The Pō, or ages of darkness—Astronomical Notes—The Months and Days—More Astronomical Notes.
[IN this Chapter a translation of the Sage's remarks on the Pō, the cosmological ages of darkness, during which the family of the Sky-father and Earth-mother dwelt, prior to their exit to the world of light, is given as well as the succeeding Pō of Hades. But the subject is extremely difficult; the ideas of the old Maoris cannot well be translated, for the saw things from a different standpoint to ours. The Pō of Hades appears to represent the everlasting darkness to which (some of) the spirits of mankind are relegated on passing from this world to the next, and which is constantly referred to in song and story when someone has died by saying, 'He has gone to the Pō—to everlasting night.'
The Astronomical part is mostly from Te Matorohanga's teaching. It is obscure in places, and I think it possible that the Scribe occasionally omitted some remark that would have thrown light on these parts that are not clear.]
TE Matorohanga says:—I have already explained about Pō [the ages or æons of cosmological darkness before the birth of the gods]. There are two divisions of these Pō: the first is that during which the offspring of Rangi [the Sky-father] and Papa [the Earth-mother] dwelt in the Pō, and eventually became desirous of breaking forth from the embrace of their parents to the Whai-ao [the World of Being] and the Ao-marama [the World of Light]. That has already been dealt with (see p. 119).
The second series of the Pō commenced when Hine-nui-te-Pō [Great Lady of the night, goddess of Hades] passed through the angip. 153), and then the second series of Pō became permanent in Rarohenga [Hades]. Hence it is that the Pō has become the 'way of descent' for those of the 'world of being' to Hades; and these Pō are named Te-Pō-tē-kitea
p. 162
[the unseen Pō], Te Pō-tē-whaia [non-possessed Pō], Te Pō-tē-wheau [the Pō-that passes not], Te Pō-tangotango [the Pō of utter darkness], and Te Pō-tē-whawha [the Pō that cannot be touched], in Rarohenga. All these Pō were dedicated [or consecrated, or separated off] to Te Ku-watawata (23) [Guardian of the entrance to Hades] to Rarohenga. [It was after this] that mankind ceased to visit Rarohenga in the body, as described in the account of the return of Mataaho and Niwareka
Let me abbreviate this subject by saying, that there was not one of the family of Rangi and Papa that had not offspring in the 'everlasting world.' The division of that family into the Pou-tiri-ao [guardian-spirits] of the conjoint Heavens, eleven in number, with their special spheres of action, even down to Papa-tua-nuku-matua-te-kore [the Parentless Earth-mother] has been explained. Their duties have been made clear, for there is nothing whatever that has not some function to perform: The Pō, the world, each has its [assigned] work to do. The many Pō and the "germ of gods" have been assigned to the 'Family of Pekerau' (29) (see pp. 132, 157); and the world has been assigned to the 'germ of man' [i.e, the Heavens; the Space is the domain of the gods, whilst the Earth is that of mankind].
Te Matorohanga says:—Tāne appointed some of his elder brethren to be stationed both on the back and on the front of their common parent [the Sky-father], thus:—
Uru-te-ngangana (1) Roiho (2) Roake (3)
These were the occupiers of Pou-tiri-ao, the house that held the kaupeka [months] of the year [i.e., those gods ruled over and arranged the phenomena of time]. It was hence the 'Tatai-aro-rangi ' [i.e., p. 163 science of astromony and time] was possible, to guide the 'Whanau-Puhi-ariki' [sun, moon, and stars family]; that is, what the white-men call an almanac; such is the 'Tatai-aro-rangi,' the arrangement of the sun, moon, and stars [in their proper seasons, courses, etc.].
Some of the family of Rangi and Papa are [always] moving about in the Planes of the Eleven Heavens, arranging and directing the 'Tatai-aro-rangi' of the Ao-rangi-puaroa [the visible Heavens]. And it is in consequence of this that the sun, moon, and their younger brethren the stars [that denote the seasons] of the year move correctly; together with the whetu-punga
Kaukau-rangi, Kura-a-rangi, and Rakorakoa (or Amokura).
