| World view | | | | |

Word count 603 |

Te Ao Māori
For Māori, the sun rising in the east, moving slowly across the sky and setting in the west, signifies the birth and growth of mana or power, throughout the world. For many, it is a symbol of birth, life and death, resurrected daily, as a reminder of our existence. Māori believe that everything is interrelated, be it people, fish, animals, birds, trees, even the mountains and the weather. These relationships were told in various kōrero tawhito, or stories of the past and are referred to as whakapapa, meaning to lay one thing upon another (Barlow, 1994). Everything has a whakapapa, a genealogical descent of all living things, from the atua, the gods to the present time (Barlow, 1994).
These relationships helped Māori to act accordingly and to understand the world they lived in. For Māori, their world view changed when they first arrived in Aotearoa New Zealand, and had to adapt to life in a new world. Their diet changed dramatically as their normal diet relied heavily on plants and vegetables. Here in Aotearoa New Zealand there was an abundance of meat and fish. The crops they normally grew, were not used to the climate. They had to learn what plants they could eat and grow. The Māori world view changed even more with the arrival of whalers, their first contact with European people. The introduction of disease had a dramatic effect on Māori causing many deaths. Europeans partnering with Māori women, leading to intermarriage, and ultimately offspring, whom were often shunned by their people. Trading and receiving items that were unknown to them, like guns perhaps and more. All this would have had a dramatic impact on Māori.
Whānau, or family and extended family is an important part in the Māori world view. It defines who Māori are. There is an understanding of collective responsibility, where one person’s actions or deeds will reflect on everyone in the whānau. This can also be an example of Mana, power, authority, prestige (Barlow, 2010). Mana and Tapu very much go hand in hand, as certain events or protocols can be subject to both. Whether it be at a Tangi or funeral, a meeting of Rangatira or chiefs, mana and tapu will be evident. We see it in the speakers on a Marae.
To Māori, everything has a Mauri or life force, be it a living thing or an inanimate object such as a building or a mountain. Mauri is also closely associated with mana, atua and tapu. Tapu, to me growing up was strongly associated with sacredness and almost seemed if somewhere was tapu, it was a no go area. However it means more than that. Tapu is a system of protection and restriction. It is also a means of influencing respect. Utu, often understood to mean revenge has many aspects to it. Utu was normally only invoked where someone’s mana or a tapu had been challenged. The concept of utu, was to be able to restore the balance to a situation, and it often overtook the initial hara or wrong. It could take some time to find that ea or balance to resolve the utu. The traditional concept of utu is still in use today for Māori, in social, legal, political and economic situations. This is evident in Māori, Treaty of Waitangi claims, where there is an expectation that past wrongs will be made right. I see this as Māori wanting to move forward and leave the wrongs of the past behind them and to grow as a people, as a nation unique in this ever changing world.

References
Barlow, Cleve. (1994). Tikanga Whakaaro: Key concepts in Māori culture. Auckland, New Zealand: Oxford University Press