Hello there. As nothing exciting has happened, I thought I’d share with you a story that I have been dabbling with since I first moved to New Zealand.
It is based, loosely (I like to tell myself loosely, but in all honesty, it’s not), upon the Maori Creation story. Obviously I changed several facts within the story (such as the number of children born, etc) but I think most of it is still the same.
A huge thank you must go out to my sister, for she has become my Editor, as it were, and points out all the niggling little flaws in my writing that I fail to pick up on. So yes, thank you very much, sister dearest.
Anyway, enjoy! This story was not meant to cause offence to anyone who feels strongly about the Maori Creation story – it is merely my own adaptation of it, as I quickly fell in love with the Maori way of life.
Long ago, in a time beyond the reach of human knowledge, the primordial parents of existence, Ranginui and Papatuanuku, lived in perfect harmony with each other. They loved one another, and destiny had brought them into a tight embrace that neither wanted to break away from.
However, Papatuanuku longed for children of their own. She broached the subject with Ranginui and his wrath was tremendous. It shook the very foundations of reality, threatening to tear them apart before life began. Gradually, his anger subsided, for his love for Papatuanuku over-powered his animosity towards the idea.
For years he remained in his Embrace with Papatuanuku. Throughout the years, Papatuanuku grew gradually more and more saddened. Her love for Ranginui still burned strong in her heart, but her desire for children to call her own grew stronger day after day. Her spirit began to fade, as a great veil of despair and sadness began to separate her mentally from Ranginui.
Ranginui began to feel her slipping from his grasp. The veil was growing in substance, as Papatuanuku’s woes grew heavier and heavier. Finally, when Ranginui could take it no more, he whispered softly in his lover’s ear.
Papatuanuku’s spiritual body seemed to shimmer and glow at his words. The veil lifted, and warmth flooded into the surrounding universe. This was the first stage that began life as we know it. Ranginui had granted her wish.
Several long years past, as Ranginui and Papatuanuku’s love grew strong and fast again. Their embrace was reinforced, and they perceived nothing more that could tear them apart. Papatuanuku bore Ranginui three sons: Tumatauenga, the eldest; Tangaroa; and Ruaumoko, the youngest. A daughter they had as well, Whiro, who was the youngest of all four children.
These children dwelt in the gap of the tight Embrace of their parents, and all were content for several centuries, until the children began to grow and their minds expanded. It was Tumatauenga, the eldest and the one with most longing, who first raised the subject with his siblings.
“Have you ever wondered what is Beyond?” said he.
“Beyond?” responded Whiro, the most humble, despite her age. “There is nothing beyond the Embrace of our parents.”
“You are a fool for believing so,” said Tumatauenga. “There is everything Beyond; whole new spaces that await our touch. We could sculpt our own domain, away from the constraints of this embrace. This constraint is not where we belong.”
“What would you suggest then, Tu?” asked Whiro, curious of where her brother’s thoughts were taking him.
“I believe,” began Tumatauenga slowly. “That our parents have been locked in their embrace for too long.”
His words were met with gasps of astonishment from the rest of his siblings. “I think,” he continued, unabashed. “That there is no other alternative than to kill our parents.”
“That is enough, brother,” cut in Tangaroa, his temper heated by Tumatauenga’s callous words. “Our parents gave us a life of our own and you wish to throw it away to chase some foolish dream.”
“I am with Tangaroa,” agreed Whiro. “Mother and father gave us everything – why would you want them dead?”
“What say you, little brother?” asked Tangaroa, speaking to Ruaumoko. “Are you satisfied remaining here? Or would you like to see what is Beyond?”
Ruaumoko did not respond for a long while. His thoughts were befuddled and lost, drifting from the possibilities of Beyond and the safety of the Embrace.
“I believe,” he said, after deep consideration. “That there is something Beyond.”
“See, Ruaumoko agrees with—“
“However,” continued Ruaumoko, interrupting his sibling. “It remains that we owe mother and father more than what you propose. Death is not something that should be dealt without due consideration. Give it a while, older brother, and if you still feel the same way, then perhaps we can consider a more peaceful possibility.”
Time passed in slow fashion for Tangaroa. His thoughts were ever consumed by a desire to go Beyond. However, none of his siblings felt the same pang. None brought up the subject again. Tangaroa was frustrated, and believed that they were more than content with living in such a confined space.
