I had to research this one myself last year after a friend reminded me that it was nearly Matariki and I realised that I didn't know a lot about it beyond the bare fact that it existed.

So this is what I found out and posted on 360 last year (with some slight editing and upgrading for this year).

Matariki (the stars in the sky)

Matariki is the Maori name for the small distinctive cluster of stars that are more commonly known as the Pleiades or the Seven Sisters, in the Taurus constellation. In New Zealand this star cluster comes into view only once a year, low on our north-eastern Horizon and can be seen in the last days of May or in early June just before it dawns.


Presuming that it’s not raining of course and right now in Canterbury we have rain. So I can't see anything.

Puanga

The bright star Puanga – or Rigel – also emerges at about the same time as Matariki, and for some iwi (tribal groups) it is the appearance of Puanga rather than Matariki that has significance and is celebrated. Iwi who celebrate this star are mostly those who don't see Matariki, those who live in the west, some parts of the far north, and parts of the South Island.

Matariki (The Maori New Year)

The sighting of Matariki heralds the Maori New Year, although apparently in the past Maori tribes celebrated Matariki at different times, some tribes holding festivities when Matariki is first seen in the dawn sky and others after the first full moon has arisen, or at the beginning of the next full moon.

The appearance of Matariki in the morning sky is considered vital on its first outing. If the stars in the cluster are clear and bright, it is thought the year ahead will be warm and productive. If they appear hazy and shimmering, an unproductive year is in store.

In ancient times Matariki arrived at the end of the harvest and was therefore a time of plenty. The kumara and other root foods had been gathered. The migration of fish such as moki and korokoro also made Matariki a time of bountiful catches. Visitors were often showered with gifts of specially preserved eel, birds and other delicacies. Matariki was a time to share and present offerings to others.

Winter Solstice

Matariki is also associated with the winter solstice. It appears when the sun, drifting north on the shortest day in winter, reaches the north-eastern end of the horizon. The sun then turns around and begins its journey south.

Remember that May and June are autumn and winter in the Southern Hemisphere.

Legends about Matariki

Matariki literally means the ‘eyes of god’ (mata ariki) or ‘little eyes’ (mata riki).

One version of the story is that when Ranginui, the sky father, and Papatuanuku, the earth mother were separated by their offspring, the god of the winds, Tawhirimatea, became angry, tearing out his eyes and hurling them into the heavens.

Another version, (I like this one), has it that Matariki is the mother surrounded by her six daughters, Tupu-a-nuku, Tupu-a-rangi, Waiti, Waita, Waipuna-a-rangi and Ururangi. The account explains that Matariki and her daughters appear to assist the sun, Te Ra, whose winter journey from the north has left him weakened.

New Beginning

Because it is marking the start of a new year, Matariki is also a time of new beginnings.

Matariki indicates a change of season, in particular the start of the cold season. The pataka (food storehouses) are full, there is no food gathering, fishing, eeling or planting as it is too cold. Matariki is the time to stay indoors and wananga (schools of learning) about geneology and other important issues to Maori.

As the winter starts to fade around August, it is time to start preparing the land for planting and the cycle of food gathering starts again.

As the natural world regenerates and another seasonal round begins, Matariki is a time to pause and reflect – on the year that was, and the year that will be.

Traditionally Matariki was the time to plant trees, prepare the land for planting crops, and renew associations with whanau, family and friends.

Matariki around the world

The timing of Matariki’s rising and the particular Maori celebration is unique to Aotearoa (New Zealand). However, the Matariki cluster can be seen from many parts of the world where it is known by several other names including Pleiades, Seven Sisters, Subaru and Messier 45.

The time of the rising of the Pleiades has always been a major indicator of seasonal changes throughout the ancient world. Matariki is recognised widely in the Pacific where it was an important astronomical sign to sailors both as a navigational aid and as a sign that the weather was safe for long voyages with the stormy season past.

Early Greek seamen knew them as the sailing stars and would only sail when the stars were visible at night.

In Hawaii, the stars are known as the Makali’I and their appearance in October/November marked the start of the great Makahiki Festival dedicated to the god of rain and agriculture.

The Japanese call Matariki Subaru, which has become well known due to its use by the car maker. The meaning of Subaru is generally thought to be united or getting together.

Some cultures believed that a great ancient cataclysm occurred when the Pleiades were overhead at midnight, such as the great biblical flood or the sinking of Atlantis. In both ancient Greece and Mexico, several temples were lines up with the rising and setting of Matariki.

Matariki 2008

This year the star cluster Matariki has first risen on the 23rd of May. I am already late with this post as apparently the best time to see it was on 31st of May as there was to be approximately thirty minutes between Matariki rising and the Sun coming up.

But it’s still worth looking (if it isn’t raining - right now it is)

Last year when I saw Matariki, I had awoken early and I went outside, it was about -5C and the grass was crisp and frozen under my gumboots - but the sky was magic - and there glistening like diamonds was Matariki (the mother and her six daughters up there pulling back the sun towards us and away from the northern hemisphere.

The Maori New Year begins with the first new moon after Matariki’s reappearance. This year, the new moon rises on the 5th of June so the Maori New Year will start on the 6th of June.

Probably every culture has stories of how they believe the world began, certainly the tangatawhenua (first peoples) of Aotearoa/New Zealand had their own creation mythology.

