TERA TE PO PANGO
(Whakamomori – Lament by Huru and Tuki
after shamed return from Norfolk following kidnapping by William King
Interpretation by Wharetatao King)

Tera te po pango puritia mai
It was that very dark night that held our secret

Te tautanga ki Waitangi ra e i
the night we arrived in Waitangi.

Ko te rite i taku kiri e ki a mai nei
So dark was the night it was black as my skin.

E te whiri titi wha tonu
I’m weaving my way through the dark

titi wha mai ana roto he paua piri
conscious of the still water ponds full of paua

Ki te toka ko te ngao  manga  mai kei  ahau
clinging to the rocks, the harvest that is my right

I wharona tonu atu ko te tonga o te ra
Since the sun has set (and it’s so dark) I am lucky I have my ancestor Rona (the moon)

Ko ana papa i horetanga ki a Uenuku
Displaying her boundaries of extension as far as Uenuku’s rainbow realm

Ko te ihu teretia hoki
I'm going to take the shortcut round the nose (a specific point at Waitangi)

Peka ana au I te Tainga Riu o Kanapanapa
By taking this shortcut I have quick access to Tainga Riu o Kanapanapa

Hei kawe iahau ki te pua ki te Reinga
This will take me to the opening to Te-Rereinga-Wairua.

Ki aku nei hoa
And to you my friends

Ka pou te tau wehe nei ki tawhiti
I have been lost offshore for a year

Te Pae-o-Tae-O-Mai
I was taken from Te Pae-o-Tae-o-mai

Ko te whakama hoki ra tenei rawa ka
oh the immense shame of it all!

Topetope I taku rae
To commemorate this shame I will mark my forehead!

Aue ka tau e
At last we have landed!

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PIPIWHARAUROA
(Whakapapa boundaries given and interpreted by Wharetatao King
Performed 12 August 2010 by Wharetatao and daughter Tihi King))


Pipiwharauroa kaweakawea te tangi iho nei ka rere o mahuru
The cry of the bird sound in the air belongs to the fantail carrying on its feathers this new announcement

Whiti mai, whiti mai, kurukuru wero te hau i tuku mai
Kurukuru, the fierce piercing hurricane winds have brought the fantail here

i Maunganui kei raro ia Ripiroa
to Maunganui in the Kaipara Harbour the maunga under the jurisdiction of tupuna Ripiroa of Ngati Whatua,

He ngaro nga karakia he wehe nga karakia
this place consistently and specifically used to invoke the energies that will cloak and empower us
and clear the way forward, for this specific undertaking

E ua e te ua taka mingo mingo noa ki Papatuanuku nga tohu o te po.
Early morning when the mists hover, when the energies of the takiwa and the invokers are least contaminated
is the preferred time for invocation,
the light mists taken as blessings raining down on Paptuanuku in response.

Ka wau o te Taheke o horo ki Moehau
We now direct our waka toward Taheke and Moehau, the river we use to shortcut to Waima

Parimai te tai i Arai Te Uru
The tide builds and surges at Arai Te Uru at the Hokianga Harbour entrance

Taku ko Kotua i ariki ai au e.. e  aue
My claim to ariki lines is through my tupuna Kotua of Waima

E titi ki te maunga ko te tara ki Akatea
As I plant myself on my maunga I can see the entrance to Akatea,

Maunga ki Hakatere tu noa mai a
To Hakatere the majestic mountain remaining steadfast, dominating the horizon;

He ngau nga kanohi nui tangi whakaingoingo te manu.
shaped and looking like a magnificent, hovering, giant bird.

Te tahuna ki Kaiwaka tu whera ki te rua
From the summit of Hakatere the pathway to Kaiwaka is clearly seen,
so too is the otherwise hidden cave revealing a secret route from harbour landing to river.

Ko te taniwha i mua ia Tuputupu Whenua
Prior to our earthbound tupuna taniwha, Tuputupu Whenua;
was our star grid tupuna taniwha, who when seen indicates the access point for the subterranean waterways.

Whetu taire ake ki Pangaru ki Papata.
The constellation also tells us that the flounder are plentiful and ready for harvest at Panguru and Papata

Nga maunga whakahirahira a oku tupuna e tu noa mai na
Like sprouting plants we pop up regularly from the waterways paying tribute
to the beauty, loyalty and steadfastness of the ancient ones; the mountains; for standing fast.