But he was wrong. Since the conversation of the Beyond, Ruaumoko’s mind was slowly beginning to change. He found his thoughts drawn more and more towards what could be Beyond. Yet he did not voice these thoughts. He loved his brothers and sister and he had no desire to create a divide between them. So he sat in silence, brooding, as the thoughts of Beyond slowly consumed his mind.
“What troubles you, brother?”
Whiro had noticed her brother’s forlorn periods of silence. She sat and joined him, looking expectantly into his face.
Ruaumoko sighed. “It is Tu’s words that have stirred conflicting thoughts within me. I wish to see what lies Beyond, but the pain that would cause would rent me apart.”
“You are not considering killing our parents, are you?” said Whiro sharply.
“No, my dear sister,” consoled Ruaumoko. “I seek a more peaceful alternative. The death of our parents is far from my mind, yet I cannot shake the possibility of what might be Beyond.”
Whiro looked deeply into her brother’s eyes. She saw the confliction that had buried itself deep within his mind. And she took pity upon him.
“Come,” she said, standing up and holding out her hand. “We go talk to our parents.”
“The Beyond is a dangerous place.”
Whiro and Ruaumoko stood in the presence of Ranginui and Papatuanuku, their parents.
“If you venture Beyond, then we can no longer guarantee your safety,” said their mother.
“So you believe there is something Beyond?” said Ruaumoko.
“Believe? No, son, we know there is something Beyond,” said Ranginui. “More than something, in fact. There is an endless space, rife with possibility, if one only knew how to seize it.”
“How do you know such things?” whispered Whiro.
Ranginui looked down upon his daughter with nothing but love in his eyes. “Child,” he said. “We know many things. You are kept safe here, in between us, so that we may protect you from all that is bad. Yet our sights are constantly upon the horizons, searching.”
“Searching? For what?”
“For whatever may be out there,” answered Papatuanuku. “For any possibility that we may seize and expand upon.”
“I do not understand,” said Ruaumoko, his voice quivering with excitement and confusion.
“We exist for a single purpose: to create life,” began Ranginui. “Do not ask us how we know that this is our purpose, for it is not clear to just us either. Yet it is clear in our minds that we are the Creators. So far we have created you, our children. But that is not enough. Life must go on beyond you, and for that, we require what might lie Beyond.”
“So that is why we are kept safe? So that we may prolong life?” asked Whiro.
Papatuanuku smiled down at her. “You display wisdom beyond your years, dearest daughter.”
“Then is it not safe?” pressed Ruaumoko, growing more impatient as his parents showed no sign of understanding the reason for their visit.
“We do not know, son,” said Ranginui softly. “That is why we search and you wait.”
“But we are tired of waiting,” said Ruaumoko, the words he longed to say suddenly tumbling from his mouth. “We spend our days in your Embrace, with no knowledge, no anything to keep us occupied, save that of each other’s company. It is a dreary way to spend our lives.”
“I see.” Said Ranginui, thinking. “And you all feel this way?”
“Tu definitely does. He,” Ruaumoko hesitated. “He was the one who first voiced a desire to see what lies Beyond.”
Ruaumoko glanced sideways at his sister, silently asking whether to tell them the whole truth. Whiro locked eyes with her brother just long enough to shake her head ever so slightly.
“We must discuss this, children. We shall call for you when a decision has been made.”
Ruaumoko and Whiro bowed and left the presence of their parents and re-joined their siblings.
Papatuanuku and Ranginui took little time to make a decision. Soon, all the children were summoned before their parents and Ranginui addressed them all as one.
“We are aware that there have been speculations of what might be Beyond and whether there is a way to see it for yourselves. Your mother and I have discussed this possibility.”
“And? What was your decision?” asked Tumatauenga, impatient as always.
“It is not safe Beyond,” said Papatuanuku, as gently as possible. “We know you all may be restless, but you must understand that we only keep you in our Embrace for your own protection.”
“But what is unsafe about the Beyond?” pressed Tumatauenga in earnest.
“As to that,” replied Ranginui. “We have no answer. Danger lurks everywhere. Always poised to strike, always waiting for those who are too pure of heart to heed its sinister shadows.”
“I do not understand why we cannot g-“
“That is enough, Tumatauenga,” interrupted Ranginui sternly. “We have made our decision, and you cannot sway us. You are safe here, and safe is where you shall be kept.”
