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Nga kōrero a Reweti Kohere Mā

He Kupu, He Pepeha, He Whakatauki

He Kupu, He Pepeha, He Whakatauki

Nga Tino Whakatauki a te Iwi Maori, Nga Whakatauki a Nga Iwi, Te Take Mai o Etahi Whakatauki no te Tairāwhiti.

Mehemea ki te āta whakamāramatia nga tini kupu, pepeha, whakatauki, a te iwi Maori, me te take mai, ma pukapuka a motuhake tonu. Ka nui tēnei mo tēnei wā arā te tuhituhi ki te wāhi whāiti, hei titiro, hei ako ma nga tamariki. Na te Reo Ingarihi e mārama ai te tino tikanga o nga whakatauki. Ma nga whakatauki ka mārama he iwi mātau o tātou tīpuna. Ko te whakatauki he whakapuaki ana i te whakaaro.

1. He ihu kurī, he tangata haere. As a dog follows a scent, a wayfarer looks for an open door.

2. Ka mate kāinga tahi ka ora kāinga rua. When one home fails, have another to go to.Have two strings to your bow. page 131

3. Hōhonu kaki, pāpaku nana. Deep at eating but shallow at work.

4. He tamariki wāwāhi tahā. Children who break the calabash.

5. He manako te koura i kore ai. Crayfish are scarce when they are expected. Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

6. He maroro kokati ihu waka. The flying-fish that cuts across the bow of the canoe.- Considered a bad omen.

7. Kia mate ururoa, kei mate wheke. Fight like a shark, don't give in like an octopus.

8. He au kei uta e taea te karo, he au kei te moana e kore e taea. You may dodge smoke (au) on land, but you cannot dodge current at sea.

9. Ka pū te ruha, ka hao te rangatahi. The old net is cast aside, while the new net goes a-catching.

10. Te amorangi ki mua, te hāpai ō ki muri. The priest leads while the food carrier follows.The Ark always led the Israelites.

11. Makere te weka, i te mahanga, e hoki anō? Once the weka escapes the trap, it will keep clear of it.Once bitten twice shy.

12. E kore te pātiki e hoki ki tōna puehu. The flounder does not go back to the mud it has stirred.

13. He urunga tangata he urunga pāhekeheke, he urunga oneone, mau tonu. To rest on human support is unreliable, to rest on terra-firma is sure.

14. He wāhine, he whenua, ka ngaro te tangata. For a woman and land, men perish.

15. He kokonga whare e kitea, he kokonga ngākau e kore e kitea. You may detect a flaw in a house, you cannot a flaw in the human heart.

16. Totohu ahiahi, whakarere harata. Beastful in the evening, reticent in the morning.

17. He kai kei aku ringa. There's plenty with my hands. page 132

18. Ma whero, ma pango, ka oti te mahi. By red and black a job is finishedMany hands make light work.

19. He kino te tokomaha ki te kainga a kai, tēnā kia tū ki te mahi ka aha hoki? It is inconvenient to feed many mouths, but turn mouths into hands what then?

20. Kua āta haere, muri tata kino. To start early is leisurely, but to race against time is desperate.

21. E mua kaikai, e muri kai huare. Early arrivals have the pick, but late comers may only get spittal

22. Ngaro atu he tētēkura, whakaeke mai he tētēkura. (Ngāti Porou version) When one chief disappears another is ready to appear. No one is indispensable.

23. Moe ana te mata hī tuna, ara ana te kitaua. Eel catchers may sleep but sentries do not.

24. Te ai he ata kē. Not a morning passes but he appears.

25. He pai aha to te tutua? Can any good be expected from the low-born. Can any good come out of Galilee?

26. He karanga riri ka karangatia Paeko, he karanga kai kaore Paeko e karangatia. When there is fighting to do Paeko is called, but when there is a meal Paeko is not called.

27. Haere maha mahue maha. Mutually satisfied.

28. He atua rere te atua, mahue rarau Hapopo. God is touchy, for that rarau Hapopo was left in the lurch.

29. He kai tangata he kai titonga kaki;

Tērā tana ake kai, tino kai tino makora. To eat another's food, you have to eat sparingly;but to eat your own, you can eat as much as you like.

