In
Māori mythology, Rehua is a very sacred personage, who lives in Te Putahi-nui-o-Rehua in Rangi-tuarea, the tenth and highest of the
heavens in some versions of Māori lore. Rehua is identified with certain stars. To the
Tūhoe people of the North Island he is
Antares
Antares is the brightest star in the constellation of Scorpius. It has the Bayer designation α Scorpii, which is Latinised to Alpha Scorpii. Often referred to as "the heart of the scorpion", Antares is flanked by σ Scorpii and τ ...
. Others say he is
Betelgeuse, or
Sirius
Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky. Its name is derived from the Greek word , or , meaning 'glowing' or 'scorching'. The star is designated α Canis Majoris, Latinized to Alpha Canis Majoris, and abbreviated Alpha CM ...
. Because he lives in the highest of the skies, Rehua is untouched by death, and has power to cure blindness, revive the dead, and heal any disease (Orbell 1998:119-120). He is a son of
Rangi and Papa, and the father of
Kaitangata, as well as the ancestor of
Māui (Tregear 1891:381). A
Ngāi Tahu
Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim), Mount Mahanga and Kahurangi Point ...
legend from the
South Island speaks of Rehua as the eldest son of Rangi and Papa, who first manifested as lightning, but assumed human shape when he travelled into the skies. Later his brother
Tāne
In Māori mythology, Tāne (also called Tāne-mahuta, Tāne-nui-a-Rangi, and several other names) is the god of forests and of birds, and the son of Ranginui and Papatūānuku, the sky father and the earth mother, who used to lie in a tight em ...
went to pay him a visit, Rehua had
birds in his hair, feeding on his lice. Rehua had his servants cook and prepare the birds as a meal for Tāne, who was shocked and declined to eat them because the birds had eaten the lice from Rehua's head, which was extremely tapu (sacred). However Rehua gave him birds to bring down to this world, and showed him how to snare them. Tāne also brought with him the
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...
trees that the birds fed on, and so it is that there are
forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
s and birds on the
earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
(Orbell 1998:119).
In
Tahiti
Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austra ...
, Rehua was a star-god, the star of the New Year, who produced the Twins as well as the
Pleiades
The Pleiades (), also known as The Seven Sisters, Messier 45 and other names by different cultures, is an asterism and an open star cluster containing middle-aged, hot B-type stars in the north-west of the constellation Taurus. At a distance ...
, and considered lord of the year.
Friedrich Ratzel
Friedrich Ratzel (August 30, 1844 – August 9, 1904) was a German geographer and ethnographer, notable for first using the term ''Lebensraum'' ("living space") in the sense that the National Socialists later would.
Life
Ratzel's father was th ...
The History of Mankind. (London: MacMillan, 1896) Vol1 Page 314. URL
www.inquirewithin.biz/history/american_pacific/oceania/Maui-deity.htm
accessed 7 June 2010.
References
* M. Orbell, ''The Concise Encyclopedia of Māori Myth and Legend'' (Canterbury University Press: Christchurch), 1998.
* E.R. Tregear, ''Maori-Polynesian Comparative Dictionary'' (Lyon and Blair: Lambton Quay), 1891.
Māori gods
Stellar gods
{{deity-stub