“Father,” said Tangaroa, speaking for the first time. “Is it not our choice whether we stay or go? We have lived and grown in the Embrace. It is all we have ever known. You cannot expect us to stay here for eternity, whilst you constantly comb the Beyond for any threat that may or may not be there. New life cannot be brought to fruition unless we are there to nurture it.”
Tumatauenga looked at Tangaroa in shock. He had thought that his brother was content to live within the safety of Embrace for the rest of time.
“I see you, to, seek what is Beyond,” said Ranginui.
Tangaroa bowed his head. “It is true that Tu’s words sparked my mind into wondering. I love both of you, and would never cause you harm with intent. Yet my heart also yearns for what might be out there.”
“Our decision has been made,” continued Ranginui. Firmly. “You will wait in our Embrace, until a time comes when we deem it safe.”
“But father-” began Ruaumoko, but Whiro interrupted him.
“Thank you for your time, father,” She said, bowing low to Ranginui. “And thank you as well, mother.” Another bow she bestowed upon Papatuanuku, who looked down at her once again and smiled.
“They are insolent and ignorant.”
“Enough, brother Tumatauenga,” Said Tangaroa. “We know what you are thinking and we bid you fight the darkness that envelopes your mind.”
“Even you, brother, cannot deny they care little for our wants and needs,” snarled Tumatauenga.
“You yourself spoke of a desire to see what is Beyond. Is there any other option than what I suggest?”
“Perhaps, if we all worked as one.”
“What is your great suggestion then, dearest brother?” mocked Tumatauenga.
“I do not know as of yet,” answered Tangaroa calmly, not rising to his brother’s tone.
“Let us each try on our own,” said Ruaumoko. “And if that does not work, we shall all work together.”
And so it began. First came Tumatauenga. Angered by his siblings clouded minds, he lashed out at his parents. A great roar came from him, and within it were hurled all the hurt and woes that he now felt. Yet his parents were seemingly unmoved. Defeated, Tumatauenga slunk back to his siblings, angry and dejected.
Next came Ruaumoko. Once again, he tried to talk to his parents. But to no avail. Without the counsel of his sister, Whiro, he was soon angered and his fury erupted out of him, and he also ended up defeated and saddened.
Whiro refused to make an attempt. Pressed by her siblings as to why, she answered in a simple tone: “Enough pain and torment has been caused by our words already.”
Guilt clawed at her heart like a wild beast vying to break free. No words of comfort from any of her brothers could help cure her sadness.
Finally, came Tangaroa. Long had he mulled over his sister’s words. First, Tumatauenga had waged war with his parents through his words. Then, Ruaumoko had failed to win a debate with the parents, and had ultimately ended up exploding with anger. Clearly their parents were not to be swayed, whether by anger or by civilised conversation. A different tact was needed. He looked around and saw what must be done.
Laying upon his back, he summoned to him all the strength he possessed, and with that he pushed against his mother and father. A great strain was the ensuing battle. Tangaroa’s wild, untameable youth, against the ancient love Ranginui and Papatuanuku held for each other. For many days and nights, these two forces vexed each other, ever swaying this way and that. Until, one day, Tangaroa began to feel the Embrace slip. With renewed strength and vigour, he let loose a roar that sounded like the crashing of waves against the shore, and with one final push, the Embrace was broken.
Thus the world was created. Ranginui remained afloat up high and was named anew: Sky Father. Papatuanuku fell, no longer supported by her husband, and became Earth Mother. Finally, the children were free. They soared down, little more than spirit, until they came into contact with their mother once again.
Despite her anguish, she would not forsake them. She nurtured them, and gave to them immortal bodies. Then she spoke to them, and her words were heavy with sadness. “You have caused grievous pain to us. We shall now never again feel one another’s touch, and must spend all eternity gazing at each other with love, knowing that it was our children that caused this.”
Paptuanuku’s words struck hard. Whiro fell to her knees before her mother and wept for forgiveness. Even Tumatauenga, the most detached of emotions, could not avoid the feeling of shame. Yet it was Ruaumoko who was affected the worst.
For five days and five nights his guilt rose up within him. Each night he would hear, as though through a void, the voices of Sky Father and Earth Mother calling for each other, longing to embrace. On the dawn of the sixth day, his guilt finally broke. Another roar he let loose, this one more terrible than the last. It awoke something within him, and he shed his newly gifted immortal body and became one with his mother. The last words his siblings heard him utter were: “we shall all rue the day we broke the Embrace. All our descendants shall know my wrath!”
