Engagement Program 2025

This year’s engagement story is: Wairau (The Many Waters)

Wairau (The Many Waters)

Light design: Catherine Ellis & Dan Move

Sound artist: Peter Hobbs

As told by Danny Te Rakai Watson

Transcript

Nau mai, haere mai ki te Ao o Tangaroa Matua. Tangaroa ki tai, Tangaroa ki uta, Te Wairau.

Wairau, the many waters where Tangaroa ki Tai/the sea and the salt water, meet Tangaroaki uta/the fresh water of the awa iti and the small tidal inlets that make up this huge catchment of Te Wairau.

Here we are on the North Shore, tucked into a piece of paradise, boarded by Te Hau Kapua, the gentle breeze that sweeps away the morning cloud on Rangitoto; The pristine waters of Pupuke Moana out to the foothills that channel the rains down into the Wairau Valley; While hidden away in the middle of it all we have our special water, our wai tapu, Takapuna, gently flowing into the sea.

This place of joining is where the fish having spawned in the upper reaches of these many streams make their way down to the sea to continue on life’s great journey.

It is the place where the grandfather tāmure/snapper would follow the tied in to feast on the tipa/scallops and tuanga/cockles tucked into the sandy re-entrants.

There was a time when on the high tide you could hear them crunching away at their supper.

Tiny glass eels, with inanga/whitebait, could be seen swarming up into those streams to lay eggs, then grow through their juvenile cycle to return to the sea on their tuna heke.

We are surrounded by the remnants of a huge mahinga kai, a giant food basket where takeke/piper, kātaha/herrings, kanae/mullet and kahawai would be attracted to lights hung off of the shore or over the side of our waka then fill our food kits to feed our many whanau that lived in this place.

If we care for Te Wairau and the wonderful creatures that live in these waters, we can help them grow and increase their numbers. While at the same time, replenishing the environment.

Ngā uri a Tangaroa need our support so let us tiaki them, let us be the kaitiaki a Wairau. Tuna, Tamure, Kahawai, Inanga, Kokopa, Tuanga, Tuatua, Tipa, Tio, Pipi, Kutai, Takeke, Kātaha, Pātiki, Booboos, Patangatanga, Paki, should all call this home and with them the manu will return and bring their sweet song.

(Eels, Snapper, Kahawai, Whitebait, Bully’s, Cockles, Tuatua, Scallops, Oysters, Pipi, Piper, Herrings, Flounder, Sea snails, Starfish, Seahorses).

So as we make our way back home, listen of the sound of the soft gentle rain as it caresses the ngahere, flows down the leaves onto the ground then joins together in the dance to the sea where Tangaroa ki Utu embraces Tangaroa ki Tai, and watch and listen as Tangaroa ki Tai caresses te tinana a Papatuanuku, the body of Papatuanuku as the moana makes its way up into the small re-entrants bringing with it ngā uri a Tangaroa.