Te Kaka i Whirinaki e rere ki Opara
Looking like the Kaka the mountain range of Whirinaki is just over the way.
From this vantage point our view is straight across to Opara

Ki pari a te he i waho ai he tohu na Kupe a e i.....
Like Kupe we wait outside the tidal Hokianga Harbour in the flat sitting place for waka,
watching for a sign,

Tatao mai te kohu te rui ki te hapanga kei triohia matatia.
Like Kupe the challenge is timing;
how to enter under poor visibility, the mist-shrouded harbour;
with only sounds to guide us and a consciousness not to make a foolish judgment by entering too soon

Te rua patiki e tuwhera mai na
our prime objective for entering the Hokianga Harbour
is the knowledge that the flounder are plentiful at this time.

Ko te uri o Toi ka ai he urunga
We now acknowledge our whakapapa descent through Toi.

Taka ki te moana ka manu me ko Tangaroa
We now introduce and acknowledge our descent through tupuna Puhimoana-ariki-nui

Haere amo ake ai au i toku toki nei
We refer now to the special mahi of the toki, to carve,

Ko te tua i te rangi ka kohakoha ana
ever mindful in our movements, never neglecting to give thanks to our heavenly tupuna
for the knowledge of how to use the toki.

Tawhirimatea tukua au kia eke i te awhiowhio
We invoke and welcome Tawhirimatea the cleansing, purifying winds to fill us,

I te pu roro hau e tuku ki muri
be part of us, to cleanse and purify our thoughts our entire being,
of all that might hinder us.

Whakahinga nei au te one ki Rangaunu
We turn toward the land of Rangaunu

Taku mumuhau taka ki Manawa Tahi
The mumuhau winds have preceded and cleansed all before us. We arrive at Manawatahi.

Ka whara ki te uru te Amokura e
We discover our tupuna Amokura there badly injured.

Ma runga mai koe te Tai Tokerau
Now we head for the Tai Tokerau

E tu ki tu Tonga Nui
We come to the entrance point for the Mangamuka River

Whakaruru ake ana te hau ki Mangamuka
Here in the Managamuka, the winds are known to escalate in ferocity.

Nga tai pehi riri nau e Kupe e
We approach the 90-mile Beach and the surging tides of Kupe.

Ka hora ki te ao whakarongo ki nga tai tangirua
As we stand here, stretched out before us and obvious for the world to see
are the two mighty oceans clashing, crashing and swirling.

Roto Tawhitinui, mihimai, mihimai
Just beyond is the still water lake, the resting place of kaitiaki Tawhitinui.
We acknowledge with mihi inviting mihi in return.

Te tai kakari rua whakatawhaki nei au
These two tides dig out and create an underlying channel.
We shape-shift and take advantage of this “parting of the waters”

Kia utaina atu te paparoa i Ha-wai-i-ki
to travel the long plateau to Ha-wai-i-ki.

Tere i Hawaiiki whakangarungarua te rai ki Kumuhore
Safety assured, we continue swiftly on the water above interweaving caves.
Kumuhore is soon visible on the horizon.

A tau mai te tiare nga rakau hakahaka
The trees on the hill dance a resounding haka,

Te wao  ki te matua whakawhirinaki ai au nga pu nikau
those matua; as we weave in and out of the nikau plantations.

Tu ki Kowhara ka kuru mai te taro e ora ake ana e
We land at Kowhara. We find the taro. We pull it up and it is in good condition.
We are ecstatic.

E hia nei o roto o ia au
The burning question is:  with all these bloodlines in me

Kia moe ake ana i taku tungane
There is the possibility I could end up marrying my own brother?

Aue te hakuhaku heke ne ki?
Therefore I have to dig very deep and be very certain from whom I descend don’t I?

Ka
All the little fires lit around the motu

Ko
clarifying descent.

Ku
enter the bloodlines this way, and that, and how ever;

e

Aue tau kuku me e 

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KAHORE TE KI PATU
(Interpretation of Hone Heke's Haka by Wharetatao King)

Kahore te ki patu,
It can never be said for
We have collectively deliberated and agreed our course of action:
war is imminent and unavoidable.

te makere noa i te ngutu
It is not for no reason that these words do fall from the lips –
It is not for nothing that the energies of our entire being are fired up for action

He puehu wai hoe i a te rehu i runga
Swift and deliberate will be the oars on the waters –
the foam and mist splaying in all directions under the rhythmical might of men collectively united as one;
powering their waka forward.

e mataku ana i roto i te hau korero  
make no mistake there is a part of me that is in total fear.
I experience the turbulent changing, vibrations, emotions; pounding in me like messages on the wind

i wareware i a  au te maru o Ngapuhi
Responding to the call from the southern tribes  
as I leave the safety and sanctuary of Nga Puhi behind me,
I focus on fulfilling the collectively-determined directive
with clear awareness that I am expendable even unto death.

