Wai-Ora, Wai-Māori, Waikato
Whakataukī: Hoki ake nei au ki tōku awa koiora me ōna pikonga, He kura tangihia o te mātāmuri
Explanation: The river of life, each curve more beautiful than the last.
Wai has many meanings related to the idea of water as the essence of life. Waiora, waimaori, waikino, waimate and waitai - are used to define concepts for maintaining balance and interconnections between all living things and processes.
Māori traditional knowledge and spirituality provides guidance on how we should view our waterways, how we can protect and heal the waters and ourselves through the principle of kaitiakitanga. Kaitiakitanga is caring for the whole of nature with reverence for people and all of earth's resources as gifts from God to be treasured and safeguarded.
“HOMAI TE WAIORA KI AHAU” which means “Sustain me with the water of life.”
| Wai-Ora | Pure Water |
| Explanation | This is water in its purest form. It is used in rituals to purify and sanctify and has the power to give life, sustain wellbeing and counteract evil. Waiora also means health.
Waiora is the purest form of water, it is the spiritual and physical expression of Ranginui the sky father in his longed-for embrace with Papatuānuku, the earth. Pre water is termed Te Waiora ā Tāne, and to the Māori, it contains the source of life and well-being. Waiora is used in sacred rituals to purify and to sanctify. The rain is waiora; contact with Papatuānuku gives it its purity as water for human consumption. Water can remain pure, as waiora, only if its contact with humans is protected by appropriate ritual prayers. Waiora has the potential to give life, to sustain well-being, and to counteract evil. At particular wāhi tapu (sacred sites) the sacredness of the prayers and the purity of the water reinforce each other, but if one is damaged, then so too will the other. At Waitaiki, Arahura, the mauri of the river, the mauri of pounamu, (greenstone), and the mauri of Kai Tahu the takata whenua, are inextricably linked. |
| Our Interpretation | First day, arriving ready to receive knowledge, purity of thought, empty vessels ready to be filled and inspired, fewer expectations, clarity of thought, purity of mind. Cleansing of the mind in preparation for the days ahead, ready to be filled, the relationship between mentors and mentees, supporting each other in the quest and journey of learning
Waewae tapu- Powhiri, pure sacredness, you are considered manuhiri, visitors, you are being cleansed and welcomed by the tangata whenua in preparation of becoming recognised as tangata whenue in Tainui.
Cleansing start of the journey, experiences and hierarchies do not apply at this stage, made ready to receive and explore new experiences. People are going in as waewae tapu, they are limited by what they can do at this stage as they are considered manuhuri. |
| Wai-Māori | Fresh Water, Mineral Water |
| Explanation | This is referred to as ordinary water which runs free or unrestrained and it has no sacred associations.
Water becomes waimaori when it comes into unprotected contact with humans. It becomes waimaori in contrast to waiora, because it is normal, usual or ordinary and no longer has any particularly sacred associations. Waimāori is the term used to describe water that is running freely or unrestrained, or to describe water which is clear or lucid. Waimāori has a mauri (which is generally benevolent) and which can be controlled by ritual. |
| Our Interpretation | Day 2: Ready to be filled with knowledge and new experiences.
After the powhiri you are now considered a part of the community and wide open for new experiences.
This allows personal experiences and life to become a part of the conference. Traditionally this is the busiest day in the conference, water is needed to sustain and maintain awareness of surroundings and experiences. Social interactions begin to colour your views and understanding of the environment.
Conference experience is starting to be coloured by personal experience and people you meet whilst at conference. Grey areas are becoming more known, not so black and white anymore. |
| Waikato | Full Flowing River |
| Explanation | The name Waikato originated during the voyage of the Tainui canoe, which had journeyed from Polynesia. Arriving just off the mouth of the river, the crew remarked upon the kato (the pull of the river current in the sea) and thereafter the name Waikato (wai meaning water) was given to the river. |
| Our Interpretation | Tying everything together and bringing it back to the area.