30. He kōrero ahiahi na Tiketikeirangi. It's an overnight boast off Blow-hard

31. He kai iti ma tangata kotahi e kai kia rangona ai te reka. page 133 If there is little of food, let one eat it so that it can be enjoyed.

32. He tangata takahi manuhiri, he marae puehu. The marae is disreputable when guests are not respected.

33. Te Kaihoki i Waiaua rā. Here we starve when there is abundance at Waiaua. Waiaua near Opotiki.

34. E tama, tangata i akona i te whare, te tūranga ki te marae tau ana. Because you were taught at home, you shape well in public.

35. E, kaua e ako marae. Don't begin to learn in public.

36. Te anga karaka, te anga koura, kei kitea ki te marae. Don't leave about your place, shells of karaka berries and of crayfish.

37. Ka ngaro te reo tangata, kiiki o manu. Human voices are silent except the twittering of birds.

38. He kai titowera rawa hoki nāu te wai? Is it much trouble to prepare a drink of water?

39. Pai tū, pai hinga, na wai, na oti. One may work properly, another may act, yet the sum total is the completion of the work.

40. Tū ana Raeroa noho ana Raepoto. While the forward look on, the modest have finished a meal.

41. He huahua te kai? A, he wai te kai. Are preserved pigeons the chief food? No, its water.

42. He iti hoki te mokoroa nāna i kakati te kahikatea. The mokoroa (grub) may be small, but it cuts through the Kahikatea (whitepine).

43. He iti hōpua wai ka hē te manawa. It may be a shallow pool, yet it may drown.

44. Mate i te tamaiti he auru kowhao, mate i te matua he takerehaio. To lose a child is a leakage, but to lose the parent is the bottom dropped out.

45. Toitū he kāinga, whatu ngarongaro he tangata. While the land remains the inhabitants are goneThe deserted village.

46. He kura pae na Mahina. Its the Mahina's kura, washed up on the shoreAnybody's property. page 134

47. He toonga kē ta te kōkā, he toonga kē ta te kauri. The mother fashioneth (the daughter) but the moko fashioneth betterKauri charcoal.

48. He waka ianei e herea. It's not a canoe that can be fastenedSaid of a dead person.

49. Kia kino te tahā kia tū noa ai i te marae. Prefer a plain calabash so that it could be left anywhereApplied to a plain wire.

50. He aha ta te rora? What can be expected from a common person?

51. He mahi ta te āta noho, e kii ana Wheke. To sit still is to do something, so says Wheke.

They also serve who only stand and wait, so says Milton.

52. Waiho ma te tangata e mihi, kia tau ai. It would be better to let others praise.

53. Me rangatira he hoa matenga mōu kia kore koe e whakarerea. When in a forlorn situation stand by a rangatira so that you will not be deserted.

54. He harore rangi tahi. It's like a mushroom that lives but a day.

55. He kōtuku rerenga tahi. The white heron that makes one flight onlySaid of a chief.

56.Tāu kai te rangatira he kōrero, ta te ware he muhukai. The rangatira relishes talk while the nobody is inattentive Take heed how ye hearsays Christ.

57. Haere ki wīwī ki wāwā. Go, anywhere you likeGo to hell.

58. Ha patu ua ki runga, he ngutu wāhine ki raro. As the pelting rain on the roof, so is a woman's tongue inside.

59. He taonga tonu te wareware. Forgetfulness is to be reckoned with always.

60. He ngaro tangata ora. It's the absence of one livingNot one dead.

61. He tāne māu hei te ringa raupo. Marry a man with blistered handsA worker.

62. He tangi to te tamariki, he whakamā to te pakeke. When the (impudent) child cries, the elder blushes.

63. He kanae rere tahu tū. page 135 The mullet that leaps brandishly .

64. He kākā waha nui. The loud-mouthed kākāSaid of a loud-mouthed person.

65. He pārera apu paru. A duck that swallows dirt.

66. He wai tarua. To play a secondary partSaid of an eel basket placed below another.

67. He puta taua ki te tāne, he whānau tamariki ki te wāhine. As an attack by a war party to a man, so is giving birth to child to a woman.

68. Me he wai ta tieke. Occurring too oftenOf something undesirableas the saddleback continually sprinkles itself.

69. Apaia nei he poroporo e hinga mai akuanei pea he poroporo e hinga atu. It may be a poroporo that will fall homewards but it may be a poroporo that will fall outwards.

