OLD CUSTOM REVIVED

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 133, 7 June 1937, Page 9

OLD CUSTOM REVIVED

I ANCIENT MAORI LORE i, a t OBSERVANCE OF POU-TU TERANGI. y CEREMONIAL AT IHUPUKU PA. e . The old Maori custom of observing Pou-tu Terangi was reviewed at ’ Ihupuku Pa, Waitotara, at the begin- ® ning of the week. For the first time [ in 30 years, the shrouded figures of i men and women emerged from their 1 homes before the coming of day, and , with bowed heads walked slowly 1 across the grassy marae until their ' leader commanded them to halt. Then, t facing the east, they seated themselves on their hats of woven flax, ? pulled their coverings about them to keep out the wintry chill, and gazed " out into the night. * Commencing at two o'clock on Monday morning, the ceremony for that ’ day ended at dawn and was continued for the same period on Tuesday, when it was concluded. The elders of the Ngarauru tribe who had not forgotten the lore of their ancestors, rose before dawn to scan the eastern sky for portents of the winter weather and the beginning of a new year. Puanga's Sign. Just before the eastern sky began to pale they saw the beautiful Puanga, known to astronomers as Rigel, low down on the horizon. Puanga is the old Maori’s heavenly sign symbolising the planting of crops, and its appearance in a certain position signifies that the season is to be good or otherwise. Puanga rises but a short distance and glows clearly before vanishing in the growing light, and each succeeding morning Its watchers have a lesser opportunity. As the apex of its course in the heavens is reached so ends the old year, and as it begins to descend, so begins the new. The elders of the Ngarauru Tribe studied Puanga as it came into view, and knew that a good season would fellow. In their chants they exulted in the appearance of this good omen, just as they would have given expression to their opposite feelings had it been a bad one. Chants of farewell were given as the descension of the star proclaimed the birth of a new year, and so the ancient ceremony ended. Portent of the Stars. Some time next week Whakaahu, or Castor, will likewise be the pre- ; cursor of dawn, perhaps on Tuesday or on Wednesday ,and Whakaahu in its course will also be apparent for a brief space. Puanga and Whakaahu do not always appear over the horizon in the same place, and Maori lore has it that should they rise a little to the . north-east, winter will be a time of south-east winds. Should they appear towards the southern shoulder of Ruapehu, north winds will blow and . there will be rain. Puanga was a star relied upon by navigators in the great migration from Hawaiiki to AoteaRoa in 1350, and down the centuries since the Maori reached these shores, he has watched Puanga and Whakaahu for signs in connection with the planting of kumara plots. According to the manner of the rising and setting of the stars, he planted early or late in the season. In Maori legend Puanga is reckoned one of the most beautiful of stars, and > in certain old songs, Puanga and i Whakaahu are mentioned together. I The mythology of the East Coast has > many references, but unique to the 1 West Coast is the guidance they give < to the planter of crops. i Rima Wakania’s Wish. s The ancient ceremony of Pou-tu- \ Terangi and other observances of this . nature have long since fallen into dis- , card, but the Ngarauru people of j Waitotara are carrying out the wishes of their late leader, Rima Wakarua, r and are setting out to revive many of c these traditional customs. The late c Rima Wakarua. beloved of Maori ana € pakeha alike, was a true Maori in tnat c he was always anxious that his people should retain their pride of race and , lit serve their early beliefs and tradi- ’ Lions. It was in deference to the wishes of the late chief's family that r the ceremony of Pou-tu was revived f this week after a period of 30 yeas. j As far as can be ascertained only one e other tribe along this coast observes the same custom—the Pirihaka * people, who, like the Ngarurjs, belcr.g : to the Taranaki Tribe. Te Mhuru, who is 68 years af age, r nd the observance at the IhUjuKu Fa’ s V. aitolara, Liis week, the oarfy in- a eluding 14 women Each suj-tribe p has its rangirwu and the sons of these. „ men are eerect id to carry u;. tne traditions of their fo-i-fathers. At Waitotara th .'ov ng men of rank are V now being schooled in these malters.