Television presenter Mātai Smith chats with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. Photos: Richie Mills
Paulette Tamati-Elliffe, Kare Tipa, Rīpeka Pōtiki and Manuhaea O’Regan.
Manuhaea O’Regan delivering a karakia.
Thomas Aerepo-Morgan delivers a karakia.
Kāi Tahu members (from left) Taikawa Tamati-Elliffe, Edward Ellison, Kiringaua Cassidy, Paulette Tamati-Elliffe, Rīpeka Pōtiki, Manuhaea O’Regan and Tāwini White each deliver karakia as kai is prepared in the foreground.
Manuhaea O’Regan delivering a karakia.
Conservation Minister Tama Potaka (left) and astronomer and scholar Rangi Mātāmua.
Several hundred people gathered on Treble Cone yesterday for the the national Matariki hautapu (ceremony) hosted by Kāi Tahu and Te Rūnaka o Ōtākou. The pre-dawn ceremony signalled the beginning of te rā aro ki Matariki — the Matariki public holiday. Richie Mills was there to capture the morning’s events, which included a series of Matariki karakia. Karakia are Māori incantations and prayers used to invoke spiritual guidance and protection. They are generally used to ensure a favourable outcome to important events and undertakings.
