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Answers to Module 7 Questions

• 'Describe your media: My media is photographs I took of the 'Elgin Marbles' (also known as the Parthenon Marbles) that are housed at the British Museum in London. They are the classical Greek sculptures (marble) made under the supervision of the architect and sculptor Phidias. They were originally part of the temple of the Parthenon and other buildings on the Acropolis of Athens, but most contentiously were taken by a figure called Lord Elgin, who feared for their safety in the deteriorating state of the Parthenon. The controversy arises as the marbles would not have survived without Elgin's intervention and safe keeping in London, however the traditional ownership is clearly the Greeks, whom they have never been returned to.
• Is it your own work? Yes I took these pictures on my iPhone.
• What is the file format? JPEG.
• What license have you chosen? CC ZERO or "Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike" license.
• What category/gallery will you add to it? Art, Museum
• How will you describe the file? Elgin Marbles, Greek History, Mythology

Practicing Citations

(Extracted directly from source material or directly from within annotated bibliography proposal).

Sources

Source 1:

Credibility stems from Best’s reputation as a Māori ethnographer and specialist in Māori Religion, History and Mythology. Ethnography investigates culture from the point of view of the subject of the study.

Source 2:

The Ten Divisions of the Rarohenga include:

1. The Place of Grass and Trees (where Tāne-mahuta reigns).
2. The Realm of Rongo-ma-tāne and Haumia-tikitiki.
3. Te Reinga (governed by Hine-nui-te-pō).
4. Autōia (the dwelling of Whiro).
5. Uranga-o-te-Rā (1 of 3 realms ruled by Rohe, wife of Māui).
6. Hikutoia (2 of 3 realms ruled by Rohe, wife of Māui).
7. Pouturi (3 of 3 realms ruled by Rohe, wife of Māui).
8. The Home of Miru.
9. Toke (the night division; the last stage before final extinction. Here, the soul becomes a worm).
10. Meto or Ameto (the lowest division of Pō, the underworld. It is where the soul becomes absolutely non-existent).

Source 3:

The neutrality of this piece can be judged within the preface of the source; it is stated how all complied information has been collected from expert Maori practitioners, priests, wise men, healers or navigators (known as Tohunga's), all of which were “men of good birth, and competent authorities".

Source 4:

According to the ancient Maori mythology, "Bangi and Papa, or Heaven and Earth, as well as man, the Heavenly bodies, trees, stones, water, and many other organic and inorganic bodies, are all descended from primal Chaos, which obtained long before man was and before the genesis of the Maori cosmos."

Source 5:

The mythological origins of death in Māori folk-lore are associated with the ancestress Hine-tītama (who eventually became Hine-nui-te-pō) and her husband the forest god Tāne. The tale follows Hine-tītama and her escape to Rarohenga after learning that Tāne was also her father.

Rarohenga (Draft)

In Māori mythology, Rarohenga refers to the subterranean realm where spirits of the deceased dwell after death. The underworld is ruled by the Goddess of Death and Night, Hinenuitepō. Additional occupants include Guardians, Gods, Goddesses, Holy Chiefs and Nobles (rangatira), and the tūrehu, who are described as celestial, fairy-like people.

Rarohenga is predominantly depicted as a place of peace and light. As articulated by Māori ethnographer, Elsden Best: It is a place where darkness is unknown, as darkness “pertains only to the upper world”. “This is the reason why, of all spirits of the dead, since the time of Hine-a-huone… not a single one has ever returned, or hither[ed] to dwell in this world”.

In contemporary Māori society, Rarohenga continues to hold a collective, cultural significance. This is a result of several prominent rituals that originate from the underworld, that are still commonly practiced today. This includes facial tattooing (ta moko), finger twining (taniko), tribal woodcarving (moko whakatara), and the art of weaving (raranga). It is recorded that these art-forms were first introduced to the human world by figures who travelled into Rarohenga and were bestowed with the sacred techniques to improve the secular world.

Contemporary texts suggest that traditional records and accounts of Māori mythological sites, like Rarohenga, experienced substantial modification to accommodate the dominant missionary scriptures that were introduced during 19^th century colonisation of New Zealand. It is argued that these alterations occurred during translation by non-Māori authors, resulting in variations of Māori mythology to be extremely common.

The geographical connections of Rarohenga are vast, including numerous material locations that stretch across the North and South Islands of New Zealand and several immaterial locations that are recorded in mythological records.

