God.. Ranginui.. JC.. Hine-nui-te-Pō.. bless?
Aperira/April 15, 2025
Maramataka/Māori lunar calendar phase: Takirau - bit of an energectic come-down.
Tracked via the Ao Maarama app which is rawe as and Waikato based - every region will vary.
Phrase of the wiki: He aha māu, e hoa?/What can I get ya mate?
sourced from the Māori Made Easy pukapuka by Scotty Morrison.
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Kia ora e te whānau,
Nau mai, hoki mai ki Te Arawhata, the newsletter helping us all to keep up with, connect with—and just ruddy enjoy—te ao Māori ia wiki, ia wiki.
This week’s culture dose includes tiakarete Māori/Māori choc for the Easter break and an Oscar-worthy new music video that I’ve watched five times in the last 24 hours (I suggest pairing).
Then in ‘kōrero’ we’re discussing what you probably shouldn’t at the dinner table with friends and whānau this weekend… Yep, we’re asking the big pātai about Māori religion e hoa mā. Don’t worry, we called on an expert for ngā whakautu/the answers.
Enjoy!
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TALK OF THE TĀONE
🗞️ to keep you in the know
Tributes jam packed with aroha and awe are flowing for legendary artist, Robyn Kahukiwa, who passed away on the weekend.
Stan Walker’s new music video feat Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke is a cinematic masterpiece.
The Treaty Principles Bill is out, the social cohesion report is in (and not great).
Haka x theatre spine tingles coming to Whakaata Māori, April 16.
The kohanga reo movement hits the big 43. According to this māmā, nothing compares.
Awhi Company released a new throw and it’s equal parts staunch and cuddly.
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*LOCALS’ KOKONGA
🤗 to help you connect kanohi ki te kanohi/face to face
Great kaupapa Māori events happening across Aotearoa
Kitchen Takeover Presents: Maumahara with Kārena & Kasey Bird
23 April I Te Kohea, Rotorua I @kitchentakeovernz
A deeply personal and emotional food journey for the talented siblings, who draw on their own childhood memories, growing up in the coastal village of Maketu, to bring diners six courses of edible nostalgia.
He Kapuka Oneone – A Handful of Soil exhibition
Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū I @chchartgallery
An expansive and unmissable exhibition of painting, sculpture, ceramics, raraka, photography, moving image, printmaking and weaving by historical and contemporary artists, exploring our relationships with whenua through Aotearoa New Zealand’s art history.
Ngākau Carving Symposium 2025
12 April-26 April I Te Kura o te Kauaeranga/Thames South School I @ngakaucommittee
Come check out the mahi of artists from throughout Aotearoa who share a deep passion for whakairo/carving, working with kōhatu/stone, and rākau/wood. On the final day all the beautiful carvings from the event will be auctioned!
Anika Moa: The Witch of Maketu and the Bleating Lambs reading
10 May I The Royal Hotel I @featherstonbooktown
Auē! The Witch of Maketu is feeling grumpy and stink. The 12 juicy lambs she's kept for her winter kai are bleating all day and night. She can’t get any beauty sleep! What can she do? Cheeky, funny, wildly creative singer and entertainer Anika Moa wants to tell you all about it.
*Get localised options when you subscribe and get a full look around the country in our weekly round-ups on instagram.
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KETE FILLER RECOMMENDATIONS
💓 to add some cultural inspo to your wiki
Kōkō Tiakarete/Chocolate
It’s Easter. You HAVE to eat Māori chocolate. Mānuka+Raspberry, Karengo+Macadamia, Kawakawa+Matcha Māori chocolate 🤤.
From $15.99
Mana Māori Motuhake pukapuka/book
Nā the one, the only, Robyn Kahukiwa. This taonga is full of writings and paintings arguing for the self determination of Māori people.
$25 I Te reo Māori & Te reo Pākehā
Pūhia III magazine
A platform for new and established Māori writers and artists in contemporary literature and art—this is a ‘savour every page, no skipping ahead’ kinda mag.
$18 I Te reo Māori & Te reo Pākehā
Te Whare Tiwekaweka album
The best thing that Marlon Williams has ever done (and he’s done a lot of great things). My vote goes to track 2, ‘Kei Te Mārama’ for the win.
40 mins I Te reo Māori
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KŌRERO
🗣️ to share the ups, downs, and in betweens of the connection journey
What are Māori religious peeps up to for Easter?
image by (the incredibly talented) Munro Te Whata
One part of te ao Māori that has always fascinated me is religion. I have so many pātai/questions…
Like… before Christianity, did we all largely believe the same thing or were there fractions with different focusses? Was anyone atheist? Do many Christian Māori believe in ngā atua Māori as well as Ihu Karaiti/Jesus Christ? What are the foundations of the Ringatū, Rātana, and Pai Mārire movements? On that, can anyone say ‘Pai Mārire’ or should you really be officially part of the faith? When we pass, is the traditional Māori belief that we go to Hawaiki, or become whetū/stars, or end up in Rarohenga/the underworld? Perhaps a tiki tour of all the above?
Nau mai, haere mai ki tōku roro/Welcome to my brain. Exhausting, I know. With Easter’s approach, I decided this wiki was the perfect time to do some rangahau/research and for all of our sakes, I thought I’d start with the basics: what are the main Māori faiths and what are they all up to for Easter?
Five mins in, I realised someone else had already done it—far better than I ever could. Nō reira, for this kōrero we’ll be live crossing to our kairīpoata/journalist in the field e hoa mā, the highly credited, Mihingarangi Forbes.
She’s got all the answers and you can find them here.
*This actually isn’t a live cross. I’ve just always wanted to say that. Mihingarangi Forbes only works with us in my moemoeā/dreams (so far) 😅. She wrote this article for RNZ.
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Thanks for reading fam! Does anyone want us to go deeper on religion? Or really NOT want us to? 😅 Reply with your pātai or comments.
We’re back ā tērā wiki/next week with more cultural goodness and most probably, a chocolate hangover. If you’re travelling, haere tū atu, hoki tū mai/go and return in good health, nē?
Kia haumaru te haerenga!/Travel safe!
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