Page 2 - Te Tarata Booklet
P. 2
Waiata tangi
Tērā te pō pango puritia te tautara Dark was night life halted to defend
ki Waitangi rā, e Te Tautara ki Waitangi yonder
Ko te rite i taku tara e kīa mai nei As dark as my skin it was said
e Tāwhiri ka titiwa tonu, Afraid, of this darkness
Titiwa mai ana roto Dark, indeed, is all within, gloom
he pāua piri ki te toka Afraid like the pāua clinging to the rock
Ko te naomanga mai kei ahau Death settles like the setting of the sun
I a māmā tonu atu ko te tōnga atu o te rā The flat rock dedicated to Uenuku
Ki ōna papaihoiretanga ki a Uenuku Is the rock at Parirau
Ko te toka i a Parirau Guarded by Te Karoro a Tamatea
Ko Te Karoro a Tamatea Of no account now
Me aha koia nei te waka Is this ravaged body of mine
ka pakaru i taku tinana Awaiting a meeting with death
Pēnei e reia e au ki te ihu Burdened heavily I cross the waterways
o Te Tihi Ōhākī e at Te Te Riu o Kānapanapa
Peke ana au i te tainga Riu o Kānapanapa To bear me ever onward
Hei kawe rawa i ahau ki te pua ki To the doorway into the afterworld
Te Reinga Te Reinga
Ki ōku nei hoa ka pau te tauwehe atu ki To my comrades, who have all gone
tawhiti And are now beyond the veil of death
Te pae ki Taiaōmai Over the horizon at Taiaōmai
Ko wai ka kite au Who will see me?
Ko te whakamā hoki rawa Verily the shame of this massacre
Tēnei ka totope i taku rae, i Has decapitated me
Nā Ngā Kaumātua o Ngāti Ira Nā Te Kahautu Maxwell
This Te Whakatōhea waiata tangi from Ngāti Ira captures the plight of its people in a
war ravaged environment. It reflects the pain and suffering our people have endured
for the past 150 years.
“The Tī Kōuka, Whanake or cabbage tree is the symbol for Te Tarata
Commemorations 2015. It was used to construct a hastily built double
stockade due to its resilience to dampen the fires from the British 6
pounder cannons during the cavalry charge on Te Tarata pā.”
Tērā te pō pango puritia te tautara Dark was night life halted to defend
ki Waitangi rā, e Te Tautara ki Waitangi yonder
Ko te rite i taku tara e kīa mai nei As dark as my skin it was said
e Tāwhiri ka titiwa tonu, Afraid, of this darkness
Titiwa mai ana roto Dark, indeed, is all within, gloom
he pāua piri ki te toka Afraid like the pāua clinging to the rock
Ko te naomanga mai kei ahau Death settles like the setting of the sun
I a māmā tonu atu ko te tōnga atu o te rā The flat rock dedicated to Uenuku
Ki ōna papaihoiretanga ki a Uenuku Is the rock at Parirau
Ko te toka i a Parirau Guarded by Te Karoro a Tamatea
Ko Te Karoro a Tamatea Of no account now
Me aha koia nei te waka Is this ravaged body of mine
ka pakaru i taku tinana Awaiting a meeting with death
Pēnei e reia e au ki te ihu Burdened heavily I cross the waterways
o Te Tihi Ōhākī e at Te Te Riu o Kānapanapa
Peke ana au i te tainga Riu o Kānapanapa To bear me ever onward
Hei kawe rawa i ahau ki te pua ki To the doorway into the afterworld
Te Reinga Te Reinga
Ki ōku nei hoa ka pau te tauwehe atu ki To my comrades, who have all gone
tawhiti And are now beyond the veil of death
Te pae ki Taiaōmai Over the horizon at Taiaōmai
Ko wai ka kite au Who will see me?
Ko te whakamā hoki rawa Verily the shame of this massacre
Tēnei ka totope i taku rae, i Has decapitated me
Nā Ngā Kaumātua o Ngāti Ira Nā Te Kahautu Maxwell
This Te Whakatōhea waiata tangi from Ngāti Ira captures the plight of its people in a
war ravaged environment. It reflects the pain and suffering our people have endured
for the past 150 years.
“The Tī Kōuka, Whanake or cabbage tree is the symbol for Te Tarata
Commemorations 2015. It was used to construct a hastily built double
stockade due to its resilience to dampen the fires from the British 6
pounder cannons during the cavalry charge on Te Tarata pā.”
