The Matariki star system, also known as Pleiades, returns in midwinter, indicating the arrival of the Māori New Year.
The Matariki star system, also known as Pleiades, returns in midwinter, indicating the arrival of the Māori New Year.
Ahead of Matariki 2024, in this extract from the insightful Māori Made Easy Pocket Guide, author, presenter and professor Scotty Morrison (Ngāti Whakaue) explains the history behind the holiday and how to identify the stars.
Ahakoa te nuinga o te motu ka whakanui i a Matariki hei tohui te tau hou Māori, te tau hou Aotearoa, ko ngā iwi o te uru, ka whakanui kē i a Puanga. It is important to note at the beginning of our discussion about the star cluster of Matariki, also known as Pleiades, that even though most of the country celebrates Matariki as the symbol of the Māori New Year (or as I like to say, New Zealand’s New Year), the tribes of the west and some in the north celebrate the star Puanga, or Rigel, as the beginning of the new year.
Matariki has gained in popularity over the past few years, thanks in no small way to the efforts of Dr Rangi Mātāmua, who was named Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year in 2023. It was also timely that we had Dame Jacinda Ardern in place as a Prime Minister who fully supported Matariki becoming a public holiday in 2022, a demonstration of the value and respect she has for Māori knowledge and culture.
It is important to understand how the Māori calendar works to know exactly when Matariki rises and signifies the beginning of the new year, because it is based on a lunar calendar that changes slightly year by year. However, it usually occurs around the months of June and July. It is based on what is called a heliacal rise; this is when a star or planet is seen on the eastern horizon just before the rising of the sun. In Aotearoa, Matariki disappears at the beginning of winter because of its proximity to the sun, and then Matariki “returns” and becomes visible again in midwinter. This heliacal rise of Matariki in midwinter indicates the arrival of the new year.
There are many interpretations of Matariki and its origins. One talks of Matariki being Ngā mata o te ariki Tāwhirimātea — the eyes of the deity, Tāwhirimātea.
To cut a long story short, in the beginning of time, primeval parents Ranginui (sky father) and Papatūānuku (Earth mother) clung together in a marital embrace and produced some 70-plus children. Eventually, these children became unhappy over their living arrangements with their parents — no light and no room — so they came together to discuss how they might alleviate their plight. To do this, they developed a language of communication, the early beginnings of te reo Māori. They also developed protocols when they met that are still the basis for how Māori conduct hui. Eventually, they decided to separate their parents and this was achieved by one of the children, Tāne.
Tāwhirimātea, god of the winds, was enraged. He did not agree with the parents being separated and, in his fury, gouged out his own eyes and threw them towards the chest of Ranginui. His eyes splintered in the sky and formed the star cluster Matariki. This is why Tāwhirimātea is a blind god who demonstrates no prejudice when causing chaos and destruction to all in his path. Matariki is a time of reflection, of remembrance, of looking to the future, and of celebration.
Scotty Morrison, professor, presenter and author of Māori Made Easy Pocket Guide published by Penguin. Photo / Carolyn Sylvester
Ngā wh etū o Matariki: The stars of Matariki
There are many tribal variations on how many stars are observed, acknowledged and celebrated during the rising of Matariki. Let’s take a look at nine of them and what they symbolise.
Matariki — known as the mother of the eight stars in the cluster. Matariki is connected to health and wellbeing and is often viewed as a sign of good fortune or health to come in the following year.
Pōhutukawa — the eldest of the sibling stars. Pōhutukawa is connected to the dead and those who died in the preceding year. This is a female star.
Tupuānuku — the star associated with food that is grown in the ground. Incantations are made to her to ensure crops and food supplies flourish. This is a female star.
Tupuārangi — associated with food that comes from the sky and is linked to birds like the kererū, and elevated foods such as berries and fruits. This is a male star.
Waitī — connected to freshwater and living creatures in the rivers, streams and lakes. This is a female star.
Waitā — said by some to be the twin brother of Waitī. This star is associated with the ocean and all the food gathered from the sea and is also significant for its influence over tides.
Waipuna-ā-rangi — a female star connected to the rain. The name translates to “water that pools in the sky”.
Ururangi — a male star connected to the wind. The name itself means “the winds of the sky”.
Hiwa-i-te-rangi — the youngest of the cluster, this female star is commonly called the wishing star. Traditionally, Māori would use this star to set their desires and dreams for the year, or what we now call New Year resolutions. These hopes and aspirations are usually environmentally based — for example, for a prosperous season and a healthy taiao, or natural world. They may also request the continued health and wellbeing of the people and the tribe. So, no, you can’t ask for the Lotto numbers — it doesn’t work that way!
Te kimi I a Matariki: How to find Matariki
Here are my four easy steps to find Matariki when it rises in the midwinter months of June and July:
Look towards the eastern horizon before the sun rises, so get up early e hoa mā!
Look for three bright stars in a line. This is Tautoru, or Orion’s Belt.
Start to track your eyeline to the left of Tautoru until you come to a group of stars that look like a triangle or a pyramid; this is the face of the bull — Taurus, or Te Kokotā.
Keep moving your eyeline slightly to the left of Te Kokotā and there you should see the Matariki cluster.
