marae. After pōwhiri and kai, Kui Connie and the whānau shared some of the history of the area and the kōrero behind the name of the wharenui, Te Tahaaroa o Ruaputahanga, in relation to the spilling of the water from the calabashes that she had been carrying. The roopū were taken across to Te Kōraha Marae to see the recently opened wharenui, Te Ohaakii, and to hear further kōrero about Ngāti Toa, Te Arawī Pā and Honipaka. We also visited Tekau Mā Rua, a sacred hill where Kīngi Tāwhiao would wānanga with his advisors.
That evening the roopū sat in the wharenui where more kōrero about Ngāti Mahuta ki te Hauāuru, the local area and pā site, were shared with us. We found out more about Ruaputahanga and the mauri she carried, bringing us closer to her as a person through the stories about her experiences.
DAY FOUR: ĀRUKA MARAE TO PUKEARUHE MARAE, TARANAKI
After farewells at Āruka Marae, we travelled to Marokopa, a rural community in the Waitomo district. Standing across the river from the Marokopa Marae, we learnt about Ngāti Rārua and the tupuna Tupāhau, who is the kōruru of the whare, and more about Ruaputahanga, the poukaiāwhā of the whare.
We travelled to Kiritehere Reserve, then on to the Awakino Heads. From there we moved to Maniaroa Marae where we visited Te Punga o Tainui, the anchor stone of Tainui waka. After mihimihi and acknowledgements to the wharenui, Te Koha a Rua, the roopū continued just past Mōkau River bridge to Te Māhoe crossing. This is where Ngāti Toa first crossed into Taranaki during Te Heke Tahutahu Ahi.
Te Tatau o te Pō marae, Petone.
Photo Rachel Taulelei
We were told more about Ruaputahanga, such as the koha she left her second husband before returning to Taranaki, which is where the wharenui derives its name. Upon her departure she said her karakia and a section of the river began to bubble up with kahawai. Nearby is Motu Tawa, an island urupā, where there are Ngāti Rārua tūpuna buried. The roopū visited locations along the Mohakatino and Tongaporutu rivers before making our way to Pukearuhe Marae, where we would stay the night. Te Mātai o Te Tauihu, a rākau whakapapa, was given as a taonga for the marae.
Once the pōwhiri and kai were completed, the roopū visited two Ngāti Mutunga sites. The first site was Pukewhakamaru Pā where Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Koata and Ngāti Rārua lived for a time prior to Te Heke Tātarāmoa. This was a formidable site that would be extremely difficult to attack due to the steep cliffs on all sides of the pā and the high prominence of the viewing platforms. The second was Okoki Pā where the battle of Motunui occurred. This is when Tainui warriors were continuing to pursue Ngāti Toa and their allies and arrived at Arapawanui Pā to begin their attack. Ngāti Mutunga, Ngāti Toa and their supporters initiated the battle by sending out an advance party, or Hunuhunu, whose role was to entice the main Tainui force to attack. As Tainui pursued them back to Okoki, they were then met by the main body of the war party or the matua. The interaction between the war parties ended in a truce and a understanding that would be repaid.
Due to the significance of the site, karakia were performed when the roopū began to traverse the slope up to the pā. It was an awe-inspiring experience visiting such a significant location in the hekenga story and to hear about the events that occurred during the battle, from the Ngāti Mutunga perspective. Included in this stop were pathways named after two tūpuna, Te Ara Takitaki o Ruaputahanga and Te Ara Takitaki o Kapuakore.
The roopū returned to Pukearuhe Marae, and in the evening the haukāinga shared whakapapa that showed the connections between Ngāti Mutunga, Ngāti Tama, Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Koata and Ngāti Rārua. A further insight into the time of the hekenga was given through discussing a waiata composed by a tupuna of the time. It provided honest insights into the way the composer had been feeling and the declarations that were not adhered to. This was an immense day with an enormous amount of kōrero shared. While there was a sense of tiredness there was still a feeling of excitement knowing that we were only halfway through our journey.
TE RĀKAU PAKIAKA
Te Rākau Pakiaka is the name given to the wānanga focused on whakapapa, relationships and history. It is a metaphor for the many ways we connect.
The most popular imagery for genealogy is a family tree, with leaves representing individuals, and branches symbolising family lines and connections. Pakiaka is the root system of a tree, and so the name Te Rākau Pakiaka reminds us that what grounds us, sustains us and connects us is not only what is visible but also the places we come from, our shared history, our collective experiences and our memories.
