Other Maori songs - Kiwi Songs - Home

In pre-European times, egalitarian Pacific cultures saw sexual activity as part of the act of creation, a sacred thing. Sexual descriptions were included in old chants, as this stanza of the haka Whakarongo points out.  The male-controlled European cultures saw it as bad because the men's sexual desire for women reduced their control over them.  Ki o tatau tipuna, kaore he huna o te kupu e He tika ra! He tika ra! I nehera, kaore he haka tatakimori. Hou tonu atu ki nga wahi tapu o te tane, o te wahine Nga kupu horetiti, nga kupu nohunohu. When our ancestors spoke There was no concealment of words. They were direct, straight to the point! In the old days, the chants were never meaningless They dealt directly with the intimate places of men and women using explicit and graphic words. He Ruaumoko This ancient East Coast haka highlights the awesome creative power of the human sexual act. It is mysteriously beyond human control, like the divine creative force of the earthquakes that create new landforms. Ko Ruaumoko e ngunguru nei! Hi Au! Au ! Aue ha! Ko Ruaumoko e ngunguru nei! Hi Au! Au! Aue ha! I aha aha! E ko te rakau a Tu-nga-werewere! I ha ha! He rakau tapu na Tutaua ki a Uenuku. I patukia ki te tipuaki o Rangitopeka, Pakaru te upoko o Rangitopeka, Patua ki waenganui o te tau ki Hikurangi, He toka whakairo e tu ake nei. He atua! He tangata! He atua! He tangata, ho! He atua, he atua, tau Paretaitoko. Kia kitea e Paretaitoko te whare haunga! I ha ha! Kia whakatete mai o rei, he kuri! Au! I Ahaha! Na wai parehua taku hope kia whakaka te rangi Kia tare au! Hi! He roha te kawau! Hi! Kei te pou tara Tu ka tete, ka tete! Tau ha! Ko komako, ko komako! E ko te hau tapu e rite ki te kai na Matariki. Pakia! Tapareireia koia tapa, Tapa kononua kai ana tukua. I aue hi! I ahaha! Ka tu te ihiihi! ka tu te wanawana! Ki runga i te rangi! E tu iho nei! Hi!   Hark to the rumbling of the Earthquake Demon! Hi Au! Au! Aue ha! It is Ruaumoko who trembles and stirs! Hi Au! Au! Aue ha! I aha aha! It is the rod of Tu the Suspended One! A sacred rod given by Tutaua to Uenuku. It strikes the crown of Rangitopeka's head, It breaks Rangitopeka's skull Splitting the ridge of Hikurangi, from where a carved rock emerges. It is divine ..human ..divine ..human, Oh! Divine! divine! strange Paretai-toko. Paretai-toko sees the musky house Ah ha! where the dog is ready to bite! Ah! Ah, Haha! In my ecstasy I see the sky enflamed I gasp for breath! Ah! A soaring cormorant ! Yeah! The spike is plunging in It keeps grinding, grinding away! Attacking! Then the bellbird sings! The sacred wind blows gently Like the food of the stars. Clap! Saturated indeed is the valley! From the deep narrow cleft the rod is now withdrawn. A shout! Of exaltation! Face up to the fear! Confront the terror! As high as the sky! Challenge it right up to there! Yeah! Ka Panapana This was used for a time by the Black Ferns, the NZ woman's rugby team. It was written by 24-year-old Tuini Ngati in 1934 for the contingent of Ngati Porou when they went north to Waitangi to celebrate the signing of the Treaty there 92 years previously. (Papers Past) It was performed by 100 young Ngati Porou women and depicted the overwhelming pleasure of their  iwi to be once again reunited with Nga Puhi, comparing it with the ecstasy of sexual union. Taking into account the sexual metaphors used, Tuini probably modified it from one or more earlier chants, as the quote at the top of this page indicates, just as Te Rauparaha modified Kikiki Kakaka. Those East Coast ladies were really confident about their sexuality, nei! Egalitarian Pacific cultures saw sexual activity as part of the act of creation, a sacred thing. Sexual descriptions were included in old chants, whereas the