This flows throughout, the river starts at Taupo, the water is pure here, begins flowing it is coloured and affected by its environment and surroundings, eventually heading out to sea, to become a part of a greater encompassing so much more than just the geographical areas that it began in. |
The Waikato River and its Catchment
The Waikato River and its region has been populated for at least the past 700 to 800 years. The river provided physical and spiritual sustenance for large populations of Māori living along its catchment. Throughout that time it was a source of food, including eels, fish and plants. It was also an important waka route.
A well-known saying about the Waikato River uses taniwha as a metaphor for chiefs: ‘Waikato taniwha rau, he piko he taniwha, he piko he taniwha’. (Waikato of a hundred taniwha, on every bend a taniwha). This saying attributes the power and prestige of the Waikato tribes to that of the river.
With the arrival of European settlers in the 1840s and 1850s the Waikato River was the main access route inland for traders and missionaries.
During this time the increasing number of Maaori land sales to the new arrivals was causing concern amongst tribal leadership. In 1858 a number of Maaori chiefs of iwi including Ngati Maniapoto, Ngati Tuwharetoa and Raukawa placed their tribal lands under the mana of Waikato-Tainui chief, Pootatau Te Wherowhero, as a guarantee against their sale to the colonial government. Pootatau was proclaimed King of the tribal grouping at his Ngāruawaahia marae that year. This marked the formation of the Kingitanga movement. However the passage of the New Zealand Settlements Act in 1863 authorised the confiscation of land (raupatu) belonging to any tribe who were judged to have rebelled against the British Queen’s authority.
The European settlement of Hamilton, which had long been the Māori settlement of Kirikiriroa, was formally established on 24 August 1864, when Captain William Steele came off the gunboat Rangiriri and established the first military redoubt.
In the wars that followed, some 4,869 sq km of Maaori land was confiscated. While some of that land was later returned to Māori, the land area finally confiscated totalled 3,596 sq km. After the land wars, European settlers cleared and developed the land. From the 1880s dairy farming was the main agricultural activity in Waipaa and Waikato areas. Small towns grew near dairy factories. The Waikato River and its tributaries were used for transport and Hamilton, on the Waikato River, became a busy centre of economic activity.
The last hundred years have seen sweeping changes to the region’s landscapes where people have settled, used and created resources.
In the early 20th century, most of the hill country was developed for farming. After World War II more service towns and industries thrived, and small settlements grew around the hydroelectric dam constructions along the Waikato River.
Native timber was logged north and west of Lake Taupo. Pinus radiata planted in the 1920s and 1930s started today’s extensive plantation forestry industry. Tokoroa’s population more than doubled in the ten years between 1961 and 1971 as people moved to jobs created by the demand for wood products. Many new arrivals were Māori, as jobs and Government housing policies encouraged Māori to move to towns and cities.
Government incentives during this period promoted sheep and cattle farming and bush clearing, so more land was put into farms and forestry. Much of this was marginal land and could only be farmed with the use of fertiliser. In the 1970s economic recession, changing markets and automated production of industries meant less employment in the coal and timber industries. The number of people living in Huntly and Tokoroa fell. In the 1980s, New Zealand’s economy was restructured. This meant many industries were deregulated or no longer run by the government. During this time farming subsidies were removed and, as a result, farming had to become more effiicient which meant more intensive use was made of the land with increased stocking rates and more application of fertilisers.
Over time, the human activities along the Waikato River and the increasingly intensive land uses through its catchments have degraded the Waikato River and reduced the relationships and aspirations of communities who identify with the Waikato River.
This degradation of the River and its catchment has severely compromised Waikato River Iwi in their ability to exercise kaitiakitanga or conduct their tikanga and kawa.
In 1987 Sir Robert Mahuta and others filed a claim over the Waikato River with the Waitangi Tribunal in order to redress the confiscation of Waikato lands and the consequences of raupatu which impact on the health and wellbeing of the Waikato River and the relationship of Waikato-Tainui with the Waikato River.
Through the Treaty Settlement process between Waikato-Tainui and the Crown the Guardians Establishment Committee was formed with the support of other Waikato River Iwi. In 2009 the Guardians Establishment Committee finalised its Vision and Strategy for the Waikato River.
Information republished courtesy of LIANZA
Nat Torkington
Eli Neiburger
Dr Michael Stephens