The wānanga explores the connection between individuals and whānau, as well as the interconnection between all things – what is both seen and unseen, what is readily known and what is deeper knowledge.
DAY FIVE: PUKEARUHE MARAE TO TAIPOROHĒNUI MARAE, HĀWERA
It was an early start for the roopū. Our first stop was Pukerangiora Pā to listen to the local perspective of the events that took place during Te Raihe Poaka, and events that occurred when the pā was attacked again 10 years later. The same war party that attacked Pukerangiora Pā had continued on to Ōtaka Pā, which was our second visit of the day. The attacks on Pukerangiora Pā and Ōtaka Pā are two key events that led to Te Heke Tamateuaua.
Our journey continued through Taranaki to Taiporohēnui Marae in Hāwera, where we stayed for the night. The pūmoana Te Tangi o Te Tauihu was given as a taonga for the marae. After a short rest, the roopū was taken to a historical site, Te Ruaki Pā, a well reserved pā with obvious trenches around the site and carved sections creating separate platforms. This was followed by a short visit to a site in Matariki (Normanby) where Te Heke Tātarāmoa had rested as they made their way south in the 1820s.
Joan Carew, Ngawhakaara Coldwell, Celia Hawea and Kura Stafford at Pukearuhe marae.
Photo Rachel Taulelei
Johannah Kātene-Burge at Hongoeka Marae, looking out towards Whitireia and Te Mana o Kupe.
Photo: John Dobson
DAY SIX: TAIPOROHĒNUI MARAE TO TE TATAU O TE PŌ MARAE
The next morning, the roopū said their farewells to the whānau at Taiporohēnui Marae and continued south to Te Ihu Puku Pā, a site that Te Heke Tātarāmoa had visited and where Te Heke Niho Puta obtained its name. The roopū were met at the foot of Te Ihu Puku Pā, next to Te Ihu Puku Marae, and we gifted the pūmoana Te Mahara o Te Tauihu as taonga. Among the stories that were shared, about people and places in this area, was about Ruaputahanga, the tupuna whose story had travelled with us from Maketū marae in Kāwhia, where we learnt more about her prowess as a warrior or wahine toa among her iwi, and her taiaha, Taukaka. This indicated some contrast to previous stories about Ruaputahanga being reliant on her husband and having to escape to return home. To me this showed her mana and strength to determine her own pathway.
The roopū continued south to Whanganui and stopped by Pūtiki Marae to hear a brief kōrero about the relationship that Ngāti Apa had with the hekenga, and the whakapapa that is shared through the marriage of Mangō and Hiapoto. The roopū continued to Pōneke, with only brief stops on the way, arriving at Takapūwāhia Marae to acknowledge the passing of a whānau member of the marae. It was then on to Te Awakairangi to Te Tatau o Te Pō Marae. That evening the roopū was presented a kōrero on the hekenga from a Ngāti Toa perspective and the significance of a former heke in 1820 to Wellington that gave Te Rauparaha the idea to move his people to Te Upoko o te Ika.
DAY SEVEN: KĀPITI ISLAND
We caught the ferry across to Kāpiti Island. The roopū was formally greeted by the haukāinga on the beach and, in return, we gifted the rākau whakapapa Te Hono o Te Tauihu to the whānau. On the island, the kōrero focused on the Ngāti Toa perspective of events relating to the hekenga and the gallantry of Te Peehi Kupe in being able to capture the island from the inhabitants. After lunch we spent time together walking through the bush, watching the multitude of birds, and viewing the sea life from the wharf. There was a feeling of peacefulness and togetherness as we talked about the island and the experiences we had shared throughout the last six days. We travelled back to Te Tatau o Te Pō Marae for dinner, followed by an evening kōrero about settlement of the people of the hekenga in the Wellington area.
DAY EIGHT: WAIKAWA MARAE
The final day started in our usual way with karakia in the morning before tidying the marae. Our farewells said, we left to catch the ferry to Waitohi. There was both a sense of excitement that this was the last leg of the haerenga as well as heavy hearts, knowing this was the last day we would spend together. As the ferry entered Tōtaranui and sailed past Arapawa Island, the roopū gathered on the starboard side of the ferry to acknowledge the area with mihimihi, karakia and waiata. Arriving at Waitohi, we made the short journey to Waikawa Marae. The rākau whakapapa Te Hokinga o Te Tauihu was gifted as taonga.
