Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po has been welcomed on to Rātana Pā for the annual celebrations of the church’s founder Tahupōtiki Wiremu Rātana, reaffirming the strong ties between the church and Kiingitanga.
It’s her first official appearance at the pā as queen following the passing of her father, Kingi Tuheitia Potatau Te Wherowhero VII.
Tainui iwi leader Tukoroirangi Morgan told Māori media that today was about taking the kawe mate (a ritual of mourning) of Kingi Tuheitia to Rātana.
“I tērā atu tau i tae ā tinana mai ia i muri mai i te hui o Te Kotahitanga ki runga anō i tō mātou marae o Tūrangawaewae. Tekau mano ngā tāngata i tae atu, ka mutu kau ana tērā ka heke mai ki konei,” he said.
(“The king visited [Rātana Pā] last year, following the Kotahitanga hui at Tūrangawaewae Marae [in Ngāruawāhia]. Ten thousand people attended the hui, and once that was done, [we] came down here.”)
“Nā, koia rā tēnei te kawe mai i tōna mate, ko te mihi atu ki te hāhi ki ngā whakahaeretanga me ngā whakariterite o tēnei kaupapa hirahira rawa atu.”
(“That’s why we are bringing his mate, as well as paying our respects to the church, and the organising of this wonderful event.”)
Spokesperson Ngira Simmonds said the Kiingitanga has a close relationship with the Rātana Church, a bond that started with the first Māori queen, Dame Te Atairangikaahu, and Te Reo Hura, the president of the church at the time.
“Nā rāua anō i tino tata ai ngā hononga, ngā hereherenga anō hoki ki waenganui i Te Iwi Morehu me ngā iwi katoa ki roto i te Kiingitanga. Ā, haere ake nei, haere ake nei, tēnei a Kuini Nga wai hono i te po e whakapūmau ana i ngā tohutohu o ana tūpuna, otirā, i te reo pōwhiri a Tumuaki Manuao i tēnei rā.”
(“From the two of them the ties between the Rātana faithful of Te Iwi Morehu and all the iwi within the Kiingatanga strengthened. That has continued down the generations with Kuini Nga wai hono i te po reaffirming what was directed by her ancestors, and taking up the invite by church president, Manuao [Te Kohamutunga Tamou] [to visit].”)
