Rehua

Say it: REH-hoo-ah

A star atua of the highest heavens, gentle where so many others are fierce. Rehua feeds without being asked and heals without making a show of it.

Te Kāwai (Line of descent)

Te Kore → Te Pō → Papatūānuku → Tāne Mahuta → Rehua

Te Kōrero (the story)

Of the topmost heavens, Rehua kept birds nesting in his long hair, fed on the fruits of a realm untouched by winter. When Tāne climbed through the ten heavens seeking the baskets of knowledge, it was Rehua who received him kindly, shook his head so the birds tumbled out already fat and cooked, and set a meal before his visitor without ceremony or expectation of return. That is the whole of his teaching: he gives from what is simply his to give. His name rises with Antares in summer, when the ground is warm and food is easy, and it is spoken over the sick and the weary, because his care reaches down through every heaven to where a person is hurting and asks nothing back.

Te Whakapapa (the genealogy)

A son of Ranginui and Papatūānuku, elder of the highest heavens and kin to Tāne Mahuta, who sought him out on his climb for knowledge.

Ngā Mana (domains and influence)

Healing and recoverySummer and the season of plentyKindness shown to the unwellThe star Antares, rising in the warm months

Kei Kōnei Rātou (they are present here)

Antares hanging low in the summer sky.
Someone slowly getting better after being sick.
Being fed by a friend who didn't have to feed you.
A warm season arriving after a hard winter.

Ngā Huarahi Hono (ways to connect)

Someone you know is unwell

Take them food yourself, without being asked, and don't stay long enough to be thanked properly.

You spot Antares in the summer sky

Say his name and notice one thing that is currently plentiful in your life.

You are the one recovering

Let someone feed you. Refusing help is not the same as being strong.

A Common Misunderstanding

This profile holds one telling of Rehua. Pūrākau and whakapapa can differ between iwi and whānau, so it should not be read as the only account.

Ngā Uara (values)

Generous

A quality carried in the kōrero of Rehua.

Gentle

A quality carried in the kōrero of Rehua.

Unshowy

A quality carried in the kōrero of Rehua.

Warm

A quality carried in the kōrero of Rehua.

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 (family).

Ngā manu i ōna makawe — the birds in his hair

A visitor climbs to the highest heaven, and is fed without having to ask.

About 2 min read