MYTHOLOGY. 
29 
name Maui is nothing more than a title given to the person 
who first sighted land.* Ma-u-i literally signifies as much. 
Maui also means to bewitch or enchant; in both of which arts 
lie was a great adept.-j- 
The next great work of Maui is his contention with Mauika. 
Some traditions make him to be the grandfather of Maui; 
others deny it. He appears to have been a kind of Maori Pluto ; 
his body was filled with fire. The name Maui-ka seems to 
imply that he was a member of the Maui family and distin¬ 
guished by his being fire ; at any rate, it is generally supposed 
that fire first proceeded from him. Some traditions represent 
Mauika as being a woman. 
Behold Mauika had fire in his fingers and toes ; when Maui 
knew this he went to kill him by his cunning: when he 
came to his ancestor he inquired the object of his visit; Maui 
replied, to obtain a little fire. Mauika immediately gave 
him one of his fingers, the koiti or little one. Maui left him, 
and went straight to the water and extinguished it. When it 
was put out he returned again to Mauika, and said that his 
fire had gone out: he inquired, how is it that the fire is extin¬ 
guished ; he replied, I fell into the water. He cut off another 
finger, the manawa, or ring finger. Maui went, and when he 
came to the water he extinguished it also, and then wetted his 
hand with the water, that Mauika might think what he said 
was true. Again he presented himself before him, and asks 
for some fire. The reason of his continually asking for fire of 
Mauika was that all the fire in his fingers and toes might be 
exhausted, lest he should burn him with it. This he kept 
constantly doing: he got successively the mapere, or middle 
finger, and the koroa, or fore finger, and the rongo matua, or 
thumb : having finished the fingers, he then tried to obtain 
the toes, and got all but the great toe. Maui cried, give me 
* This is the opinion of the Rev. G. Stannard, Wesleyan Minister of Wai- 
totara, a gentleman who has searched more into the roots of words than most 
of our Maori scholars. 
f Maui is also the name of a game closely resembling “cats cradles,” which 
represents the different scenes of the Maori creation, such as Hine-nui-te-po, 
Maui’s fish, &c. 
