NZ Folk notes * Beneath the reef

<< Back

Beneath the reef

Te Kooti had to spend the best years of his life eating fern roots in the forest instead of dining on the rich seafood on his Turanga coast homeland, like the kaimoana from Toka-a-Huru reef, offshore from Whangara.

'Huru' can mean 'glowing,' a reference to the sun rising above the reef, or 'feathery,' like the kelp swirling in the tide. But by changing the name of a reef guardian,
from Ta-kopai - te-rangi
to Te Kopai-o-te-whare,
Te Kooti is playing on another meaning of 'huru' - 'disliked.'

He is making a subtle reference to Miru, a spirit of the underworld who lives beneath the swirling kelp at Cape Reinga and other reefs throughout the Pacific, beneath which the spirits of the unloved dead are dragged.

By referring to this waiata tangi, sometimes heard at funerals, he is probably reminding his enemies that this is what their destiny will be.

E tomo e Pa,	Enter, O Sire,
Ki Murimuri-te-Po,	into the Rearmost Underworld
Te Tatau-o-te-Po,	the Door of the Night,
Ko te whare tena	for that is the home
O Rua-kumea,	of She who Pulls men into the Chasm
O Rua-toia	of She who Drags men into the Abyss
O Miru ra—e !	of the goddess Miru !

O Tu-horo-punga,	of the Anchor-swallower,
O Kaiponu-kino.	of the Ever-Greedy One.
Nana koe i maka	You are thrown by her
Ki te kopai o te whare-e !	into the dark corner of her house !

Learn more about Miru HERE

A longer and older version of this waiata tangi is HERE

<< Back