Waikato Is The River

Te Ao Hou, June 1963, Page 47

Last June, when ‘Te Ao Hou’ published a poem in Maori, ‘Waikato Te Awa’, by Mr R. T. Harrison, we invited readers to send us translations of it. Miss Kitty Leach sent us her English version just recently. Although it is some time since the original Maori poem appeared in ‘Te Ao Hou’, Kitty's version seems to us to be so well done that we are pleased to publish it here. Waikato Is The River Dip in the water as it surges at the mouth. Waikato is the river: At every bend there lives a chief. Be careful lest you capsize for the currents are strong in the Waikato. Fix your gaze on the distance Where Taupiri is the mountain and Koroki the man. Paddle your canoe to Ngaruawahia, to Turangawaewae; the heart of the kingdom where Matutaera finished his lament. Alas, let me grieve also. Paddle on till you reach Cambridge, the Okahoroi of ancestors. Still paddle on then rest at Karapiro. Now cast your eyes upwards to the peak of Ihingarangi. Enough of paddling! Lift your gaze even higher to Maungatautare, to the Ngati-Koroki, to Arapuni—the district of eels. Go up to Waipapa, Maraetai, Whakamaru, Titiraupenga—the mountain for birds, The territory of Ngati-Raukawa, Oh friend. Float on the Pohatunoa. Look up to its summit. There a battlefield was spread in the days of long ago. Follow the waterway of your ancestor, Tia, whose guide for his journey was Atiamuri behind him. Go gently on to Ohakuri, the entrance to Orakei-Korako; the district of hot springs and blustering abysses. Haul your canoe up Tia's steep difficult ascent, and encounter the foaming fall where your ancestor, Takatea pokaiwhenua, overturned. Behold now! As the swift bird darts through the sky, so enter on to the calm waters of Taupo-nui-a-Tia.