Tau Toru Nui o Matariki: A window to the Māori world of time

Thursday, 13 May 2021

Tau Toru Nui o Matariki - a window to the Māori world.

The Māori calendar maramataka is a window to the Māori world of time, according to Professor Rangi Mātāmua, an expert on Matariki and its shining stars.

This week he has launched a three-year cycle Matariki calendar. It supplies the time of day, day, month and seasons through a Māori lens.

With rising use of Te Reo Māori, this Māori calendar can be a great support.

“I want to encourage Māori who are interested to go outside and explore the environment, unravel the signs of the times and be Māori in a Māori world,” Mātāmua says.

**READ MORE:

Dr Rangi Mātāmua, is a Māori astronomy expert who has done a lot of work to help Aotearoa develop their understanding of Matariki.

* Aotearoa's first Matariki public holiday to fall on June 24, 2022 - get ready to wrap up work on a Thursday

* Changeable Matariki public holiday 'fantastic', a 'great step' forward

* Matariki should unite all New Zealanders not divide the country

Dr Rangi Mātāmua is the first Māori to win of the Prime Minister's prestigious science prizes. Mātāmua won $75,000 for the science communication award.

Mātāmua says those who follow this calendar will walk with a Māori worldview and all that it has to offer.

The Tau Toru Nui o Matariki calendar follows the sun cycles and teaches what seasons are in. It follows the stars to know which months are in. It also follows the moon phases to know what day it is.

Mātāmua, of Ngāi Tūhoe, says the calendar is broad and gives space for others to align their understandings to it, especially when aligning regional meanings.

The calendar provides relevant Māori language, the environment and seasonal activities to be undertaken.

But Mātāmua is adamant there is still space for Gregorian Calendar normally used.

The Gregorian calendar is a solar dating system used by most of the world. It is named for Pope Gregory XIII, who issued the papal bull Inter gravissimas in 1582, announcing calendar reforms for all of Catholic Christendom.

“I am not saying don't use the Pākehā calendar. It is entrenched in us and around the world. But I am saying: what is wrong with knowing both?” Matamua says.

Mātāmua a hand in the formation of Matariki next year becoming a public holiday. Earlier this year Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that Friday June 24, 2022 would be the first Matariki public holiday.

Mātāmua is very excited by the prospect and now wants his Tau Toru Nui o Matariki Calendar to span the entire globe, so interested people may search beyond the stars with a Māori worldview.

This story first appeared on Māori Television's website and has been republished on Stuff with permission.