Matariki Day ‘when we came of age’
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has thanked the country’s indigenous peoples for gifting the “first authentically Māori public holiday” saying it is one that “unites us under the stars of Aotearoa”.
Te Rā Aro ki a Matariki, the first uniquely New Zealand public holiday, officially began early yesterday morning with a traditional hautapu ceremony at Te Papa in Wellington.
Māori leader Sir Pou Temara, who led the ceremony with several tohunga ( experts), said the celebrations signalled a maturing of Aotearoa, and part of a nationbuilding process.
“Today is a moment in time. This is a moment that future generations will look upon and say this is when we came of age.”
At the f orefront of the celebrations in te ao Māori is honouring those we’ve lost since the last rising of the star cluster, giving thanks for the present and looking forward to the promises of the new year.
Ardern said there was no better time to celebrate Matariki.
“Matariki provides us with a chance to reflect, to think of those we have lost, and to prepare and share a sense of hope and optimism for the future.
“I can’t think of a better moment in time for us to take up what Matariki has to offer us, as individuals, but also as a nation.”
Matariki offered “a space where there is room for us all”, she said.
“We are united under the same sky,” she told the large crowd.
“But as we recognise a time in our calendar that is so unique to Māori, some may ask whether this truly can be a day that our nation can unite behind.
“I would argue, wholeheartedly and absolutely, yes.
“This is now an official holiday that does not divide us by Māori ancestry or other, rather, it unites us under the stars of Aotearoa.”
Ardern said it was symbolic that the stars were used to guide those first waka to these lands, with Matariki another “waypoint” in the nation’s journey.
She said it was also a chance for many to learn.
“Many of us did not grow up with, or learn the traditions of Matariki. But we now have that chance.
“A chance to see our own children learn more about this period, a chance to learn from them, and a chance to create our own Matariki moments.”
Dr Rangi Mātāmua, an indigenous studies and Māori cultural astronomy expert who spearheaded a campaign over many years to have the day become a reality, said it was “pretty overwhelming”.
“I’m so thrilled that this government had the foresight to believe in this,” he said.
“I believe that this is the first reintroduced indigenous holiday anywhere in the world. And it is part of this sharing of culture sharing of identity.
“We no longer need to look overseas to reflect who we are,” he said.
"We are united under the same sky."