He kupu na te tangata e haere ana ki te riri. Koina te kupu a Pākura, pāpā, o Mokena Kohere. Kaore ia i hoki mai, i mate ki Wharekura. Ko te poroporo he tino rākau no Hawaiiki.

70. Ruia taitea kia tū ko taikaka anake. Cast off the sap, leave only the heart.

71. Hāhā uri, hāhā tea. Dark-green savour, white savour.

Mo te kāhore arā kore kai.

72. He kōrero kei runga, he rahurahu kei raro. While the mouth above talks, the hand below is feeling aboutA warning against a plausible person.

73. He toa taua he toa pāhekeheke,

He toa mahi kai he toa mau tonu. A brave in battle is occasional,

A brave at work is for all times.

74. He tao rākau e taea te karo,

He tao kii, e kore e taea. A shaft can be warded off A shaft of the tongue cannot.

75. I hea koe i te tangihanga o te riroriro? page 136 Where were you when the grey warbler sang? The warbler sings in the spring, the time for planting.

76. Kia āta akiaki i au, he kai ka mate kai te hara o te kaki. Don't hurry me, there is something that tickles my palate.

77. Take kōanga, whakapiri ngahuru. Aloof at planting time, friendly at harvest.

78. Ngahuru, kai hāngai, kōanga kai anga kē. At harvest time (autumn) one eats openly, At spring time one eats in a corner.

Tirohia nga tuhituhi a Reweti T Kohere.

79. Tukuna mai ki a au ki Hikurangi, ki te maunga e tauria ana e te huka. Let him come to me, to Hikurangi, the mountain covered with snow. Uttered by Aotaki.

Tirohia nga tuhituhi a Mohi Turei.

80. Ka kō nga kopara a Rongomaitapui. The bell-birds of Rongomaitapui do chirp. The reference is to Uetaha's daughters Hinerupe, Aopare and Tamateanui, well-known for their garrulousness. See Pine Tuhaka's article. The version on the Honour Tablet in Rongomaitapui Hall is incorrect, (Crow) not the so-called bell-bird that sings like a bell.

81. Nga paniwhaniwha ngau pūraho a Te Aotauru. Te Aotautu's biting snappers. A reference to Ngāti-Hokopū's ferocity. A pūraho is the twine that holds the bait in the hinaki and toemi.

82. Arā te rongo kōrero e pihi rā i Tawhiti a Pawa, takoto noa Waimahuru. While tidings go over Tawhiti a Pawa, Waimahuru remains solitary. Tawhiti is the high hill between Tokomaru and Waipiro over which a bridle track once lay and Waimahuru is the pretty little bay directly below Tawhiti. Access to the bay is solely by sea. See Nikora Tautau's fine article.

83. Patua i tahatu o te rangi, waiho tangata haere wā, kia haere na, kia rongo ai i te kōrero. Strike at distance, leave alone the casual way-farer so that you may hear news.

84. Ngāti Nua hiku potakataka. Ngāti Nua of the plump tail. page 137

85. Ngai Tāne ngau pūtahi. Ngai Tāne heart-eating. Both Ngāti Nua and Ngai Tāne are Ngāti Porou sub-tribes, as a matter of fact they are one and the same.

86. Akuanei nga pakura a Hinemakaho ka keha rawa atu ai i Takuahiroa. Hinemakaho's pakura (Pukekos) will soon be screeching at Takuahiroa near Tolaga Bay.

87. Nga kurī pāka a Uetuhiao. See article on page 150.

88. Hei ahau tonu koe waru ai? Would you always scrape me? Uttered by Mahara, tired of Tinatoka's continuous begging of kumara. A nuisance. Kumara was scraped before cooking.

89. He oma a Tawhata i ora ai. By running away Tawhata saved himself. In other words, discretion is the better part of valour.

90. Titiro ki Opou, ki te pā o Kaitoa. Look at Opou where Kaitoa (serve-you-right) lives.

91. Werohia ki te poho o Huatare. Appeal to Huatore's stomach.

92. Ka whanga te kai ki tua o Toka 0rurunga. Why wait for food beyond Tokararangi?Where the sea is more or less rough. Uttered by Rahuiokehu when asked by Hunaara to wait.