All these birds were very tapu; it was their tail-feathers that were used as plumes for the gods mentioned above. There are three other birds not included in the above; they were brought down from Heaven by Tawhaki in order to produce plumes for his wife Maikuku-makaka; they were, the Kotuku [crane], the Huia, and the Koekoeā [long-tailed-cuckoo].
It must be understood that the 'glowing sun' and his younger brethren had been arranged in due order on their ancestor the Sky-father. In consequence of the heat of the sun the waters of the Planes became putrid, and in consequence thereof Matuku-whakapu [a crane] was able to peck Pāra [the barracuta fish] and his brethren, through the shallowness of the water. This became the cause why Pāra and others came down to Earth to dwell.
[The Sage adds the following to illustrate the above, though it really belongs to the story of Tawhaki—the Greek Peleus]. They met Tawhaki and his brother Karihi when they went to Ahurangi [the name of the way by which Tawhaki ascended] by the Ara-tukutuku [the spider's way] where Karihi was killed and Tawhaki ascended up to the brow at Tahu-rangi [some place in the Heavens], and there met Pāra and his brethren on their way down to Earth. Tawhaki asked them, "Why are you leaving the upper regions?" Pāra replied, "All the waters have become quite shallow and are putrid; and consequently Matuku-whakapu [the crane] was able to peck us. We are going down to Earth. How is it down there?" Tawhaki said, "You can go now, it is all right down below." Tawhaki then went on until he reached the Pae-angiangi [the summit where he rested to take breath], where he met Matuku-whakapu [the crane] and Pakura [the water-hen, Porphyrio melanotis], of whom Tawhaki asked, "Where are you two going?" "We are going down below, to seek a cool place; we are about killed up here by Tama-nui-te-ra [the sun]; there is no water left." Tawhaki looked at Pakura and said, "Thy forehead has been skinned; the blood is flowing."
[The reader must not set this episode down as a childish fable. It is an important myth, the meaning of which the translator hopes to find time to explain some time.]
Now, the family of Rangi and Papa [the gods] from the time they went forth from the embrace of their parents, down to the period of the Pae-rangi war (see p. 134), and to the time of the appointment of Pou-tiri-ao [the guardian-spirits], were all dwelling within a kind of twilight. The reason of this was, there was no sun, no moon, no stars, no clouds. [Here one of the listeners to the Sage's teaching, named Pere, asked, "O Moi! Whence then were the clouds on which Tāne, Ruatau, Rehua and others descended?" The Sage replied, "They were from Tiritiri-o-matangi [next Heaven below the summit]; those were the first [used] to take them down to Rangi-naonao-ariki [the third Heaven from above]. Those clouds were returned by the Apa-rangi, and then they continued their descent on the clouds of Rangi-naonao-ariki to Rangi-te-wiwini, and so on down to Rangi-tamaku and Papa [the Earth]. When Tāne propped up the Heavens these clouds remained up above."]
In consequence of this want of light Tāne ordered that the Whanau-ariki, or Whanau-puhi [the sun, moon and stars] should be brought from their dwelling on Maunga-nui [mountain], where they had been stationed by Tāne and his elder brethren at Rangi-tukia. The residence of that family there was not at all pleasant, for they could only see very indistinctly, and their eyes constantly watered. So it was thought better to convey them to the belly of their father, Rangi-nui, and there affix them so that the Earth might be lit up. Then Kewa (9) asked of Tāne-matua (68), "Who, above on Maunga-nui, is in charge of that family?" Tāne replied, "They are with Whiro-taringa-waru, Tongatonga (42), Tawhiri-rangi (15), and Ikaroa (12) suspended within the house at Rangi-tukia."
When Kewa (9) arrived at [the base of] Maunga-nui he said unto Tongatonga, "The family of gods have finally decided that the family in your charge here are to be taken and affixed to the front of their ancestor, and there remain to adorn the front of Rangi-nui-a-tamaku [the Sky-father]." To this the guardians of that family consented; they were also the feeders of that family.
