Ranginui

Say it: RAH-ngi-noo-ee · Rangi = sky, nui = great. 'The great sky.'

Ranginui is perspective — the long view above the day's noise, and love that endures separation.

Te Kāwai (Line of descent)

Te Kore → Te Pō → Ranginui

Te Kōrero (the story)

The sky father. In the oldest kōrero he and Papatūānuku held each other so tightly that their children lived in darkness between them. He is the parent who was separated, and who still weeps.

Above us still, Ranginui weeps for Papatūānuku. His tears are the rain, his sighs the mist that rises to meet her. His body carries the stars by which our ancestors navigated an ocean.

Te Whakapapa (the genealogy)

Partner of Papatūānuku; together they are the first parents.

Father of Tāne, Tangaroa, Tāwhirimātea, Tūmatauenga, Rongo, Haumia and Rūaumoko.

Tāwhirimātea is the only child who stayed with him above.

His body carries the whetū — including Matariki, the eyes of Tāwhirimātea.

Ngā Mana (domains and influence)

The sky and all weather that crosses itRain (his tears) and dewThe stars used for navigation and the maramataka

Kei Kōnei Rātou (they are present here)

Rain arriving without warning on a still day.
The particular quiet after heavy rain stops.
A clear night where you can pick out more stars than usual.
Looking up out of habit and feeling the scale of it.
Rain on a window — his tears, called ua.
Mist rising off the ground in the morning — Papatūānuku's breath reaching back to him.
Any moment you look up and feel small.

Ngā Huarahi Hono (ways to connect)

Stepping outside in the morning

Look up once before you look at anything else and say 'tēnā koe, e Rangi'.

Caught in rain

Don't curse it. Say 'ngā roimata o Ranginui' — the tears of Ranginui — and keep walking.

Under a clear night sky

Find one star, name it if you can, and stand with it for a minute before going in.

If you are new to this

Step outside, look up, and say his name once. That is a complete acknowledgement.

A Common Misunderstanding

He is not a 'god in heaven' who judges you. He is a relative — a parent in a family story you also belong to.

Ngā Taha o te Ora (aspects of life)

Wairua (Spirit)Hinengaro (Mind)Whānau (Family)

Ngā Uara (values)

Aroha · Love and compassion

Love that continues at a distance.

Whakaaro roa · Long-term thinking

Think in generations.

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 wehenga — the separation

How light first came into the world, and what it cost the parents who were parted.

About 4 min read

Ngā whetū — the stars on his chest

Why the sky was dressed in light, and what the stars were for.

About 4 min read