Tūmatauenga
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use New Zealand English Template:Redirect Template:Infobox deity In Māori mythology, Tūmatauenga (Tū of the angry face) is the primary god (Template:Lang) of war and human activities such as hunting, food cultivation, fishing, and cooking.
In creation stories, Tū suggests to kill his parents to allow light into the world. After they are instead separated. One of his brothers Tāwhirimātea was not happy with this and had declared war against his brothers and Tū was the only one who fought while the other brothers hid away avoiding the fight. Because of his brothers actions and having to fight Tāwhiri alone, he wars with his brothers and becomes the origin of humanity's activities, and the reasons for their behaviour when interacting with the creations of his brothers.
As the god of war, all Template:Lang were dedicated to him and he was treated with the greatest respect and awe. Tūmatauenga inspires the New Zealand Army's Māori name: Template:Lang where all soldiers are deemed of the same iwi ("tribe") under the deity's patronage regardless of racial heritage.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The marae is often considered the Template:Lang – fiery ovens of Tūmatauenga – the realm of Tūmatauenga,<ref name="dict">Template:Cite web</ref> whereas all areas where battles take place become Template:Lang – the battle domain of Tūmatauenga.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Names and epithets
After his victories over his brothers, Tū assumed many names; one name for each of the characteristics he displayed in his victories over his brothers,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Grey">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp including:
- Tū-kā-riri (Tū the angry)
- Tū-ka-nguha (Tū the fierce fighter)
- Tū-kai-tangata (Tū who destroys humankind)
- Tū-kai-taua (Tū the destroyer of armies)
- Tū-mata-whāiti (Tū the cunning)
- Tū-mata-uenga (Tū of the angry face)
- Tū-tawake (Tū who hastens)
- Tū-te-ngaehe (Tū who tears apart)
- Tū-whakaheke-tangata (Tū the demoter of personages)
- Tū-whakamoana-ariki (Tū who enriches the sea)
Earth's creation
A traditional creation story tells that all the children of Rangi and Papa, the sky father and earth mother, lay in a tight embrace together, their children forced to crawl in the darkness between the two. One day, their children become so sick of this that they discuss a plan to separate them and allow light into the world. Tū advises his brothers to kill their parents,<ref name="dict"/> but the kinder proposal of Tāne is accepted and he instead forces the primordial pair apart.<ref name="Grey"/>Template:Rp
In a Te Arawa version, Tū thinks about the actions of Tāne in separating their parents, and makes snares to catch the birds, the children of Tāne, who can no longer fly free. He then makes nets, and traps the children of Tangaroa. He makes holes to dig the ground, capturing his brothers Rongo-mā-Tāne and Haumia-tiketike, heaping them into baskets to be eaten. Of all the children of Ranginui and Papatūānuku, Tāwhirimātea fought Tūmatauenga to a standstill and forced him to withdraw, making him the only brother that Tūmatauenga cannot subdue completely, whose storms and hurricanes attack humankind to this day because of his indignation at the actions of his brothers.<ref name="Grey"/>Template:Rp
Although Ranginui and Papatūānuku were not human in form, Tūmatauenga and his brothers were. Humankind – the descendants of Tūmatauenga – increased upon the earth, until the generation of Māui and his brothers.<ref name="Grey"/>Template:Rp<ref name="Tregear">Template:Cite book</ref>
Tūmatauenga's actions against his brothers provide a pattern for human activities. Because Tūmatauenga defeated his brothers, people can now, if they perform the appropriate rituals, kill and eat birds (the children of Tāne), fish (the children of Tangaroa), cultivate and harvest plants for food (the children of Rongo-mā-Tāne and Haumia-tiketike), and generally harness the resources of the natural world. Tūmatauenga is also the originator of warfare, and people make war now because Tūmatauenga provided the example. When rituals were performed over warriors before a battle, or when an infant was dedicated to a future role as a fighter, Tūmatauenga was invoked as the source of their duty. The body of the first warrior to fall in a battle was often offered up to Tūmatauenga. While Tūmatauenga is the origin of war, powerful local deities such as Kahukura, Maru, or Uenuku were also called upon during times of war.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
In popular culture
A song by Alien Weaponry, "Template:Lang" (eat people), from the album Template:Lang constantly refers to Tūmatauenga,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> as the god of war; cannibalism was a part of warfare for the Māori. Template:Lang also referred to the people eaters – Template:Lang or groups of men tasked with fighting and gathering food.<ref>Archived at GhostarchiveTemplate:Cbignore and the Wayback MachineTemplate:Cbignore: Template:Cite webTemplate:Cbignore</ref> In addition, Kaitangata was a mortal who was taught how to fish.
See also
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References
External links
- Tūmatauenga by Cliff Whiting
- Tūmatauenga by Adam Williams and Joshua Watene
- Tūmatauenga Template:Lang at Eden Park by Boydie Te Nahu, October 2010