male-controlled European cultures saw it as bad because the men's sexual desire for women reduced their control over them. 1934 Performance at Waitangi Draft literal translation A ra ra! Ka panapana, A ha ha Ka rekareka tonu taku ngakau Ki nga mana ririki i pohatu whakapiri Kia haramai te takitini, Kia haramai te takimano, Kia pare-tai-tokotia ki Rawhiti! Hi! Ha! He mamae, he mamae! A ha ha! Ka haere, ka haere taku powhiri Ki te Tai Whakarunga! Hoki mai, hoki mai taku tinana! Ka haere, ka haere taku powhiri Ki te Tai Whakararo! Hoki mai, hoki mai taku tinana! Kia huri au ki te tai whakatu a Kupe Ki te tai o Matawhero i motu mai! E kō te hoariri ki roto i aku ringa, Kutia rawatia kia pari tona ihu! Hi! ha! Aue ana! Kss! Kss! Hei! Kia whakanga hoki au i ahau I aue! Hei!   Lo, it is throbbing! A ha ha! My heart keeps throbbing with pleasure with the small forces knocking together May there be multitudes of them coming thousands of them coming May they be protected from the seas  on the East Coast Hi! Ha! Yearning, pining! A ha ha! My call of welcome goes out To the Southern Sea! Come back, come back to my body! My call of welcome goes out  To the Northern Sea! Come back, come back to my body! I turn to the sea which Kupe raised up To the sea which breaks at Gisborne! The assailant in my arms is digging, He'll be squeezed, choked, until his nose is flowing! Hi! Ah! Oh keep going! Kss! Kss! Hei! Now let me rest awhile... Oh! Ahhh!                                                                                                                       1943 Version at Ruatoria      Tuini's modified version for Lt. Ngarimu's posthumous investiture of the Victoria Cross. A ra ra! Ka panapana, A ha ha Ka rekareka tonu taku ngakau Ki nga mana ririki i Pohatu-whakapiri. Kia haramai te takitini, Kia haramai te takimano, Kia paretaitokotia ki Rawhiti! Hi! Ha!   He mamae, he mamae! A ha ha! Ka haere, ka haere taku powhiri Ki te Tai Whakarunga! Hoki mai, hoki mai taku tinana! Ka haere, ka haere taku powhiri Ki te Tai Whakararo! Hoki mai, hoki mai taku tinana! Kia huri au ki te tai whakatu a Kupe Ki te tai o Matawhero i motu mai! E kō te Hitara ki roto i aku ringa, Kutia rawatia kia pari tona ihu! Hi! ha! Aue ana! Kss! Kss! Hei! Kia whakanga hoki au i ahau I aue! Hei!   Lo, it is throbbing! A ha ha! My heart is throbbing with pleasure with those of low standing (the common people) at Pohatuwhakapiri who have come in their multitudes who have come in their thousands and alighted on the shore of the Eastern Sea. Hi! Ha!  Next is a dirge for the dead from all over NZ So painful, so painful! A ha ha! My call goes out, goes out To the Southern Sea But no response comes  back to me My call goes out, goes out To the Northern Sea! But no response comes  back to me Thus I turn to the sea which Kupe raised up To the sea which breaks at Gisborne! There is Hitler within my embrace,  He'll be crushed, dispossessed, until his nose is flowing Hi! Ah! Oh keep going! Kss! Kss! Hei! Now let me pause and rest awhile... Oh! Ahhh!            (1943 Ruatoria program) Kikiki Kakaka A 18th century chant used at marriages, probably outside a young couple's sleeping hut on their wedding night. Early in the 19th century, Wharerangi facetiously chanted this after his wife had hidden Te Rauparaha beneath her body. This helped give rise to the recent myth that Te Rauparaha composed Ka Mate. Kïkiki käkaka! Kïkiki käkaka, kau ana! Kei waniwania taku tara, Kei tara wahia kei te rua i te kerokero. He pounga rahui te uira ka rarapa; Ketekete, kau ana, to peru kairiri: Mau au e koro e. Ka wehi au ka matakana. Ko wai te tangata kia rere ure Tirohanga nga rua rerarera, Nga rua kuri kakänui i raro? Ka mate! Ka mate! Ka ora! Ka ora! Tenei te tangata puhuruhuru Nana nei i tiki mai whakawhiti te ra! Upane, ka upane! Whiti te ra!   