TE TOHUNGA MAORI.

Franklin Times, Volume 9, Issue 696, 3 January 1922, Page 5

TE TOHUNGA MAORI.

(By Raymond W. FirthV.

AN OLD-TIME SKETCH.

It is not generally known that before the arrival of the European in i this country, with jlris disturbing theory of fire and brimstone, the Maori; far from being the godless heathen that he is sometimes represented to be, possessed an involved system of religion, quite as complicated as that of the pakelin. * The chief exponent of this religion was the tohunga, who acted not only as priest and means of communication witjh the gods, but also as historian of the tribe, wizard, doctor, and interpreter of dreams and omens. Versed in . all karakia, the incantations by which a man might be sent down to the realm, of iHine-nui te-po the ■Lady of Death—or preserved to this world of- life and exceedingly tapu in person and property, famed for his knowledge of tribal lore, and respected) for his powers of prophecy and second sighlt—such was the tohunga of old. To-diay he is no more: but from the v^'i tings of such men as Messrs Elsdon Best, James Cowan, Percy Smith, on William Banche, we may glean fragments of knowledge regarding his life and his power. education of the aspirants to the position—the itauira or pupils—• |*was agjfong and trying process, and flffljrfptesits were imposed to prove wfneticr the student was an adept in the art of -the tohunga. In one of these, the pupil took a small flat stone, about 1 inch in diameter, and by repeating powerful karakia he would shiver the stone to fragments as it. lay in "She open palm of' his hand. This was done by the' potency of the incantations and the sheer exercise of will power, and not by any physical force. The final ordeal was more severe. In this (tjhe tauira was directed to select a neafl relative, and as before by the repetition of karakia and the exercise of will power to cause the death of the loved one. This was the test whiefh. proved whether or no the toaira was accomplished in the highest art of the to-

hunga. The old-time sage knew by heart literally hundreds of songs, spells, and charms, which were so varied as to be applicable to almost any cir*cumstanpe in life. For example, if in battle a warrior bethought him-self-of the old proverb, and, being determined on fighting another day, was dissatisfied with his speed towards the sky-line, he would use a karakia called! 'tapuae -to hasten his flying feet. Again, fllhould a lover be doubtful of his success in winning the object of his-choice, he used an atiihu, or love charm, to incline her maiden fancy .in his direction. To come £o ITiore prosaic matters, should a man get a fish-bone sltuck in his f throat, and be in danger of choking, he \fili send: for a tohunga with all speed The wizard, tapping him on the back of the*neck with the edge of his hand, repeated .a karakia commanding the demon who is holding the bone fast in the throat of the unfortunate individuaal, to let go and come out. ('Possibly our custom of par thru a choking person on the back is a ■ survival of this !) * t ohunga, being in constant comion wftjh the gods, and veiled in the Karakia by which they were invoked, was of necessity tapu or sacred. It fell to him, therefore, to carry out all these ditties which could, not be performed by persons of more profane associations, for fear of incuring anger of the gods—which is death.. Thus the tohunga, as a rule,' disposed of the sacred V,rmes of the higfi-boiln dead, and conveyed them to their last hidden Sing Place. Tattooing, also, in former days, was undertaken by the r-riest. In all work connected with constructions in wood, such as houses canoes and carving, a P* ie:>t dl ‘ rected the undertaking from the firs fellin- of the tree, which musk be accompanied by karakia to remove the . f ol! trees were the offspring - 1 MflWlf s od of !the JjgWHgf had his uses. j be a scien •

locksmith. A friend of the Maori tells how, when he had 1 occasion to be absent from his raupo> weather boarded'house, “I drew to the flaxblade mat door, and went off with a basket of kumara or a string of eels to the tohunga, and said “Give me a token.” After fumbling about in hiis basket he might draw fortji a short piece of barkless white si tick, a few feathers, or may be a shrivelled hawk’s claw. This I then hung in a? conspicuous place on my door, and walked - away w.ilh a faith that ,a mover of mountains might envy, that I could find everything as I had left it, fori word would creep from hohse to house —“Kiai mohio kite whatitoka o Puki.” (Bewaree of Puhi’s door). was sufficient, ”

But the power of the tohunga was not always thus for good. Too offten the karakia were used in the baneful rites of makutu, which bewitched a man, body and soul, and destroyed them both together. Makutu, or sorcery, is too large a subject to be entered upon here, but in brief it is largely the effect of hypnotism, and suggestions conveyed by telepathy, tjhough even yet it is not fully understood. Be what will, it works, and a Maori who thinks he is under the influence of makutu will surely die unless a more powerful tohunga be at hand, tc aid hihi. Here is, an instnee of its awful power. An old man, reputed to be a wizard, was one day sunning in front of his whare, when a young fellow, who had just come home from 3 shearing job, and had taken juslt enough liquor to make jhim reckless of consequences, mossed the street. Having lit his pipe, he dropped the burning match on the bald head of the old mans. Suddenly the old man hunga snatched, it off. spalfc on it, and throwing it against the other’s chest, yelled “Tua taku tohu, kair.ga to manawa ie to ngarara.” (Behold my token; may your heart be consumed by cancer). This sobered' 'the*'moving instantly, and with an ashen-grey face he half ran to {lris horn-, 'fold his people, and went to bed. In three days he wlis dead. On the funeral night a shof was heard from the old man’s wfhare, but from that day to 'this his murderer went undiscovered, for though many guessed, none would tell. But the whiter man’s law has practically ptit an end to-'the avenging of deaths from my.kutu:, though until quite recent times &. tdhunga makutu who practised his jart„ was in constant danger of death from leadpoisoning. i Another instance of hypnotic power is given by Mr Percy Smith.| The anceint priest Tuhoto, of Rotorua, was visited by an eminent in an effort to convert Ijhje old man to the Christian faith, aqd the utmost persuasion was used. Rut the old tohunga remained firm, and declined all overtures. At last he said “If -.you can do this I will become a convert.’) Picking lip a dried leaf of the ti (or cabbage-tree), he (held it at arm’s length, and saying a few w r ords of karakai, invited his visitor to look. Behold! The leaf yas green as if plucked growing from the tree. The White man turned feeling that he was no match for the Maori tohunga.

But Tuhoto, burled in the Tarawera eruption of 1886, and dug out alive after four d.ys. was probably the last of the old-time tohurgas. They ar|e gone, and too often their present day successors, who beai their name, are hr v ignorant quacks and bush doctors, impressing upon the superstition credulity of the Maori by their pretence of knowledge, and their often meaningless incantations. With the old tohungas have perished the dignity of the office ; they havej gone down to the realms of dealji; they have been claimed by HinJ-nui-te-po, and with them |has gone, their vast store of learning and ttcir ancient lore.