The inside word on rongoā edition

Kia ora e te whanau,

Nau mai hoki mai ki Te Arawhata—‘The inside word from a rongoā Māori practitioner’ edition!

Yep, we’re trialling a switch-up where we interview a cool Māori creative from the arts, media, and events scene every second wiki to bring you more kete-filling learnings, cultured yarns, and opportunities to connect with te ao Māori!

Tuatahi/First up, i noho mātou/we sat down with real-deal rongoā Māori/natural Māori medicine practitioner and host of frequent workshop events, Awhina Henry, who gave us the inside kupu/word on exactly how native plants can heal our ailments, how she feels about noobs like us turning up to her community events, and an extra wee surprise you’re going to love. Exciiiiiiiiting….

Whether you’re into rongoā or not—and particularly if you’ve never heard of it—this kōrero is full of info we should all know e te whānau.

First up, panuku ki raro/scroll on down for a big wiki in ‘talk of the tāone’.

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Talk of the tāone

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- The hīkoi is on (and the fits are impressive)! Stay updated with Toitū te Tiriti and find out how you can support from anywhere.

- Our Perth whānau in ‘Manawa Mai Tawhiti’ are set to take the kapa haka stage—and it’s the longest journey to Te Matatini yet.

- Hundreds gathered at Te Papaiouru Marae to farewell true hero, Tā Robert “Bom” Gillies, the last of the 28th Māori Battalion ❤️.

- New platform ‘Gen Reo’ launched their first episode looking into the taniwha that is ‘reo anxiety’ 😨.

- A MASSIVE line up of Māori artists have been announced for Boiler Room Aotearoa. Bring wai. Expect sweat.

- Five young Māori have blasted off to US space camp as part of a new programme bringing global STEM opportunities to rangatahi Māori 🚀.

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The inside word

with Rongoā Māori Practitioner and community workshop host: Awhina Henry from Awhi Ora Rongoā

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Nō Ngāti Porou and Te Whānau-a-Apanui, Awhina has helped thousands of people to improve their wellbeing using rongoā/natural Māori medicine.

She’s the perfect person to give us the inside (and oh so gentle) word on all the things we should know about this tino hirahira/super important part of Māori culture.

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So Awhina, how did you get introduced to rongoā Māori?

I grew up in a small place called Tikitiki. We lived down a long gravel road and were surrounded by ngāhere/bush, which was always my safe space, or where I would go to ground myself.

Over time, basically I started experiencing things that I couldn’t really explain and when I went to seek guidance, I was told I needed to learn about my taha wairua/spiritual side.

I went on a bit of a journey but at some point the ngāhere just started to open up and show me—like teach me what I needed to know and do. It was in my moemoeā/dreams and I’d learn by watching the trees and plants, the manu/birds and insects, and how they healed Papatūānuku/our earth mother.

I figured I should probably speak to some humans too, so I went and have been really lucky to study under all the greats over the last ten years. And I’m still learning. Always will be.

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What are some of the most common things people ask for your help with and what are some remedies you prescribe for them?

Heaps of wāhine come to me for issues with their whare tangata/womb—things like irregular or really painful ikura/periods, PCOS, endo, those types of things. And also fertility.

Both of those require mahi on the spiritual side—especially for conception, and then every person and plant is different, so it depends, but usually kohekohe will be involved for those two.

The next most common is probably arthritis. Lots of our kaumātua need help with general bone health, muscle strains, sciatica, knee pains… and for that it’s a mix between tūpākihi, kōwhai, and tātarāmoa.

People always need support with mental health; like stress, anxiety, migraines, and for sleeping—that’s a really big issue too.

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And just so we know… how dangerous can rongoā be? Like what are the chances of us poisoning ourselves if we try to have a casual dabble?

Many of our plants and trees are poisonous and very dangerous. I really recommend doing a proper plant identification course before any harvesting at all.

I know of a fella who walked into some ongaonga and his whole body got paralysed. Tūpākihi and kōwhai, (those rākau I just mentioned using) they’re poisonous too. You need to know how to handle them, what’s safe to ingest, what should be used externally, how rongoā can react with other meds…

I use warnings everywhere but I like to do proper consultations too, like kawakawa is a blood thinner, so you shouldn’t take it if you’re on blood meds. For wāhine who are hapū or breastfeeding there’s lots of stuff like that too—you’ve really got to know your stuff.

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Ok, def sounds like a course is in order. How do you feel about rongoā noobs like us turning up to your workshops?

Oh please don’t be intimidated. Honestly, I get nervous before workshops too! Maybe you could bring a friend along or something, but just know that I love teaching new people, so you definitely don’t need to be intimidated by me.

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That’s relieving. And our non Māori mates too? Do you have to be Māori to make or use rongoā?

Oh of course not! Everyone is welcome. I’ve taught people from Thailand, Chinese people… just as long as you come with an open heart and you’re open to these learnings.

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How do our native plants actually heal us?

From a traditional Māori perspective, it’s all about whakapapa. We whakapapa back to Papatūānuku and Tāne Māhuta through Hine-ahu-one, the first human being, so the plants and trees are our tuākana/our elder siblings, they’re actually in our DNA.

In the same way our plants and trees heal Papa and our whenua/land, they heal us. They heal our entire whare tapa whā—our tinana/bodies, our wairua/spirit, our hinengaro/minds, our connections and relationships, through that whakapapa connection.

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What kind of things would we learn in a workshop?

To begin, I’ll teach about that whakapapa, tikanga for harvesting, how to make sure we’re creating a reciprocal relationship—giving back to the whenua as we take, keeping it tika/correct, keeping it pono/honest. We’ll also start identifications.

Next, it’s about strengthening that connection to te taiao/the environment, learning about kaitiaki/guardians in the ngāhere. I’ll walk through the processes to make some remedies—a kawakawa poultice, heat extractions for wai rākau/tonics, things like that. It’s fun!

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If people want to come along to one of your workshops or try out some of your rongoā, where should they go?

To find out about my workshops, follow me on socials. I’m @awhiorarongoa on instagram, facebook, and tiktok.

You can also purchase rongoā from my shop www.awhiorarongoa.co.nz. I’d love to meet and help some Te Arawhata readers!

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Mates' rates

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Here’s that treat we were talking about 🌿.

If you want a natural skin glow-up, better sleep, or help with anything from period pain, to sore muscles, to midgy bites this summer, Awhina is offering Te Arawhata readers an exclusive 10% discount on all her handcrafted remedies at Awhi Ora Rongoā.

Perfect for meaningful, sustainable, Christmas gifts too!

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And āe! We’re getting a small commission on any sales made with this code. We reckon it’s a win-win-win way for Awhina and us to keep the lights on at mahi, and for you to get cool, quality stuff. We’d never promote something we didn’t believe in.

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We hope you enjoyed learning a little more about rongoā today fam. Back ā tērā wiki/next week with top-notch recommendations for the summer warm-up.

Hei konā!

P.s know someone who could do with a wellbeing boost before the end of the year? Please forward them this īmera/email!

P.p.s are you that someone? Sign up for reals here.

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