Goldie. — Maori Medical Lore. 13 



the stars are persons to us. The small stars are the common 

 people." The heavenly hodies give signs to the people of the 

 earth concerning the seasons, the crops, &c, and one star at 

 least influences the bodily condition of human beings. When 

 a person feels listless and weak (iwingohe) in summer-time it 

 is said to be caused by Rehua — or, rather, by his summer 

 wife, Whakaongekai. Rehua (Betelgeux, sometimes Antares) 

 is also known and spoken of as " Rehua kai tangata " (Rehua, 

 destroyer of mankind). Rehua is a chief among stars, a whetu 

 rangatira (lordly star). Thus we have here the beginnings, 

 the germs of astrological theories and beliefs such as those 

 on which the whole fabric of medical practice was founded in 

 mediaeval times. 



The Greeks had many gods to whom they appealed in 

 times of disease, as, for instance, Apollo, iEsculapius, Diana, 

 Hermes, Cheiron ; several of these, notably Apollo and Diana, 

 were also the senders of plagues and epidemics, disease, and 

 death amongst men. We find that the Maoris also held 

 similar views as to the existence of disease-producing and 

 disease-healing gods. These divinities were anthropomorphic, 

 or, in some instances, zobmorphic deities. They were not the 

 febishes of wood and stone which the zealous missionaries 

 invariably and erroneously designated idols, for idols and 

 idolatry were never existent, according to the best authorities, 

 in Polynesia and New Zealand. The gods above referred to 

 as playing an important part in producing disease were the 

 national deities of the Maori race, and many of them were 

 generally recognised throughout Polynesia. They were the 

 great gods, mythical ancestors of the human race, the off- 

 spring of the primal pair Rangi and Papa, and denizens of 

 the higher heavenly planes. They keep a jealous eye upon 

 the people, the wicked inhabitants of mother earth, and were 

 ever ready to punish them for infringements of the tapu laws 

 of the national religion. It must be borne in mind that al- 

 though in some instances the gods inflicted disease and death 

 owing to the inherent maliciousness of their nature, yet gene- 

 rally pain and sickness were sent as punishment for sin. 

 There are Christians who still regard disease in this light. 



The Chaldaeans, amongst others, believed that the different' 

 parts and organs of the human body were afflicted with 

 disease by special gods or demons. Thus, one of their old 

 manuscripts says, " The execrable Idpa acts upon the head of 

 man ; the malevolent Namtar upon the life of man ; the 

 malevolent Utug upon the forehead of man; the malevolent 

 Alae upon the chest of man ; the malevolent Gigim upon the 

 bowels of man." 



Similarly with the Maoris : various portions of the body 

 were supposed to be presided over by different gods, to whom 