For the last time, the roopū carried the five mauri that had accompanied and protected us throughout the haerenga into the wharenui. The mauri were placed next to the four rākau whakapapa that had carried the mauri of 2018 and 2019 Te Rākau Pakiaka wānanga. The ceremony to conclude the haerenga was followed by a final karakia over all the taonga. The roopū was then treated to a kai hākari by the haukāinga before we all said goodbye. It was an emotional farewell, with many tears shed and a lot of hugs and kisses.
It was a phenomenal week, and we’d been given a vast amount of information, from various perspectives. We felt immensely privileged to have been able to visit many wāhi tapu and hear stories of the events that had taken place.
We had followed in the footsteps of our ancestors, rested at the places where their fires once burned, stayed in the places where they once lived. It made me so aware of the fortitude, resilience, tenacity and unwavering determination of our tūpuna, who moved from the only home they knew and travelled to a completely new area. It was an extraordinary feat.
We listened to stories of valour and vulnerability, of life and death, of taking and giving, of advancing and retreating. Underlying everything was the commitment of whānau wanting to find a better life for themselves and those who were to follow after them.
As one of descendants of the hekenga, I am proud of my whakapapa, and proud to descend from innovators, pioneers and trail blazers. These are also traits and values I see exemplified in everything that Wakatū Incorporation represents on behalf of all the descendants of the hekenga.
Ka tīehutia ngā hoe, hoea ngātahi ki te pae tawhiti.
Bentham Ohia and Chris Webber
Photo: Rachel Taulelei
In the footsteps of the ancestors
Moana Oh, a participant on Te Rākau Pakaia in 2019, shares her perspectives on the haerenga.
Moana Oh
NGĀTI KOATA, NGĀTI RĀRUA, NGĀTI TAMA
When we set out to retrace the footsteps of my tūpuna in order to understand andknow our history and whakapapa, it seemed to mean ambitious undertaking. I knew so little. How would I remember it all? Would I connect? But then, how could I not? As a group, whakapapa binds us. Envelops us. Whakapapa connects us to the haukāinga at each marae. And as the stories flowed, so too the visible tangible threads linking us and leading us back to our tūpuna.
This trip was an immersion in the kōrero about our whakapapa, significant places and history. I was accompanied by my whānau whānui, and we learnt from warm, welcoming and knowledgeable local people. After only a week of travelling together, our group became very close. I wonder if it was the same for our tūpuna when they journeyed together? At each marae, the manaakitanga of the haukāinga, the prevalence of te reo Māori and tikanga all re-enforced the whakawhanaungatanga. It gave this experience the mana and wairua that I am still struggling to find words to describe.
MOANA OH
Two hundred years ago, this journey must have been daunting for our tūpuna. Every place we stopped at or passed through brought home the challenges of that undertaking. At Aruka Marae in Tahāroa, our ope arrived by van in torrential rain and chilly blustering winds. A relatively brief encounter with discomfort. By contrast, our tūpuna travelled on foot, with children, pregnant wāhine, and kaumātua, sometimes with war parties in pursuit; it is hard to imagine. Even more so when factoring in the distance, terrain, and sometimes freezing temperatures.
It saddens and amazes me that this incredible undertaking was never taught as part of history when I was at school. Because we are of this land, our history, Māori history, is everywhere, yet invisible if you have never had the opportunity to learn it. Without the speakers and kaumātua sharing their knowledge during the haerenga, I would continue to be ignorant. For me, a simple, poignant example of this was when we were shown the site where the house of Te Rauparaha once stood. A fire station now stands in its place. There is no obvious indication that such a significant rangatira once lived on that whenua.
Looking across Kāwhia harbour.
Photo: Moana Oh
I was reminded again that recognising our leaders in any significant undertaking, such as this heke, is so important. Rangatira and kaumātua led our tūpuna on the hekenga, from Kāwhia. Over the week of the haerenga, we were given the chance to follow our rangatira and kaumātua in karanga, whaikōrero and tikanga, as we retraced the footsteps of these tūpuna.
Blair Taylor, Īhāia Raharuhi, Kerensa Johnston, Moana Oh
Photo: Rachel Taulelei
It took me some time to climb down from the high of the haerenga experience. To settle. To reflect on my learnings. What I have now are memories tied to history, linked to places with stories to share. All of it has enriched my understanding of my origins and whakapapa and why I am who I am. And why we are the descendants of the tangata hekenga.
I also learnt something else about myself on this journey. Despite being in unfamiliar surroundings with unusual noises and among many newly met whanaunga, I slept soundly. And then it occurred to me. I sleep best when I am happy.
The mauri representing Te Heke Niho Mangō was carried by Moana and her group throughout the haerenga.
Photo: Virginia Woolf