Then Tongatonga (42) and Kewa (9) ascended Maunga-nui, and looking down from there they saw the family amusing themselves on the sands at Te Rehu-roa. They were called to come up to [the summit of] Maunga-nui. Their mode of progression was by rolling over and over up the mountain; the reason for which was that they were shaped like an eye, they had no bodies. When they reached the court-yard [named] Takapau-rangi, they disappeared into their house, Rangi-tukia; and then Taringa-waru, Tawhiri-rangi, Te Ikaroa, and p. 166 Tongatonga took four 'baskets' in which to place the 'family.' These 'baskets' were named:—
[The above is the second method of counting the months by numbers, for all the names after Marua-roa express the ordinary numbers. There is an apparent confusion in the Scribe's marginal numbers for they do not agree with the same expressed in writing; it would be apparently more correct if Marua-roa [the winter solstice] were opposite June and July. June is usually said to be the commencement of the year, denoted by the rising of Matariki, or the Pleiades.]
[Nepia Pohuhu has the following on astronomical subjects:—] Now if the flight of the Sun, Moon, and all their younger brethren, the Stars, is directed towards the head of Rangi-nui [the Sky-father], that is the Waru-tu-hoehoe [mid-summer], if they come towards the legs of Rangi-nui, that is the Takurua-Waipu [mid-winter]. The pito [Ecliptic] is the boundary on their parent, their ancestor; and that is the demarkation between winter and summer. Now the head of Rangi is to the north, and his legs to the south, towards Para-wera-nui [the fierce south wind], and, hence are the 'southers' so bad.
[Nepia Pohuhu says further:—] This is another word of mine, about which all must be clear; in reference to the whatu [? the eye] of the Whanau-puhi that have been mentioned; that is, Tama-nui-te-ra [the Sun] and Te Marama-i-whanake [the waxing Moon], and their younger brethren the Stars. Rona,
Now, in consequence of Io having so decreed, together with the Whatu-kuras, in the world and the Pō [Hades] as to the arrangement of the functions of all things, the company of Apas became the instruments, the guardians, the directors of all things in all the Heavens and the Planes; they became the overseers of the duties of all things in the Moons, Suns, and Stars of each Heaven forming the twelve Heavens, each one of which has its own Moon and Stars.
1. Angi is the space between Heaven and Earth, and also between Earth and Hades. 2. See Chapter VI. as to this visit to Hades. 3. This is explained by the Scribe as follows, but it is not clear: If a child is born between the first and seventh day after labour commences, it will be well for both mother and child. But if not born between the seventh and twelfth day, the mother and child will surely die. 4. Whetu-punga are 'the smaller stars sheltering under the Milky Way—those stars barely visible to the eye. They are constantly falling off the Milky Way, and are then seen as Meteors'—says the Scribe. 5. The Hakuai is said to be a very large and fierce bird that is never seen but very high up in the heavens. The stories connected with it seem to indicate that it is a dimly remembered tradition of the Eagle, which the ancestors of the Maoris knew in some former habitat. The Amokura is the Tropic bird, which occasionally visits the North Cape of New Zealand, and the red tail feathers of which were highly valued. The others are not known—probably they were birds that dwelt in the original home of the Maoris. Tawhaki's three birds are inhabitants of New Zealand, and their tail feathers were much prized. 6. The Pakura has a scarlet patch over each eye, and the above is how the Maoris account for it—Matuku was supposed to have done it. 7. The Kete-rauroha means the 'basket of wide space,' no doubt referring to the stars scattered over the heavenly vault. 8. It will be noticed these stars are twelve in number, as are the Heavens, and the months. 9. This is the first time I ever came across a statement in Polynesian traditions that Venus ruled the year. The Pleiades are universally said to do so. But, we may have here possibly the faint recollection of another ancient cult, for J. F. Hewitt in his "Primitive Traditional History," Vol. I., p. 132, says that Alberune quotes Venus as having been worshipped at the beginning of the Pleiades year. 10. The following illustration does not belong to the "Celestial Plane," but to the period just before the fleet left Tahiti for New Zealand in about A.D. 1350 11. Wehi-nui-a-maomao is said to preside over one of the months—probably the twelfth. It is also said that Titi-raupenga mountain in New Zealand was owned by this god, or spirit. 12. 