Leader Howie Morrison Jnr leads his group Ngati Rangiwewehi on to Turangawaewae with their winning Whakaeke 1992. Warwick Morehu was in this performance.
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Click here for English translation Nō te wā o ngā tupuna i puta ai te whakaaro ki a Tamatekapua, he tupuna Māori nō Poronēhia he mea pai me whamātau ia ki te rere atu mā runga i te waka, ko te take he hiahia nōna kia mōhio ōna tangata he tika te kōrero me ngā whakahau a Kuperaurukoata he tuawhenua anō ki te pūtake o te huapae rangi.
Kūare hōhā katoa a Ngāti Ohomairangi ki te riri, e itiiti ana te kai, e piki hoki ana te tini o te tupu o te tangata ki runga i te moutere o Hawaiki Tawhitiareare.
Nā reira tēnei whakaaro. Ko te ingoa o taua tuawhenua e mōhiotia ana i ēnei rā ko Niu Tīreni. Ki a Ngai Te Arawa Ko Te Ahi nā Māui te ingoa tupuna o tēnei moutere, he whakamaumāharatanga ki tō tātou tupuna whakahirahira ki a Māui, te toa nukurau o Te Moananui-a-Kiwa.
E ai te kii he whenua tēnei i hīa ai e Māui. Ko Aotearoa he ingoa nā Kupe me Apaaparangi engari ki Te Waipounamu anahe tēnei ingoa.
Tana taenga mai ki raro whenua nei ka kitea e Kupe rātou ko ōna hoa māia ko te kapua e iri ana ki runga ki ngā maunga teitei ka ingoangia ko Aotearoa. Ko Hawaiki Tautau, he ingoa i haringia mai e Ngāti Ohomairangi i Hawaiki na reira ētehi o ngā ingoa o tēnei whenua.
Kāti, ko Tamatekapua tō tātou tangata, i eke tōna pahi e rite tonu ana ki a ia te māia, te kaha ki runga ki ētehi waka e hia kē, he waka whakatere moana ēnei kāore e rite ki ngā kaipuke o Urupi, ehara!
He maha ngā rā i rere tonu ai ngā waka he tika anō te arahi a te tohunga a Ngātoroirangi me te rangatira a Tamatekapua, ahakoa nui atu te kino o te moana me te pūhauhau o Tāwhirimatea kāore aua waka, kāore hoki aua tangata i mate i te wehi, kāore hoki rātou i mate i ngā ngaru tūātea he ahakoa pea ētehi o ngā tangata i mate i te ngēngē, nā Tamatekapua rātou i whakakaha, nānā hoki i whoatu ki a rātou te wairua toa me te mea nui whakaharahara, ko te tumanako.
From the depths of Polynesia arose the great Arawa chief Tamatekapua.
I piri kaha ia ki ngā atua o te taiao, ki ngā atua o te whenua tupu me te mau tonu o ōna whakaaro tērā e rite tāna i hiahia ai.
I tētehi atatū ka hāmama ngā waha, "E! he whenua, he whenua!".
Te tirohanga atu he kapua roroa, he kapua mātotoru i te paerangi e takoto ana. I mōhio tonu ngā tangata he tohu whenua tērā. I hari, i koa nui te ngākau o Tamatekapua me te iwi katoa, nā te ūnga o te waka ki te whenua kite hou ka tangihia tēnei oneone, ka mihingia tēnei ika, ka karakiangia tēnei wāhi e ngā rangatira, e ngā tohunga.
Kāre e rite te tikanga a te Māori ki te Pākehā, ka ū ki uta ka tangohia te whenua i runga i te ingoa o te Kīngi o te Kūini hai whenua mōna. Kāore. Ko te whenua kite hou nei he tupuna e kore e pūpuringia e te tangata.
Nō reira tō tatou amokura a Tamatekapua, ki ētehi he hurahura, he heahea pea, engari ki a Ngai Te Arawa he māia, he tangata whai mātauranga, nānā me ōna rangatira, i uta mai te hūnuku ki tēnei whenua hou.
Nā reira tō tātou whare whakahirahira e tū matahao ana ki te puku o Ōhinemutu hai whakamihi, hai whakanui i te kurupā nui o Ngai Te Arawa- Ko wai atu ko Tamatekapua!
From the depths of Polynesia arose the great Arawa chief Tamatekapua, an inquisitive ancient Polynesian leader who thought one day that he would like to cross the breast of the Pacific Ocean upon a fleet of seafaring vessels and travel to the lands discovered by the daring navigator Kuperaurukoata.
For it was Kupe who had found a great island lying beyond the horizon.
This desire to travel arose also, from the constant war-faring amongst the island tribes, the scarcity of food to feed the people and the gradual expansion of the population.
Tamatekapua. Photo / Supplied
Today this land is known as New Zealand, however, in the time of our Polynesian ancestors it was known to Tamatekapua as 'The great fire of Māui', a reference to the intense volcanic activity observed by Māui the explorer.
Aotearoa was another name that was given by Kupe and his wife Apaaparangi however this was applied only to the South Island.
The name Hawaiki Tautau was one of many names carried here by the explorers of Ngāti Ohomairangi, again an attempt to retain the link with the Hawaikian homeland.
So it was that a brave group was organised. Those with matching courage and resilience formed a fleet and upon these ocean-travelling vessels they departed for new lands.
Long were the days and many days followed under the leadership of the great priest Ngātoroirangi and their leader Tamatekapua, onward they surged — persevering and pushing through the great ocean waves, defying the winds.
Not once did the great vessels buckle nor the spirits of the explorers weaken though there may have been days and times where exhaustion walked amongst the crew, it was the courage of Tamatekapua that gave them new life, it was the strength of Tamatekapua that drove them all forward.
More, it was his belief and absolute conviction in the knowledge of his ancestors that ensured his spirit did not waiver. Tamatekapua communicated constantly with the natural spirits of the world but always remained true to the vision of his heart.
So, it came to pass that one early morning all on board awoke to the cries of the watchmen, "Land – land!". On looking off into the distance a great body of land clouds were clearly identified, they were long and thick the experts knew that this was the sign that they had been waiting for.
In the heart of Ōhinemutu stands a tribute, the ornately carved house of gathering, Tamatekapua. Photo / Supplied
Tamatekapua and the hearts of the travellers were filled with relief.
When the explorers berthed there was a great release of emotion, the chiefs gave rousing speeches of success before the blessings were continued by the priests.
One must also remember that when the old Polynesian discovered land it was not claimed in the honour of a king or queen for in the hearts of the old people how could someone claim rights over another living being?
They were new arrivals and therefore needed to make an immediate spiritual and physical connection to the new land.
This great voyage was a success due to the fire of Tamatekapua. Some say that he was a delinquent others will say that he was a mischievous leader, but his strength, his courage and use of knowledge with the help of his blood chiefs led to one of the greatest ocean voyages of the past.
Hence, in the heart of Ōhinemutu stands a tribute, the ornately carved house of gathering, a beckon of pride, a physical reminder of the great blood that flows through all Te Arawa.
