New Zealand
and the Maori
It is December. I am driving from Whakatane to Gisborne (New Zealand) the most eastern city in the world; the place where the sun first shows itself. Gisborne has the highest percentage of Maori in New Zealand. I am, as always, a little excited about what is about to happen.
The day before the Gatherings with The Grandmothers it is usual for a welcome by the indigenous people of that country to take place. At 4 pm a welcome was organized at one of the many Maraes: To Poho o Rawiri Marae.
We, as guests, were chanted in to the Marae by our hosts and we were all greeted personally with a nose kiss, which symbolizes unity: when you kiss with the nose you breath the same air and at that moment you are one with that person. In addition, you say ' Kiaora ' a welcome from the heart. A service was held in Maori language and we heard about the culture of the Maoris. Women are not allowed to speak in the Maraes.
Water ceremony
The official Gathering started the next day at Wananga O Aotearoa (The country of the long white cloud) with a water ceremony led by Grandmother Agnes. As in all the Gatherings I have attended Grandmother Agnes emphasises appreciation of water. After all when we pollute water there is no life. GM Agnes insists on our expressing appreciation of water every day: when we turn on the tap in the morning, when we take a shower, when we make tea etc. 'bless the water’ because that is the beginning of your own healing. The water in your body will hear the blessing and resonate with this. The waters talk to each other and hear each other. I know it's so true but I grew up to expect clean water from the tap as a matter of course. I have to force myself to bless the water in the morning when I turn on the tap. Again Grandmother Agnes told us that women are taking over and will change the world.
Our hostess and Ambassador Grandmother Pauline of New Zealand and a Maori had a wonderful programme for us. Many powerful Maori women and men, young and old were invited to tell us about the Maori culture.
I was not only impressed by their physical strength but also by their powerful speeches. Like all the indigenous people the Maoris having their land taken from them and the rules of the Church imposed. This was remembered in their speeches and you could still feel the pain.
Maoris go to church on Sunday and Jesus Christ is holy to them and very important in their daily lives. There are a lot of activities to keep the traditions and culture of the Maoris alive. I noticed that among the rest of the population there is a lot of respect for what the Maoris do for their land. It was nice to see that when a speaker finished her or his speech he or she received appreciation from the Maoris in the room who chanted a song or blessings. With a lot of interest I listened to a woman who had already been active in the New Zealand Parliament for 12 years. She called upon all the Maoris not to rely on the Government but to rely only on themselves, because the Government is not really interested in the Maori Community; only when it comes to the Elections do their voices count.
So she promoted working together with all the Tribes and putting aside their disputes some tribes have with each other. Take care of your Tribe, take care of each other. We do not need the Government. Many more passionate men and women, young and old gave speeches.
The Maoris inspired the Grandmothers to continue their work in their own country. Future generations are being raised in the traditions of the Maoris. The beautiful paintings on their faces show to which tribe they belong. They live on an island. You can tell from how relaxed they are and that they do not take time too seriously. What does not happen today will happen tomorrow. Funny I thought that only our Southern European countries were living this way. I was also very inspired by a young woman who seemed to be the Chairman of the Youth Committee of the Maoris. She fights for the natural resources of New Zealand by making a Youtube movie to tell the multinationals to stay away from New Zealand. They not only speak out through dance but also the eyes tell a lot.
The young Maoris are very keen to look after their resources for the next 7 generations.
The song of The Maories:
Kekē-pōhatu...kekē tī kekē!
Kekē-pōhatu... kekē tī kekē!
Kekē tī Kekē-pōhatu hurihuri,
hau-kauangaroa, Katakata te Raukūmara ā haha!
Aha, Hiti tā-hiti... kekē tī kekē!
Hiti tā-hiti...kekē tī kekē!
