Best. — Maori Eschaioloyy. 155 



In an old invocation or incantation repeated by the priests 

 of old in order to relocate the breath of life in an apparently 

 dying person we find the following : — 



Kai he a ? 



Kai hea te pu o te mate ? 



Kai runga, kai raro 



Kai te hikahika nui no Hine-nui-te-Po, &c. 



("Where is the cause or origin of death ? It is above and 

 below. It is in the. organ of Hine-nui-te-Po.") 



A singular discourse delivered by an old Native to myself 

 puts a somewhat different complexion on the story of Tane 

 seeking the female element. He said. " I will speak of life and 

 death. When Tane approached his parent Rangi, in his search 

 for the female sex, Rangi said to him, ' The whare o aitua [abode 

 of misfortune or death] yawns below, while open above is the 

 whare o te ora [site of life, &c.].' The former term implies the 

 female organ, while the latter expression is applied to the ears, 

 eyes, nostrils, and mouth. Now, when Tane found woman he 

 was ignorant of the laws of procreation and of copulation, hence 

 he mistook the purpose of the ears, nostrils, &c. Now, if Tane 

 had not interfered with the whare o te ora, death would never 

 have approached man ; he would have retained life for ever, 

 even as do the children of Tangotango, who are the sun, moon, 

 and stars." 



It will be noted that the above notes really contain two ac- 

 counts of the. origin of death, which may perhaps be accounted 

 for when we know that these isles were not settled by one 

 migration of Polynesians, but by at least two, whose myths and 

 traditions may have differed somewhat. Moreover, I am be- 

 coming imbued with the idea that many such origins or myths 

 bear a twofold aspect as recorded in Maori tradition, the one 

 being of a sacerdotal character, retained by and known to but 

 a few persons, such as the priests and chiefs ; while the other 

 version is the popular one, known to all members of the tribe, 

 and appears conserved in the folk-lore of the people, often inter- 

 woven with the doings of some popular old-time hero. 



The adventures and deeds of such beings as Maui, Tawhaki, 

 &c, are common property, told around any camp-fire, or in 

 any place where Natives are gathered together. No reticence 

 marks the imparting of such folk-lore tales to Europeans. But 

 how different, and difficult, it is to acquire any matter pertaining 

 to the real old-time religion, the cult of Io, the collector alone 

 knows. 



The underworld, or Hades, to which the spirits of the dead 

 descend, is termed the " po," a word which also means " night." 

 Pouri = dark ; uri denotes blackness or very dark colour 



