The Pīwaka Story
Ngā Taki a Pīwakawaka Kia tika, kia pono
ti ti
teitei
tū!
Pīwakawaka is one of Tāne, God of the forest and birds children, Pīwakawaka one of the smallest birds, yet full of energy, the sentinel, the challenger to anyone that enters the sacred forest of Tāne, challenging them all, to be respectful of the great Forests of Tāne and all within it.
Pīwakawaka is one of Tāne, God of the forest and birds children, Pīwakawaka one of the smallest birds, yet full of energy, the sentinel, the challenger to anyone that enters the sacred forest of Tāne, challenging them all, to be respectful of the great Forests of Tāne and all within it. Pīwakawaka is nimble and sharp of mind, darting in front of the visitors as they enter the sanctuary of ngā manu rangatira. He hovers, then darts forward flicking his taiaha with strength and swiftness, Ti Ti Tei Tei Tū! “do you come in peace - or not”, he cries out, the little warrior reminding us to challenge ourselves to be the best that we can be, and if you challenge someone else be tika and pono (honest and true). The energetic nature of Pīwakawaka gives us motivation and strength to push the boundaries and achieve our ultimate dreams.
In an Early Learning Centre, the qualities Pīwaka shares with us, how to harness the inner energy and push the boundaries of learning to the best of our abilities, achieving all our goals to the fullest potential, through motivation and taking on challenges, challenging the world and challenging yourself to be the best you can be. Pīwaka also challenges us to be Tika and Pono (true and honest) with ourselves and others around us. We must harness the Pīwaka energy within us and our tamariki to develop our full learning potential in a natural, balanced way, in a natural environment, to develop Manaakitanga (respect), as the manu are our elders here in Aotearoa. And in Māori culture the Elders are the knowledge keepers of this land we live on.
As the Pou Tikanga (Māori Language and customs expert), that was consulted with when researching the use of Pīwaka as a kaupapa (foundation/brand) for this Early Learning Centre, I advised the owners, Grant and Ginny Trethewey and the teaching team, that it is possible to use this name, and facilitated a workshop with the educators on the indigenous symbolism and meanings of this chiefly bird. Therefore the use of Pīwaka is the short form of Pīwakawaka which is our native fantail and is very common as an icon in the Glen Eden area. I totally have faith in this beautiful name and I support Grant, Ginny and their team for showing the insight and appreciation of the symbolism of Pīwaka and the learning of Te Reo Māori as part of the early learning journey for our tamariki (children), as these treasures are unique to this land that we all live on, and therefore we must learn to appreciate the wisdom of our ancestors, to guide us in developing our Manaakitanga and Kaitiakitanga (cultural respect and integrity) here in Aotearoa,
ngā mihi,
Romana Tekaharoa Potts
Pou Tikanga
MApplied Indigenous Knowledge Pouako ki Te Wānanga o Aotearoa