Te takahi a Te Iwa o Matariki, he tahuri i ngā whakaaro o te marea

Ko te kāhui whetū a Matariki he kāhui takiiwa, ehake i te takiwhitu, e ai ki ētahi atu ahurea, koinā te tohe a tētahi mātanga tikanga.

Koinā te wero a tētahi tira o Te Wānanga o Aotearoa ka takahi ake i te nuku o te whenua, he whakahē i taua pōhēhētanga, e whitu ngā whetū o Matariki.

Ko te mahi a te Poutiaki Reo a Paraone Gloyne he haere ki ngā whare e rima o Te Wānanga o Aotearoa puta noa i te Ika a Māui kia tahuri ake ngā whakaaro o te iwi o Aotearoa kia whakahē hoki i te pōhēhētanga mō ngā whetū o te kāhui rā.

He kore utu, ki te hapori, te haere ki Te Iwa o Matariki, ka mutu, he mea whakaware i te hapori ki ngā kōrero onamata mō Matariki me ngā ariā mō ngā whetū e iwa.

“E taea ana e mātou te whakaatu atu ki koe e iwa kē ngā whetū o Matariki – kaua ko te whitu – e ai ki ngā tikanga Māori,” hei tā Paraone (Ngāti Raukawa).

“Ko ērā atu whetū, ko Pōhutukawa rāua ko Hiwaiterangi. He hononga tō Pōhutukawa ki ngā mate, ā, ko tō Hiwaiterangi, ko ngā manakohanga me ngā moemoeā mō te tau e haere ake nei.”

“He hiranga nui tō ia whetū ki te ao Māori, nō reira he mea whakarapa nei kua uru pēnei mai ngā whakapono o iwi kē ki ō tātou.”

 Hei tā Paraone, ko te whakaaturanga “he huringa hou nonamata” ka mutu he mea nui ki te pupuru tonu i ngā mātauranga taketake me kore noa e tūpono, ka ngaro.

“He whakamaumaharatanga hoki ki a tātou Ngāi Māori he nui tonu te mātauranga Māori hei hahū ake, ka mutu, hei ako anō mā tātou. Ko tēnei mātauranga ‘hou tawhito’ mō Matariki he wero hoki i te tirohanga o te nāianei kia rētō ake ngā whakaaro mō Matariki me tōna hiranga.”

Kei te taraka 80 mita huarua, tētahi āhuatanga anō nei kei te whare pikitia koe e mātaki ana i tētahi mata kua takaia kia 180 wehenga porohita, me ngā oro ka rangona i ngā taha katoa.

E taea ngā tāngata toru tekau te uru atu i te wā kotahi hei mātaki i te whakaaturanga 15 meneti te roa mō Matariki, ka mutu, ka haere ki ngā whare o raro o Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.

• Rāhina 27 Pipiri: Whangārei
• Rātū 28 Pipiri: Hamilton-Te Rapa
• Rāapa 29 Pipiri: Rotorua-Turipuku
• Rāmere 1 Hongongoi: Tūranga
• Rātū 5 Hongongoi: Whanganui-a-Tara
• Rāhoroi 9 Hongongoi: Ngā Whakataetae Haka Kapa 12-Tāmaki-The Cloud-Viaduct

Ko Matariki, arā ko Pleiades e ai ki te iwi o Kariki, me Subaru ki tā Hapanī, he mea e kitea ana ki ngā tikanga o Māia, o Ātiki, me ngā iwi o Pāhia, o Ārapa.

E kitea ana te kāhui whetū nei mō ngā marama tekau mā tahi o te tau, nā wai ka tō te kāhui i te Haratua, Pipiri rānei.

Ka ara mai anō a Matariki i ngā wiki o muri, i te mutunga o Pipiri i te wā o te atapō, arā ko taua rerenga te tohu o tau hou Māori.

E ai ki ngā whakapono Māori, ko Matariki ngā mata o Tāwhirimātea, te atua o ngā hau me ngā huarere, nāna ana mata i tīkaro, i kurutē, i whiu ki te rangi, i runga i te riri, i te wehenga a ōna mātua a Rangi rāua ko Papa.

Te Iwa o Matariki roadshow to re-educate New Zealanders 

The star cluster Matariki is actually a grouping of nine stars and not seven as other cultures believe, a Te Wānanga o Aotearoa tikanga expert argues. 

A Te Wānanga o Aotearoa roadshow is challenging the belief that Matariki is a grouping of seven stars. 

Poutiaki Reo Paraone Gloyne is visiting five Te Wānanga o Aotearoa sites around the North Island where he will present a mobile movie experience to re-educate New Zealanders about Matariki – and to challenge long-held beliefs about the cluster. 

The roadshow called Te Iwa o Matariki is free to the community and is an opportunity for the public to engage with traditional kōrero (discussion) about Matariki and the theories around the nine stars. 

“We can show you that there are actually nine stars in Matariki – not seven – according to Māori custom and tradition,” says Paraone (Ngāti Raukawa). 

“The two other whetū (stars) are Pōhutukawa and Hiwaiterangi. Pōhutukawa has a connection to the afterlife, and Hiwaiterangi has a connection to our aspirations and dreams for the year ahead.” 

“Each of these stars has great significance for te ao Māori so it is unfortunate that the beliefs of other cultures have been allowed to permeate our own.” 

Paraone says the presentation is a “rediscovery of the old” and is vital in maintaining traditional Māori knowledge that could otherwise be lost. 

“It’s a reminder that there is a lot of mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) out there yet to be re-discovered and re-learned. This ‘new old-knowledge’ around Matariki challenges our perception pushing us to consider the deeper meaning of Matariki and its importance.” 

The 80m2 truck houses an immersive 180 degree cinema complete with 7.1 surround sound.  

The truck can fit up to 30 people for each showing of the 15-minute movie about Matariki and will visit the following Te Wānanga o Aotearoa sites. 

• Monday 27th June: Whangārei 
• Tuesday 28th June: Hamilton-Raroera 
• Wednesday 29th June: Rotorua-Turipuku 
• Friday 1st July: Gisborne  
• Tuesday 5th July: Wellington - Porirua 
• Saturday 9th July: Super 12’s competition-Auckland-The Cloud-Viaduct 

 Matariki, known as Pleiades in Greece and Subaru in Japan also features in the traditions of the Mayan, Aztec, Persian and Arab cultures. 

The cluster of stars can be seen for 11 months of the year before they set in late May or early June.   

Matariki rises a few weeks later generally in late June just before dawn. The heliacal rising marks the beginning of the Māori New Year.  

According to Māori belief, Matariki are the eyes of Tāwhirimātea, the god of wind and storms, who tore them out, crushed them, and threw them to the heavens in protest over the separation of his parents Rangi and Papa.