AUNTY Roimata Wipaki explained her belief in the the power of the meeting house during the Hikaka ki runga, Hikaka ki raro celebrations last weekend.
EVERYONE attending the Hikaka ki runga, Hikaka ki raro celebrations at Te Kūiti Pā last weekend had their own connection with the tupuna whare and its traditions. “Aunty” Roimata Wipaki from Te Kūiti said she didn’t connect with the idea of the meeting house having a birthday or huringatau – it was greater than that. “It’s more like the revolving of the years, and things maturing I suppose. “We look at it like an old tree that is pretty ancient and been weathering there, the wind, the rain, the sun. And you can hear the creaking of the tree when the wind is getting up. “You can even close your eyes and breathe in a bit. You can feel the energy going in and … swishing out. “I affiliate with that emotion, that feeling, with our old people [who] used to have ta moko on their faces.” It reminded Roimata of seeing her grandmother in long skirts, coming home from the back of the farm. “You heard the wind, it’s like a spooky reverberation. And so it is with the house. You feel the unification of the kin, their lives, their energy and way of expression. “When I’m thinking about the house, those are the sort of things that grip me.” The walls of the meeting house had a powerful, healing wairua or energy, Roimata said, even if you just leaned against them, as long as you respected the house and didn’t just barge in. “That’s what the house does if you’re in tune with it. It’s years and years and years of sucking up the energy in it. “I also see that the house is not a block of wood. It’s able, because of its energy, it’s able to secure, [and leave people] feeling safe … it brings relaxation to the person.” As the tūpuna whare has a healing power, so the celebrations also provided an oportunity for all generations of Maniapoto to reconnect with their heritage. Marama Henare Waho, also present on Saturday, had been dancing to the waiata performance by Maniapoto wahine. She said she was of the generation to have missed out on learning her cultural traditions as a child, but that she had learned with the young girls preparing for this event. “A lot of these waiata are popular to Ngāti Maniapoto. So a lot of the tamariki learn these waiata when they go to kura, and also when we have events like this at Te Tokanganui-a-Noho,” she said. “I come from Mōkau and I went to Mōkau Primary school which is in the rohe of Ngāti Maniapoto. And yes, we did have a little bit of kapa haka but not to the extent that it is today. “So for my generation, we have another opportunity to relearn our reo and our tikanga and our waiata, and it’s wonderful that we’ve got rangatahi who are so confident in their identity as Māori,” she said. “It’s inspiring and it gives [to] those of us who are a little bit older, it warms our hearts.” She had learned alongside the rangatahi for many months. “A lot of preparation has been done by the hau kāinga [local people of a marae] from Ngāti Rora.” Marama, who is not Ngāti Rora but is connected to them through Maniapoto, said the event had been a meaningful one for her. “It is a very special day. It is important to acknowledge happy occasions. We often come together for sad occasions, so today is a happy birthday to Tokanganui-a-Noho. “It’s an opportunity for us to get together and make connections with old friends and make new friends, and see our relatives again, and stand beside each other and sing and perform, and help each other do all the work that needs to be done.” Marama felt the celebrations were a gift to everyone in the rohe. “It’s a beautiful opportunty for not just our Māori community but also our community of the King Country to participate in,” she said.
