We headed to Wiri, where one of our Puhinui Regeneration Project partners, Te Pu-a-Nga Maara (TPNM), is leading incredible mahi to restore te taiao. We were honoured to be invited by TPNM to a Matariki karakia and hautapu ceremony alongside mana whenua Te Ākitai, Ngaati Tamaoho and Ngaati te Ata.
A huge thanks to the TPNM whaanau for helping to bring this special gathering to life. From their 2am start, behind the scenes logistics, to the thoughtful touches that made it feel so grounded and memorable, like the lighting of Matukutuureia, one of the maunga we stood beneath.
A karanga rang out, welcoming hundreds onto the whenua for the hautapu ceremony. There’s something emotional about a karanga, especially in the early hours of the morning, before the city has woken.
Soon, the air was filled with tauparapara and karakia. The kind of sound that gives you shivers. From across the valley, we heard the men at Wiri Prison perform a haka. The prison has been built on the remnants of matukutuureia, a once larger maunga, now quarried away. Its stone, and the bones of tuupuna once buried there, were used to build the Southern Motorway. In a moment of remembering those we’ve lost, it was chillingly beautiful to hear voices rise from one maunga to another.
Kai is a pivotal part of the hautapu ceremony. As steam rises from the food, it carries our offerings to the stars. We gave thanks to Matariki for the harvests over the past year, nourishing the atua in return for how they have nourished us. The kai reflects the different domains of the Matariki stars. For example, kuumara is linked to Tupuaanuku, the star of food grown in the soil, manu like chicken to Tupuaarangi, and kaimoana to Waitaa.
Our team of four huddled around one of the fires after the official ceremony wrapped up and reflected on who we had lost over the past year, what we wanted to leave behind and set our intentions for the year ahead.
By 6:30am, we were gathered around a food truck serving up steaming soup made by Manurewa Marae and parāoa parai, Maaori fry bread. It felt a bit cheeky eating something so moreish at that hour. But after sharing hugs, laughter and tears, it was so comforting.
We then bumped into Te Waiariki and Tiahomai, who are partners in business and in life.
SBN first connected with them through Te Pu-a-Nga Maara, where they both once worked as part of the rangatahi-led restoration crew. Now, they co-lead a kaupapa Māori business called Mai Raano.
Mai Raano supports organisations to build cultural confidence and deepen their understanding of te ao Maaori. So when we asked them to lead a Matariki-themed event for our network a week later, we knew it was going to be much more special than your typical business event.
Instead of being stuck inside SBN’s office for the event, they led us into Emily Place Park.
“There’s no use talking about te taiao indoors, let’s get into it,” Tiahomai said.
The park is a small but significant green space tucked amongst the concrete towers of central Auckland. Once a Maaori paa site known as Te Rerenga Ora Iti, it is also where Ngāti Whātua chiefs signed a provisional agreement with the Crown, later transferring 3,500 acres of land. This would form the foundation of Taamaki Makaurau Auckland, just months after the Treaty of Waitangi was signed.
Beneath the shelter of the towering poohutukawa, we stood together in a circle, took a deep breath in and reconnected. The setting was intentional. It was a reminder that te taiao is always present. Even in the heart of the city, you can find space to slow down and tune in. You just have to stop and notice.
For any divers out there, Tiahomai let us in on a little secret. When the poohutukawa blossoms, it’s the perfect time to go looking for juicy kina (don’t tell him we told you). All realms of te taiao are connected and offer tohu for each other, and for te tangata (the people). This is Takarangi, the spiral that symbolises the interconnection between people, place and the natural world.
He then taught us a karakia. Not just through words, but also movement so we could really feel its mauri.
At the end of the karakia, we all recognised the phrase “Hāumi e, hui e, tāiki e!”. It’s often translated as “Be joined, together, united.” But translation only scratches the surface. The haumi is the joining piece of a waka, connecting separate hulls into a vessel strong enough for the moana. Without the haumi, the waka can’t hold together. It’s a metaphor for kotahitanga, unity, for building something stronger together.
We also learned the deeper meaning of the kupu karakia itself.
Ka = to illuminate, to ablaze
Ara = path
Kia = to indicate a purpose or wish
Karakia helps to illuminate the path we wish to walk together. It’s something that Shawn Elise from our team has really taken to heart.
“Since the event with Mai Raano, I’ve been really slowing down and reflecting on karakia as an invitation to drop into a space and consider what we are working on in a meeting, and what we have uncovered after a discussion.”
Mai Raano brought everyone in a circle to share their hopes and intentions for the year ahead, grounding us in whanaungatanga, connection and care. They closed the event with a beautiful waiata about aroha, wrapping the space in warmth and wairua.
It was a powerful moment of reflection during a week already filled with it. From dawn ceremonies under the maunga to standing under ancient trees in the city, the kaupapa of Matariki wove through everything. We remembered our tuupuna, gave thanks for the present and looked ahead to what’s to come.
For those of us working in sustainability, regeneration or systems change, it was a beautiful reminder of kotahitanga. We can’t build a different future without remembering and taking the time to build relationships first. Relationships with people, place and with the stories that shape both.
Ka mua, ka muri. To walk backwards into the future.
So if your business is looking to build its cultural confidence or explore what meaningful partnership could look like, there’s no better time to begin. Maybe by next Matariki, you’ll be reflecting on how far you’ve come.
Start your haerenga now.
Want to learn more about Mai Raano or how to deepen your businesses cultural capability? We’d love to connect you. Get in touch with [email protected].
This article uses double vowels, rather than pōtae (macrons), in te reo to represent long vowel sounds. This reflects the dialect used by SBN's partners at TPNM and Makaurau Marae Nursery.