A favourite son of Ngati Rangiwewehi and Te Arawa - Mita Hikairo Mohi - has been farewelled by his iwi, hapu, whanau and friends during a light hearted and moving ceremony.
Mr Mohi, 77, died on Sunday after a long illness - but he went the way he lived - with a smile on his face.
Yesterday's funeral service was led by Reverend Tom Poata and featured eulogies by former student and now international film star Cliff Curtis, Mr Mohi's grandson Hohua Mohi and son Patrick.
Curtis credited Mr Mohi for saving his life when as a child he was sent to Mokoia Island to receive training in taiaha and tikanga Maori.
"I met Mita as a 12-year-old ward of the state, life was not going well for me at the time, I was a problem child," Curtis said.
"He had an elegant, purposeful, humble and playful manner...we were enchanted by his ways.
"He gave me hope and purpose and faith...but he didn't just do it for me...he changed tens of thousands of lives for the better."
Image 1 of 13: Funeral for Mita Mohi at Awahou. 24 November 2016 Daily Post photograph by Stephen Parker
Mr Mohi's grandson Hohua, wearing a fresh ta moko overseen by his grandfather the week before his wedding last week, said his grandfather would have been embarrassed by the turnout of at least 750 people packing Tarimano Marae and its surrounds at Awahou.
"But the person who made him the happiest he will be with again today, his wife Hukarere," he said.
Son Patrick said he and his family were blessed to have had Mr Mohi as a father.
"Look after your whanau, look after yourself, look after those around you.
"As a father he was awesome, he loved us totally and unconditionally.
"He died the way he lived, there was no moment of pain. He was happy.
"He didn't want to be in hospital, he wanted no drama, no needles, he just wanted to be with his daughters...he smiled as he passed away."
Mr Poata said if only people knew what made men like Mita Mohi the world would be a better place.
"He was a gift to the generations, a gift to Ngati Rangiwewehi," he said.
Mr Poata's eulogy was both humorous and deeply meaningful.
Speaking after his tangi, Rotorua district councillor and friend of Mr Mohi's, Trevor Maxwell, said he was a gentle and humble man who cared for everyone around him.
"He will be greatly missed, not just by his iwi, but by everyone in Rotorua and beyond.
"Mita touched so many lives, he was selfless until the end."
He was afforded so much respect, Waiariki MP, Maori Party co-leader and another son of Ngati Rangiwewehi, Te Ururoa Flavell, cut short a visit to the United States to attend his tangi.
A guard of honour made up of more than 100 men with taiaha led his body off the marae and took him to his final resting place at Puhirua Urupa in sight of Mokoia Island, a place he knew and loved so well.
He was buried next to his late wife, Hukarere, who died in November 2008.
Mr Mohi, who was awarded an MBE in 1994, started the Mokoia Taiaha Wananga, the longest-running mau taiaha wananga in the country, where more than 20,000 people attended courses over the more than three decades he ran the course.
