Sunrise over the Coromandel Peninsula, across the Firth of Thames

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Te Ao Maori (the World of the Maori)

     Today we were officially welcomed by the local Maori Iwi (tribe) with a Powhiri (Poe-fi-dee: welcoming ceremony... for future reference, "wh"="f") at the nearby Marae (MAR-eye: Maori meeting house/church/ancestral home place). We've been learning about Maori culture, language, beliefs and history for the past few days, so it was really interesting to actually participate in their way of life. The Maori place a lot of emphasis on ancestry and ancestral honour, so the powhiri is basically a meeting of our ancestors and their ancestors, carried out though us, the living. Before this meeting, we (us EcoQuesters new to the area) are strangers and potential threats, but once we have "exchanged breath" during the ceremony, we become "people of the land" -- honorary members of the tribe. [An aside: the exchanging of breath is a pretty important part of Maori greeting. The Hongi (hong-ee) is basically like the french cheek kiss (except closer): when two people meet, you shake hands and press your forehead and nose together. It definitely emphasizes the differences between cultures' personal space bubbles... it feels really strange to be that close to someone's face the moment you meet them! ]
    The ceremony started with us waiting nervously outside the gate to the Marae... apparently, time moves a little differently on a Marae, so things take as long as they take. So we weren't all that sure how long we would be there. But, they didn't keep us waiting too long; we soon heard the call/chant that signaled it was time to start. We walked across the courtyard, women in front (as a sign of good faith... visitors put the most vulnerable party members first with the warriors behind them) and then filed into our seats inside the Wharenui (far-eh-new-ee: the ancestor's house). We were met by 6 elder members of local tribe. Most of the members have spread out to Aukland and elsewhere, so there isn't a very big presence locally. The highest elder gave us a welcoming speech, which was followed by a song, and then our director thanked them and we sang (in Maori... I think I may actually be fairly competent in the language at the end of this... at least with nouns). The songs are meant to support the speaker and add to their honour and status. Then we hongi-ed, and then shared food (tea and crumpets... a testament to the Englishy-ness of New Zealand), and are now officially welcome on the land. Yay!
     The relations between Maori traditions and the modern world is actually pretty interesting.  Maori culture is going through a renaissance after being pretty beaten down in typical colonial fashion. However, New Zealand is making a pretty concerted effort to honor a treaty drafted between the Maori and the English and redress past wrongdoings. It is, of course, a controversial issue, but it's kind of neat to think about, especially in terms of the US's policies regarding our First People. What rights to they have as the original inhabitants of the land, and what responsibilities to modern nations to respect at least the spirit of their culture?
 Anyway, it's 9pm, which means it's bedtime. I've been going to sleep ridiculously early... but pretty much everyone else is also in bed by 9:30. We haven't quite figured out why a group of 25 college students is asleep by 10 and gets up around 6, but what-the-hey.  Sunrises are beautiful.
smiles!
  

1 comment:

  1. V...this is oh so great!...I feel as if I am there with you...it is going to be interesting when you get to the begetting mores of the indigenous ...GPop

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