Best. — Maori Eschatology. 201 



history and ritual, and has taken part in the pure ceremony. 

 Trie only point of light visible to me is this : The invocation was 

 to induce the stars to send bounteous crops, as also to cause 

 birds. &c, to be plentiful, but likewise to prevent food-products 

 being afflicted by any disease, &c. The old-time priests may 

 have endeavoured to ward off disease or death from the living 

 at such rites as the above. It is certain that at many different 

 functions in ancient times priests performed the tira ora rite, 

 whereby to protect and retain the health, prosperity, welfare — 

 physical, mental, and spiritual — of the tribe. 



At the pure ceremony the chief mourner had his hair cut by 

 a priest with a flake of obsidian. This was done at the wai 

 kotikoti or wai whakaika, a sacred stream, spring, or pond where- 

 at religious rites were performed. 



The term " horohoro " is also used to denote a removal of 

 tapu, or a portion of the rite. " Horonga " is applied to food 

 eaten by the priest during the above ceremony.* " Horohoro " 

 in the Paumotuan dialect signifies " soul, spirit." 



I have heard it stated by a Native that bodies of persons of 

 low social position were sometimes not buried, but simply thrown 

 aside, with the added remark, " Nohea ra e rongo nga tupuna i te 

 haunga " ("Our ancestors would not mind the stench thereof"). 



Cremation. 



Cremation was frequently practised by the Maori in former 

 times. It was practised by those tribes that lived in open country 

 where they had difficulty in concealing the bones of their dead 

 from enemies ; also by war-parties traversing hostile territory, 

 who would cremate their dead, but often preserved the heads 

 and carried them back home. At least one case is on record 

 where a war-party, reduced to desperate straits during » foray, 

 burned their wounded to prevent them falling into the hands 

 of the enemy. 



An interesting article on cremation amongst the Maori 

 people will be found in the " Journal of the Polynesian Society," 

 vol. hi, p. 134. 



In the Matatua district cremation was performed in some 

 secluded spot, which remained tapu. The. ashes were not pre- 

 served in any other way. 



When Tu-korehu raided Rua-tahuna he lost Te Tiroa, a chief 

 of his party, who was slain by Ngati-Tawhaki. The body of 

 the slain man was cremated lest it be found and eaten by the 

 Tuhoe people. As a relic of the good old days we have still 

 among us in Tuhoeland two old men who have taken part in 



* Williams's " Maori Dictionary." 