'Te Waka-o-Tama-rere-ti'—the canoe of Tama-rere-ti—is the constellation Scorpio. It is said that the first canoe made by the Maori people in the Fatherland was copied from this (hence the word 'pattern' in the text). The canoe's name is 'Uruao,' and sometimes the smaller stars fall overboard, and then appear to us as mata-kokiri, or meteors. 13. The Ara-matua is the 'main-way'—the Ecliptic—or in other words the course of the heavenly bodies in the Zodiac. The Kaupeka are the twelve months, equivalent to the twelve signs of the Zodiac. 14. Whakaatatia. 'Men, gods, birds and reptiles, all looked up to the Heavens, and were dissatisfied with the arrangement'—says the Scribe. 15. The use of the word pito (navel) throws a light on its meaning as connected with the Sun's path, or Ecliptic, when considered in connection with the Hawaiian expression Piko-o-wakea, which Hawaiian scholars translate as 'the Equator,' but which we may now believe to be the Ecliptic of the Heavens rather than the Terrestrial Equator. In the Hawaiian name, piko is the Maori pito (for the Hawaiians have substituted the 'k' for the 't' in every word of their language—a comparatively speaking modern innovation, dating from about the commencement of the nineteenth century), and Wakea is in Maori Watea, or Atea, and this latter word is equivalent to Rangi, the Sky, in some of the Eastem Polynesian languages, meaning light, and day, as does rangi in Maori. It is, therefore, apparent that te pito o Rangi is the Celestial Equator, or more properly the Ecliptic, which is also expressed by 'the Ara-matua,' or 'main way,' the part of the Heavens in which the principal Stars, Sun, and Moon pursue their annual courses. 16. It seems from this that the Maori astronomy originated in the Southern Hemisphere. The "beginning of the year" is the month of June—winter in the Southern Hemisphere. Possibly the old priests had to change their nomenclature after they left the Fatherland, which, there is little doubt, was north of the Equator. 17. The Sage here says this is the Leap Year of the White people, a remark probably added by the Scribe. 18. The Scribe endeavoured to explain his ideas on this subject, but with not much success. Matohi, a star, enters and disputes with the day called Tangaroa and, if successful, no fish are caught, for the latter bring the fish. (Tangaroa is a god of the ocean, fish, and all oceanic phenomena). Matohi is never seen by man except during the days called Tangaroa (23rd to 25th of the month); it is bluish in colour, and from his description of its position in the Heavens it is probably near Alpha Taurus. It appears to me that we have here an attempt to intercalate certain days to correct the Lunar year. 19. A small, round-leafed sea-weed. 20. The home of the winds. 21. Pawa, short for Aitu-pawa, who is one of the guardians of the Heavenly treasure house, and was ruler over the Pou-tiri-ao, or guardian-spirts, whose function it was to attend to the sequence of the months of the year. 22. In this the old Priest is a little wrong, in as much as be includes the Stars in the change of declination common to the Sun and Moon. 23. Rona is the woman in the moon, about whom are several stories. 24. As, already explained, the above 'Ridge' is supposed to exist in the Pacific Ocean, between New Zealand and Tahiti, where stormy weather and big waves are encountered—probably the point in from lat. 23 to lat. 25, where the Trade winds meet the prevailing westerly winds. The Scribe tells me that the tides are supposed to flow up to each side of this 'Ridge,' and then recede, thus making flood and ebb tide in opposite directions. The real belief of the old Tohungas is difficult to get at; and it seems probable that the Celestial Tuahiwi, or 'ridge' [the Milky Way] had something to do with this change in the direction of the flow of the tides; or, what is just as likely, the people in one of their former habitats, as in Indonesia, had observed that the tides, at some well-known point, made in different directions. This is a point that is worth looking up, but no work is available here. The Scribe adds: Some Tohungas held that Matariki (the Pleiades) ruled the tides, when that constellation is 'above' the Tuahiwi, or 'Ridge' (? 'Celestial Ridge'), then it rules rather than the Moon. Such was the teaching of Te-Waka-Kawatini—a well-known Tohunga—in 1876. The Pleiades are 'above' the 'Celestial Ridge' (Milky Way), of course, soon after the former rises. 25. These last two words do not follow the original exactly, but the Scribe tells me they correctly describe the teaching of the Sages. When asked whether it was not the same Sun, etc., that we see illuminates all the Heavens, he said, "No! Each Heaven has it own Sun, Moon, and Stars." 26. This is obscure, but is just as the Sage says.
Footnotes