Haka. Photo: Robert Stokoe, pexels.com
Interestingly, the recent expulsion of the members of Te Pāti Māori from parliament for a period of time appears partly to be a result of their performing a haka in the house. It raises questions about what a haka is.
Tom Roa
Recently at a ceremony in celebration of the life of a friend, I offered a eulogy in Māori which I then translated for those in the congregation who had little or no Māori.
During the subsequent afternoon tea a lady approached me, introducing herself as being Welsh, celebrating the revival of her native tongue with that of our Māori language and seeking advice from me.
She said her son had married a Māori woman, and they had sent their children to a local kohanga reo, and then the kura kaupapa Māori – immersion Māori language schools. She had attended their prize giving ceremony at the end of the school year. A much loved, much respected teacher was retiring. She saw how much the teacher was loved by the interactions she had with her students including how her (my questioner’s) grandson and others interacted with his/their teacher, freely hugging and kissing her and being hugged and kissed back.
When the announcement came of her retirement, the whole school, students, staff, and some parents and whānau erupted into a ‘ginormous’ haka!
She asked me, ‘Why were they so angry?!?’
I asked her if she was familiar with the term ‘mana’? She said yes. I said the school community were passionately, enthusiastically, dramatically expressing their mana, but more, recognising the mana of their teacher, colleague, friend. I offered the opinion that what appeared to be anger, was an unbridled passionate expression that we often see today almost anywhere in Aotearoa New Zealand in particular the sports fields.
I also gave the opinion that haka are not performed for nothing, nor for ‘nobodies’! The more passionate the rendition of the haka, the more significant the occasion, and if it is directed at a certain person/people, the more significant that person/those people must be.
When sports teams perform their haka, the more passionate their rendition, the more significant the occasion, and more important the opposition.
Labour MP Peeni Henare has apologised for stepping away from his seat and onto the floor of the debating chamber, a clear breach of the rules of Parliament. But he was firm in his commitment to ‘my passion towards seeing this bill defeated [which] I stand by wholeheartedly.’,
It is clear to me that as a society we have much to learn, and to perhaps unlearn, about our interactions with one another.
Kia kaha tātou!