Murmuring in the bracken, Closeted love-talk, baring all. When my pubic mound is brushed, then the mound divides and the pit starts pulsing. Forbidden mysteries are revealed in a flash; surprise, nakedness, your features flushed with passion: I am caught by desire, I'm scared but fully alert. Who is this person with upthrust penis investigating the thigh-girt depths, the musky burning depths down there? Oh! Oh! I'm dying, dying No, I'm alive, fully alive! This is a virile man who is bringing harmony and peace! Together, side by side, we can make the sun shine! Haramai Ana Te Rongo In 1820, just before the Ngati Toa people’s were driven out of Kawhia, Te Rauparaha needed to say to his warriors, “There are enemy closing in all around us, they have ravished some of our most noble women, but they will do so no more; and in the end there will be peace.” He was fully occupied with organizing the defences of his various fortifications and had neither the time nor the energy to compose a new haka, nor his warriors have time to learn it, so he modified the old Haramai Ana and Kikiki chants to create a ngeri for this last great battle. This is the real "Ka Mate" haka that Te Raparaha constructed. Haramai ana te rongo o te riri! I Mua! I Muri! I a Muriwhenua! I a Te Maha I ara! E hara teke pakupaku, e Kui! E hara teke pakupaku, e Koro! E kei te uru? E kei te tonga! E kei te rakau pakeke ki au, e! Kikiki! Kokoko! Kei waniwania taku hika, Kei tara wahia Kei te rua i te karokaro! He pounga rahui! He uira ki te Rangi! Ketekete mai hoki to poru kai-riri: “Mau au, e Koro e?” “I a, ka wehi au, ka mataku! Ko wai te tangata kia rere ure? Tirohanga nga rua rerarera, He a kuri kamukamu! Ka mate! Ka mate! Ka ora! Ka ora! Tenei te tangata puhuruhuru Nana nei i tiki mai Whakawhiti te ra! Upane! Upane! Upane! Ka upane! Whiti te ra! (Te Hurinui Jones, 1960)   Tidings of war are coming From nearby, from far away, From the Far North! From The Many! Not from a small vagina, O Lady! Not from a small vagina, O Sir! From the West! From the South! From the rugged bush country to me. Stutter with rage! Dig, dig, dig pa defences lest my daughter is touched lest her crotch be cleft lest her genitals be used like a slave’s! It is a forbidden hidden place! A lightning flash from the sky-god Rangi, astonished by the hostile mould of that face; “Will you, O Sir, possess me? The thought of it makes me quail!” Who is the man with rampant penis? He is looking into the depths of her thighs Like a dog seeking food! O Death! O Death! Then a new life! Rebirth! Here is the hairy man Who makes the sun to shine! Side by side, shoulder to shoulder, Step forward, all together Into the sun that shines! (Translation by J Archer, 2011) Songs to Whet the Appetites of Dinner-guests Ko Te Kau Tuki A salty chant used when serving a meal to a large numbers of visitors. E! Ko te kau tuki! Kāore i ahau! E! Ko te kau tuki! Kāore i ahau! Engari te ketuketu! Tēnei, tēnei! Engari te ketuketu! Tēnei, tēnei! Hei aha te ketuketu? Hei whakapiri ki te taha o te rīwai parareka Ka pūehu mai i muri! Ka kino te haere! 'E aha? Ka kino te haere! 'E aha? Ka kino te haere! I nekenekehia! Hei! Nekenekehia! Hei! Tēnā, tukua iho! Hai!   Eee! It's the butting cow! That's not what I've got! Eee! It's the wild bullock! That's not what I've got! It's the rooter-up! That's it, that's it! It's the rooter-up! That's it, that's it! What's the rooter-up for? To put close by the sweet-tasting potatoes; It will steam them up later on! It's coming fast! What? It's coming fast! What? It's coming fast! Bring it on! Hei! Bring it on! Hei! Now put it down! Hai! Ko Te Heihei Another chant used at mealtimes with risqué double entendres. E! Ko te heihei! Hei aha te heihei? Ko te heihei! Hei aha te heihei? Te kaiwhakaohorere i te atapō, Tē ngata te puku ki te awhiawhi! A, te hiahia! Nekenekehia! Hei! Nekenekehia! Hei! Tēnā, tukua ia! Hai!   