93. Taku waha kai marangai ki roto o Maiatiti.

Taku waka te toia, te haumatia. My mouth which is always satisfied at Maiatiti, rough though the weather may be. Where a canoe need not be launched no a voice urges. Uttered by Tangitaheke when weather-bound at Whakatane.

94. Haere tāua ki Waiapu, ki tatara e maru ana. Let us go to Waiapu, the sheltering cape.

95. Puraho māku, kei ngaure o mahi. To catch fish you must place your basket in the water. No work, no pay.

96. E mate ana i a au, e ora ana i a Te Waranga. Though I perish,Te Waranga lives. Hikaroa's dying message, an appeal to Te Waranga to avenge it. page 138

97. E Tū, e Tū, te rangona hoki te reka o te kai. Oh Tū, Oh Tū how can I taste the sweetness of your food?

98. He mahi na Uetaha e hokia. It's Uetaha's job, it can be left for another day, for finished it would surely be.

Ngāpuhi, Rarawa, Aupouri, Ngāti Whātua

99. Ngāpuhi kowhao rau. Ngāpuhi of a hundred pitfalls.

100. He rangai maomao ka taka i tua o Nukutaurua, e kore e huri. Once a shoal of maomao turns Nukutaurua there's no turning backnot to be confused with Māhia Peninsula.

101. Kātahi anō nga tai o Maihirangi ka ngunguru. At last the tide at Maihirangi moans.

102. Ka totō te puna i Taumārere ka mimiti te puna i Hokianga.

Ka totō te puna i Hokianga ka mimiti te puna i Taumārere. When the spring at Taumārere bubbles over the spring at Hokianga ebbs. When the spring at Hokianga bubbles over the spring at Taumārere ebbs. Taumārere a small river or possibly the Bay of Islands also.

103. Ka maunu te pangia o Taumārere. Taumārere's plug is withdrawn.

104. Ka kata nga puriri o Taiamai. Taiamai's puriri laugh.

Arawa

105. Te Arawa māngai nui. Te Arawa loud-mouthed.

106. Rangitiki upoko i takaia ki te aka tea. Rangitiki whose head is bound with white vine. Rangitiki is a sub-tribe name applied to the people of Matata.

Tūhoe

107. Tūhoe moumou kai, moumou taonga, moumou tangata ki te pō. Tūhoe extravagant with food, extravagant with treasure, extravagant with human life.

108. He kotahi na Tūhoe ma te pō e kata. A one of Tūhoe who will cause the underworld to laugh.

Ngāti Awa

109. Nga mate i Kawerau me tangi mai i Koohi,

Nga mate i Koohi me tangi mai i Kawerau. page 139 The deaths at Kawerau are mourned at Koohi and the deaths at Koohi are mourned at Kawerau. Koohi is the point near the mouth of the Whakatāne River. Kawerau is a hill further inland.

Heretaunga

110. Heretaunga haukū nui. Heretaunga full of dampness.

111. Ehara tōku toa i te toa takitahi

He toa takitini tōku toa My heroism is not individual, it is collective. Uttered by Tūtohuariki.

Whānau a Apanui

112. Ka hiki te toka i Wahakino,

Ka tū te toka i Takore. Wahakino rock has moved, while Takore rock has remained stationary. He kupu na Tamahae ki a Kanohi i Te Kaha. Ko Wahakino he toka Whangaroako Kanohi tērā, ko Takore he toka kei Te Kahako Tamahae tērā.

Waikato

113. Waikato taniwha rau: he piko, he taniwha, he piko he taniwha. Waikato of a hundred taniwhaa every bend there is a taniwha.

114. Waikato horo pounamu Waikato that swallows greenstone.

Taranaki

115. Taranaki waewae kakoko. Taranaki of the bent leg refers to witchcraft. The term is also applied to Tūpāroa in the Ngāti Porou territory where old Pakuku, long suspected of practising the art of black magic, was found murdered in his hut. The act was generally approved, consequently the murderer was never found out. In the attempt not to have footmarks left in the soft earth and sand, on which a spell may be cast, walkers appeared to have bent legs.

Reweti T Kohere

Rangiata

East Cape