Here was born Ruaumoko, the Guardian of Volcanoes and Earthquakes. Long was his anger endured, and through pain and suffering he rent the world apart. Land shifted, and mountains of fire were born from his boiling hate.
Ruaumoko became the first small stones that start an avalanche. Tumatauenga’s shock at his brother’s anger soon turned to jealousy. Ruaumoko now wielded so much power that Tumatauenga felt weak. So he took it upon himself to be the Guardian of War, for he foresaw that any kin that walked the earth would constantly be at war, and he would draw from their destructive auras, making himself more powerful than his brother.
Tangaroa saw the physical pain that Ruaumoko and his fire-mountains were causing the Earth Mother. He embodied water, and became the Guardian of the Sea. Where he could, his water would swallow up the fire created by his brother and attempt to ease the torment Papatuanuku was subjected to.
Long were Tangaroa and Ruaumoko locked in battle. With each volcano made dormant, Ruaumoko’s anger slowly ebbed away. Finally, he was drained of his power. He himself lay dormant, much like his creations, thanks to the power Tangaroa wielded. Ruaumoko had given into the hate, and now lay waiting, occasionally testing his brother’s strength, waiting for the right time to boil over once again.
As for Whiro, she remained upon her knees weeping for many days and nights. No domain did she take for herself, for she felt apart from her siblings, and did not wish to cause more grief to her parents. One day, Tumatauenga came and spoke to her.
“Why do you still weep, little sister?”
“The pain we have caused can never be cured. Don’t you see, Tu?” said Whiro, looking up into the face of her brother. “We have broken that which gave us life.”
“But we are free now,” replied Tumatauenga, perturbed by his sister’s strange words. “Is this not what you wanted?”
“Nay, I never wished this. I wished to see the Beyond, not break the Embrace.” Suddenly, she found a stronger voice within herself, and her sadness was replaced by anger. She stood up and defiantly looked into the eyes of her brother. “This is your doing, brother.”
“You cannot place blame upon me,” snapped Tumatauenga, stung.
“Blame can only be placed upon you. Was it not you who first voiced a desire about the Beyond? Ever since then, your words found a way to enter and fester within the minds of our siblings. No more do I wish to call you as brother.”
Tumatauenga recoiled. Shock however, was soon replaced by anger. And the anger soon turned to hatred. He no longer saw Whiro, his innocent little sister, with whom he shared a great love, in front of him. Instead he saw a girl who dared stand in his way.
Such is the way of War. Anger on both sides leads to hatred being born. Once where there was love and kinship, comes detachment. And after the hatred, the confrontation begins. Then comes death.
So it was that Tumatauenga, in total anger, smote down his sister. From then on, guilt ever lived in his heart. Destroying one so innocent taints even the most pure of heart, and yet Tumatauenga was never pure of heart. It overpowered him, and drove him mad.
Yet he never forgot his sister’s last words: “I shall forever be at your back brother. No power shall you draw from the dead, for now that is my domain.”
With that, the Lord of Death and Evil was born. She took upon herself all the hatred, anger and suffering in the world and it slowly wound its way into her mind, until it consumed her.
She took no immortal body, for she did not need one. Instead she floated as a spirit, preying upon the dead. For when the Embrace had been broken, Papatuanuku had given birth to animals and man alike. Already hatred was within their hearts. Animal turned upon animal, and soon the weaker of the animals were hunted by the stronger. Then man came, and no animals was safe, nor any kin. For Tumatauenga, Guardian of War, had lit a fire within them. A fire that threatened to consumed even the most gentle of beings. Instead, war spread like disease.
And Whiro, Lord of Death, revelled in the decay and despair.
Ranginui – Sky Father; primordial parent
Papatuanuku – Earth Mother; primordial parent
Tumatauenga – Guardian of war; child of Parents
Tangaroa – Guardian of the sea; child of Parents
Ruaumoko – Guardian of volcanoes and earthquakes; child of Parents
Whiro – Lord of all things evil and sad; child of Parents
There you have it. Above is listed the characters/beings that were mentioned in the story, as even I sometimes get lost amongst the wide array of Maori names.
I hope you enjoyed. I shall update my blog soon. Later today, I am off to a football game, to see Wellington Phoenix play! I am looking forward to that, and shall describe it to you in the next blog post.
A Weary Traveller 