Papatūānuku

Say it: PAH-pah-too-AH-noo-koo · Papa = flat earth, tū = to stand, ānuku = wide-spreading.

Papatūānuku holds everything without asking. She is belonging itself — the ground you were born onto and return to.

Te Kāwai (Line of descent)

Te Kore → Te Pō → Papatūānuku

Te Kōrero (the story)

The earth mother, and the body you are standing on right now. Everything you eat has passed through her.

Held in the long embrace of Ranginui, she bore all the Atua in darkness. Parted from him, she was turned to face away so their grieving would ease; her back became the land we live on. Mist rising at dawn is her sigh; rain is his.

Te Whakapapa (the genealogy)

Partner of Ranginui; mother of all the Atua.

Rūaumoko never left her and moves inside her still.

Rongo and Haumia hid within her body during the storms.

Through Tāne, and the earth he shaped Hineahuone from, she is your grandmother.

Ngā Mana (domains and influence)

The land, soil and everything grown in itBurial and return — the ground receives usTūrangawaewae, the place you stand

Kei Kōnei Rātou (they are present here)

Mist lifting off paddocks at dawn — her breath rising to Ranginui.
The smell of soil after rain.
Tiredness that only lying on the ground fixes.
Bare feet finding cool grass without you deciding to.
Bare feet on grass or sand.
Soil under your fingernails after gardening.
Food on your plate before you eat it.

Ngā Huarahi Hono (ways to connect)

Arriving somewhere new

Put your palm flat on the ground or a rock for a moment before you unpack.

Before eating

Name the ground the food came from — even roughly. It travelled through her.

Feeling wound up

Take your shoes off and stand on soil or grass until your breathing slows.

If you are new to this

Take your shoes off outside for two minutes and simply notice the ground holding you.

A Common Misunderstanding

'Mother earth' in te ao Māori is not a metaphor for nature in general — she is a specific ancestor with a name, a story and descendants, of whom you are one.

Ngā Taha o te Ora (aspects of life)

Wairua (Spirit)Whānau (Family)Taiao (Environment)

Ngā Uara (values)

Ūkaipō · Place of nourishment

The place that nourishes you.

Tūrangawaewae · A place to stand

A place to stand.

Ngā Pūrākau (the traditional stories)

Told in full, the way they would be shared out loud. Versions differ between iwi (tribe), hapū (sub-tribe) and whānau.

Te hurihanga — turning her face down

The mother who was pulled away, and chose to keep holding on anyway.

About 4 min read

Te oranga — everything comes through her

Food, water, medicine and burial — the everyday whakapapa of the land.

About 4 min read