Eee! It's the rooster! What's the rooster for? Its the cock! What's the cock for? He wakes us just before dawn. How the belly is satisfied when we embrace him! Ah, we want him! Bring him on! Hei! Bring him on! Hei! Now put him down! Hai! Late-night beer-party songs Puru Taitama The first verse was from an Otaki courting song of 100 years ago, and more verses have been added over the decades. He pūru taitama e He pūru taitama hoki! He pūru taitama He pūru tukituki He pūru taitama e.   A strong young man! A real young bull! A vigourous lad! A rampaging bull! A husky young man! He meriana e He meriana hoki He meriana I to wahine pai E romiromi ana e   Making merry really merry. Making merry with your good lady. Squeezing each other. E pō i taitai e! E pō i taitai e! E pō i taitai, E pō i tukituki! E pō i taitai e!   At night up high! At night up high! At night up high! At night, thrusting! At night up high! Ti-eri-eri-eri Ti-eri-eri-eri he tara te kai 2x Tupou to nono, wero mai te kanara, Whaia ana ure mai; muri e, mai muri e. I tera po, i tenei po. He pīki whara1 to taiaha He muramura, he muramura, he muramura He pīki whara to taiaha he muramura. When you get the haurangi Titiro ki nga kotiro Ko to ringa ki te mea romiromi e Hai aha te kuia, hai aha te koroua. He pīki whara to taiaha He muramura, he muramura, he muramura Te reka o te pīki whara kopikopia. All a-quiver-iver-iver are our crotches with desire. With your rear end bent over, the candle pokes in, The penis taking aim; from the rear, from the rear. Last night, and tonight as well. A big thrust with your taiaha, glowing, blazing, red-hot. A big thrust with your glowing weapon. When you get drunk take a look at the girls Put your hand down onto your thing and massage it. Never mind that we're an old woman and an old man. A big thrust with your taiaha glowing, blazing, red-hot. Oh, the pleasure of that big belly-thrusting lunge. 1 Pīki whara = "big thrust." Piki is a loan word from English. Adjectives usually come after the noun in the Polynesian languages, but here it goes in front of its noun, as it does in English. Tangi Ukulele Kua rongo hoki ahau i to tangi ukulele Tangi mai o tangi i roto i aku kupu e Nahau i timata nga mahi kinikini Kua roa au e hine, i raruraru ai e Kore au e pai ki te awhi koroheke Engari taitama ka awhi atu au e. Hei tinga ringa ringa Hei tinga ru Kua roa te kite e Kua roa te kite, aue! Mama kua roa te kite, aue! Papa, unuhia to tarau kia kite atu au Kua roa te kite e I was listening once again to your ukulele music And the tunes being played by you to my words were starting to be unfinished performances. It's been a long time since I was a girl, and I have a problem I don't enjoy the attentions of this old codger I'd rather have a young man to attend to my needs. Hey, tinga-linga-linga Hey tinga-loo It's a long time since I've seen it Oh, a long time since I've seen it Such a long time since ma's seen it. Dad, take off your trousers So I can can have a look-see It's so long since I've seen it. He Puke Pai He puke pai, te puke nei e te tau Te patu piriote e ka wero mai te cue, ki taku koiawa e ka kenana mai nga paoro mangu ki te cushi e Tupou mai ano kia atu te cue Ka taka te paoro ki nga peke Oopsy daisy e It's a nice little hill, this lover's mound Make a billiards shot Thrust the cue into my groove Cannon the black ball off the cushion Stoop down and draw back the cue to drop the ball in the pocket Oopsy Daisy! Other Maori songs - Kiwi Songs -Home Page placed onto the NZ Folksong website, Feb 25th, 2014 Click counter for full page stats. Started 28 Jan 2024. Free counter