This version I tell you here derives from the writing of Professor Ranginui Walker.


There were the three states of existence and they were:

Te Kore (the void), signified the vastness of space which contained the seeds of the universe and is therefore a state of potential -

Te Po (the dark), was the celestial realm and the domain of the gods and the source of all mana and tapu -

Te Aomarama (the world of light), is the world of light and reality, the dwelling place of humans.

In the beginning of the world there was only Te Kore, the great void and emptiness of space.

Te Kore had differing qualities which were described by a series of adjectives. Thus Te Kore became:

Te Kore te whiwhia (the void in which nothing could be obtained),
Te Kore te rawea (the void in which nothing could be felt),
Te Kore i ai (the void with nothing in union),
Te Kore te wiwia (the space without boundaries).

Te Po, the second state of existence also had adjectives and graduations.
First there is Te Po, then:

Te Po nui (the great night),
Te Po roa (the long night),
Te Po te kitea (the night in which nothing could be seen),
Te Po uriuri (the dark night),
Te Po kerekere (the intense night),
Te Po tangtango (the intensely dark night),

As with Te Kore, the periods of Te Po correspond to the aeons of time before and as the earth slowly came into being. They also signify the emptiness and darkness of of the mind.

Because there was no light there was no knowledge.

Papatuanuku (the earth mother) and Ranginui (the sky father) were so close and embraced so tightly that they prevented light from coming into the world however their procreative powers brought sons into being,
Tanemahuta,
Tangaroa,
Tawhirimatea,
Tumatauenga,
Haumiatiketike,
Rongomatane.

The sons realised that living in a world of darkness and ignorance could be alleviated only by separating their parents so that

Ranginui could become the sky father above them

and

Papatuanuku would remain with them as their earth mother.

The task of separating earth and sky fell to Tanemahuta who prised them apart with his shoulders to the ground and his legs thrusting upwards. After this one of his names became Tane-te-toko-o-te-rangi (Tane the prop of the heavens).  His name was verified over and over in the great forests of Tane where the mighty trunks of the totara and kauri trees could be seen soaring upwards past the green canopy and towards the sky.

Now the separation of the earth and the sky brought into being

Te Aomarama (the world of light)
the third state of existence
the place of human beings...

Letting in the light let in knowledge...

But...
Ranginui was filled with sorrow at being parted from Papatuanuku whose face far below him now was a constant reminder of the painful separation. His tears were
Ua-nui (great rain)
Ua-roa (long rain)
Ua-whatu (fierce hailstorms)
Ua-ngana (light rain).

Finally the gods decided to turn Papatuanuku over so that her face would be hidden from her husband. The youngest of the brothers, Ruaumoko was still breastfeeding at the time and as the god of volcanoes he was left there to warm and comfort his mother.


After the Separation came the War of the Gods.

Tawhirimatea (the god of winds) who had opposed separation and was therefore angry devastated the forests of Tane with hurricane force. Once he had vanquished Tane he lashed up the mountainous seas of Tangaroa, driving the descendants of Tangaroa to seek shelter from his wrath.

Thus the children of Tangaroa scattered, Ikatere fleeing to the depths of the ocean to become the progenitor of the fish species and Tu-te-wehiwehi travelling inland to establish the reptilian family.

Tawhirimatea could not vent his wrath on Rongomatane and Haumiatiketike because their mother Papatuanuku hid them by thrusting them deep into her breasts. Remaining untested in war Haumiatiketike became the god of edible fern roots and other wild and uncultivated plants. Rongomatane became the custodian of the kumara and the god of cultivation and other peaceful arts.

Finally Tawhirimatea turned his wrath on the one remaining brother Tumatauenga whom he was unable to vanquish. However Tumatuaenga became angry with his brothers for not standing alongside him. For this reason he is also known as
Tu-ka-riri (Tu of violent temper),
Tu-ka-nguha (Tu of raging fury),
Tu-whakaheke-tangata-ki-te-po (Tu who consigns men to Hades)
Tu, as the god of war and ancestor of fierce man encompasses in his names the aggressive characteristics and warlike nature of men.

Tapu And Noa

Tumatauenga sought utu (redress) from his brothers for leaving him to face Tawhirimatea alone. He attacked the children of Tane, asserting his mana by debasing them and converting them to common use. From trees and vines he fashioned spears and snares to kill and trap Tane's birds. He also made nets and canoes to catch the children of Tangaroa. By his actions of using the children of his brothers as food and common objects Tumatauenga negated their tapu and made them noa.

This reflects the basic Maori dichotomy between the sacred and profane and explains how it came into being and the holistic view of humankind conceived of and belonging to the land (tangatawhenua - people of the land). People are not above the land but an integral part of it, therefore, if a tree is needed for timber, then rituals to seek permission from Tane must be performed first. In a similar way a fisherman is expected to return to the sea the first catch he caught as an offering to Tangaroa. The first fruits of the harvest season should be offered to Rongomatane, the god of cultivation.

"Whaia te iti kahurangi ki te kuoho koe me maunga tei tei".


This is a Maori proverb, in English it translates as:


" Follow your dreams, if you have to bend or bow, let it be to a lofty mountain".

...and I am quite sure the Christchurch-based artist, Jude Blake, must have had that proverb in her mind when she painted this picture " Clouds of Heaven" ...