He herenga ko ia, te heke te rakau ka whiria
The criss-crossing of the energy rods have foretold the outcome.

Te ata whakarangona
Our expedition is in direct response to collaborative surveillance and reports

Nga mahi a rarotini
of actions, activities, values, spirituality etc of these clearly inferior myriads
that are in absolute violation of the agreed terms of residency.  
They are to be held to account.

Ko te tinana te waiho ake i te hoa
All on the expedition are prepared to leave behind the memory of physical bodies
and take on the mauri that will accomplish the task

Ko te pae waewae i tuku mai ki ahau
The pae waewae i.e. the taumata gave the collective authority to pursue the action.
It was not an act of war-mongering or an egocentric decision by one person
and neither was the directive arrived at lightly.

“Kia huaina atu he ara tau ana mai”
“we’re on our way”   

‘kia huaina’ indicates a response to a call, in this case whanaunga from Taranaki; the response being;
the collective hapu have looked long and hard at these people who have alighted on the lands (of the collective hapu);
at the way they continue to violate the tangata whenua and the mana whenua.
The decision is made to assist Taranaki, to assert the authority of the collective.

Ka te tiri wa te riri pa ki kinikini  
Our bodies on fire (te tiri wa) and of warfare-focused mind (riri pa),
they leave from Waitangi conscious that to reach Taranaki on time they must be in position
to catch the turning tide that will carry them swiftly to their destination.

Kua pu awhea te rae ki Hikurangi  
We cross the lands to rest and wait at the peak of Hikurangi.
They watched for the birds that would indicate Taranaki are enjoying eating a certain fish
for it is known that this is the time when the tide turns.

Ki nga tae omanga i te ipu o Mokau
With the turning tide the expedition launches into the current and hastens to Mokau.
The intention is to attack Gorvernor George Grey who is known to be in the area.

Me ruku ware au i te rerenga tupapaku
this is the point of no return
- discussions would be held to focus awareness that for the mission;

Kei whakamaukau ki Mori-a-nuku  -
should we get trapped in Mori-a-nuku our fight will be to the death.

I aku tau tupu  i awhi ae maua e i  
There was a time when we embraced each other,
when you promised to assist and support us in our new growth of ourselves (1835 Declaration)
You have violated that relationship and violence is the outcome;
war is declared.......
 

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KARA RA KAPANGAPANGA
(Karanga/Haka/Powhiri)
(given to Apirana Ngata when asked by collective whanau of Waima
to carve the first meeting house in Northland after all were defaced or burned by missionaries
Origins: Waima. Interpretation: Wharetatao King)

Ara ra, kapangapanga! Ara ra ka pangapanga! Hi a haha, Aue!
Have a look, have a look, we (Maori) are thrown away, cast aside like a worthless rag

Ka rikarika tonu taku ngakau
Our hearts remain dis-eased, unhealed, impacted by extreme anger

Ki nga mana riri ki Waitangi whakapiri
our, mana and aura severely affected, polluted by the happenings in Waitangi.

Kia haere mai te takitina, kia haere mai
Come! We plead! We implore you the nation! Come!

Te takimano kia paretae tokotia ki te tai tokerau i ha aue
Come in your myriads that your numbers will cover the whole of the Tai Tokerau!

He mamae he mamae i a haha aue
We can no longer bear this excruciating pain on our own.

Ka haere, ka haere taku powhiri
Again we cry out

Ki  nga tae whakarunga
to all the tides, the energies, above

Hoki mai hoki mai i taku tinana
Return, return, that we may be whole again, that our body can again return to ease.

Ka haere, ka haere taku powhiri
Again we cry out

Ki  nga tae whakararo
to all the tides, the energies, below;

Hoki mai hoki mai i taku tinana
Return, return, that we may be whole again, that our body can return to ease.

Kia huri au ki te  tai i whakatu a Kupe
We recall Kupe’s landings at Hokianga then 90 mile beach

Ki  te tai i matawhero, i motu mai
where the land appears red, slashed and bleeding;

E koa te hoariri ki roto i akuringa kutia rawatia
great will be our satisfaction when the pain that afflicts us is in our grasp to squeeze and strangle

Kia pare tona ihu hi ha aue
to pressure the nose ‘til it ruptures and bursts, ‘til it resembles that land;

He mamae, he mamae
the excruciating  pain finally expelled from us.

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