The stars of Matariki

In the beginning, there was nothing - no Earth, no sea, no sky. All that existed was
nothingness. Then came the darkness. Two beings came to exist. They were Ranginui, the sky
father, and Papatūānuku, the Earth mother. They were so close together it was difficult to tell
where one ended and one began as there was no light between them. Together, they had
many sons who lived between them in the darkness.

As the children grew up, they wondered what it would be like to live in the light.

There were many personalities amongst the brothers, and they argued and fought over how
to separate their parents. Tūmatauenga was the fiercest of the sons and wanted to use
violence to force his parents apart. It was Tānemahuta, the god of the forests and birds, who
came up with a plan that most of the brothers would agree to. Tāne suggested their parents
be pushed apart and that Ranginui be sent to the sky above them and Paptūānuku be left
below them where she was close.

Rongomātāne, the god of cultivated food, tried to push his parents apart. He pushed and
pushed with no success. Then Tangaroa, the god of the sea, and Haumaitiketike, the god of
wild food, joined him. Together, they pushed and pushed, but still, their parents would not let
go of each other.

Eventually, Tāne tried. He lay on his mother with her shoulders resting upon him and pushed
his feet against his father. He pushed and pushed for a very long time. Rangi and Papa called
for him to stop, but the brothers so wanted to live in the light that Tāne continued. Tāne
pushed and pushed with his strong legs until, at last, Rangi and Papa began to part.

Most of the children were excited to finally have light and space to move. However,
Tawhirimatea, the god of the wind, was saddened and angry at what his brothers’ actions. He
did not like to see his parents in pain. He did not like to see the tears coming from Ranginui.

Such was Tāwhirimātea’s distress that he threw his eyes up to his father to shine bright in the
night sky. They dotted the sky in several pieces, forming a cluster, now known as Matariki –
the eyes of the god.

task 15

2 stars

Hannah Liu