the ascent to the top invites challenge, it incites conflict — its preordained.

Take Tāne (atua of the forest, pursuit of light/knowledge) and his ascent to Tikitikiorangi (the Uppermost Heaven) as the prime example.

Whiro (the new moon) waxed and waned earlier in the week and with it came the end to our cycle covering Te Pakanga Atua, the war of the elements/war of the gods, and there were some parts I would’ve liked to explore* — buttttt I need to learn more about those pūrākau (stories) so in the meantime we’ll move as sequentially as possible along the timeline of events.

Which leads us to the pūrākau of Tāne’s ascent to the heavens and the eventual retrieval of Ngā Kete o te Wānanga.

As famous as Tāne’s ascent was probably the attacks by Whiro (atua of misfortune)º and his army, Te Aitanga ā Pēpeke, as Whiro believed he should be the one to retrieve the treasures that lay waiting up in the heavens.

However, unfortunately for Whiro that’s not how it played out. Here’s the pūrākau in summary;

Tāne learns of knowledge/powers to create a new element and is called to retrieve it, he starts his ascent, Whiro attacks him he wants it for himself, Tāne calls on Tāwhirimātea (atua of the winds) to help defeat Whiro, they win, Tāne makes it to Tikitikiorangi, he comes face to face with Io (Supreme Being, Creator, God etc.), retrieves three baskets of knowledge and descends with them back to Earth.

Remember, this is just the first post in the series so we’ll unpack the kōrero in greater detail over coming weeks but just quickly, with the info you have,

think about how you express this pūrākau in your own life

Put yourself in Tāne’s role of being called to action to fulfil a duty or a mission. Whether that’s to become a high performance athlete and compete at the Olympics like the tuakana, the GOAT, Lisa Carrington, or to make it to the top (however you define that) with your health, relationships, within your iwi (tribe) or other collective, living a fulfilled life, being 100% waste-free, your career, studies… or whatever it may be,

Have you encountered some expression of Whiro along the way?

Have you experienced misfortune, conflict, challenge, disapproval, adversity, push-back or the like as you made your ascent to making your aspirations a reality?

Whether internal or external, the kōrero iti (negative talk) is all the same.

The ascent to the top invites challenge, it incites conflict — its preordained. It is part of our whakapapa. It is woven into the very fabric and fibre of our being! Like each of the pūrākau, not only do they provide frameworks and wisdom for us to embrace and seek inspiration from,

they are a lived experience our cells remember from the very first time the event took place.

Compounded and reinforced with every generation.

So if you’re going through it right now or about to follow in Tāne’s footsteps, know that conflict and challenges will come — your very decision to choose this path invites it. But also know that with the right support systems or people in place, you will find the tāonga waiting for you.

Tēnā tātou,

Hana.

*I’ve covered some of these stories in previous series, like Tāwhirimātea unleashing on his siblings post-separation, Tūmātauenga standing up to him, Tū then unleashing on his siblings for not having his back… lol so there are these and other kōrero I’m trying to learn about so I can offer up something new to the wānanga.

°Whiro is the bro. The first atua I covered on the blog, I’ve got time for this guy and he gets a bad wrap 99% of the time. I’ve been learning some new stuff and this title/translation of who and what he is doesn’t sit right with me anymore, it hasn’t really ever sat right but reflected my limited understanding of him I think.. as above — I need to learn more so I can properly articulate it. if you have any whakaaro, send ‘em through.