Cultural significance of Rarohenga

According to the traditional Māori mythology, the art of carving, weaving, and tattooing were not born of the human world. It was only through the “heroes” that climbed into the heavens or descended into Rarohenga, that humanity would learn the now honoured, cultural practices.  In the ‘The Lore of the Warewananga’ (1913), the translated teachings of two distinguished Tohunga's, state how the generous offerings of celestial wisdom represent the tender connection of the Māori to this spiritual world. This conveys the deep significance of Rarohenga and its apparent influence on the quintessential Māori identity and culture observed today.

In the folklore, Māori culture is continuously inundated with different forms of enlightenment from Rarohenga. The incentive of these acts was to develop and elevate the human experience “through ethical behaviour and creative enterprise”. This is best represented in the myth of Mataora, as the story emphasises the importance of the underworld’s Gods and spirits (atua) to modern Maori culture.

Ta Moko

The Ta Moko (or ‘kauae’ for women) is a sacred facial tattoo still frequently practiced in Māori society. Its name is derived from the mythological figure ‘Atua Rūaumoko’ – the unborn child of Ranginui and Papatūānuku of Rarohenga. The origin of the art is recorded in several variations. However, its conception is most commonly regarded as derivative of the Mataora myth.

In this famous legend, the wisdom and knowledge of the permanent tattoo (ta moko) was gifted to humankind by the celestial Rangatira, Ue-tonga. It is explained that up until that point, Māori civilisation had only practiced the application of temporary tattoo. This was known as ‘hopara makaurangi’, and was achieved with soot, blue clay or red ochre. Ue-tonga would explain to Mataora the “worthlessness” of his temporary tattoo by wiping his hand across it and embarrassing Mataora by declaring it had no “mana” – meaning no honour, prestige, or authority. Mataora would then beg for the permanent tattoo, so he could bring such insight to the human world. Ue-tonga agreed and taught Mataora the underworld’s design of the nostrils (pöngiangia), the line tattooing of the eyebrows (tïwhana), the designs encompassing the mouth (pïhere), and the upper part of the nose (ngu). Thus, when Mataora returned from the underworld he would incite the national spread of the practice across the North and South Islands.

Weaving, ornamental patterns, and finger-twining

Like the ‘ta moko’, the art of weaving was another artistic gift received from Rarohenga. This gift came in the form of a cloak called ‘Te Rangi-Hau-Papa’ . Its original creator was Hine-rau-wharangi (the daughter of Hine-nui-te-po and Tāne), who would provide the pattern to Niwareka, who would then create it for humanity. The cloak itself was developed primarily as a replacement and “consummation of Mataora’s acceptance of tattoo from the underworld” to substitute the now obsolete artform of the painted ‘ta moko’ in the human world. Ornamental patterns and finger-twinning were also acquired from Mataora’s time in Rarohenga. They would too deeply influence traditional Māori art and design.

Tribal woodcarving

Although the narrative of ‘Ruatepupuke’ is the most commonly accepted origin story of tribal woodcarving (‘whakairo’) – Maori ethnographer Elsdon Best’s translations of the Mataora myth suggest the influence of Rarohenga’s entities in the cultural and artistic development of woodcarving practiced today. Ue-tonga reiterated to Mataora the necessary adaption of painting and “carving”. His insight expressed that the temporary tattoo seen on Mataora’s face, should be used for woodcarving and design found in buildings.

Traditional origin story and the effect of colonisation

The Māori hold a very sacred and “innate belief in the immortality of the soul”. This understanding is evident in all accounts of Rarohenga, as the traditional story describes the soul’s journey to eternal peace. Unlike the biblical systems seen in the environments such as heaven and hell, key spiritual figures of the Māori underworld are not characterised as evil and malevolent beings, rather they are instigators of positive, cultural development. These entities sought to cultivate humankind with spiritual intervention to share knowledge and wisdom. The realm and its inhabitants do not seek to punish or disturb the dead.

Although contemporary interpretations of Rarohenga is often broken into two realms (Ipper or Lower worlds) – both are distinctly characterised as places of light. This primarily manifests in the ruling that the ultimate destination and residence of each spirit is entirely up to them. Each individual spirit retains the agency to decide to make their home in Rarohenga or The Sky World (also known as The Summit of the Heavens or Toi-o-nga-rangi). The Sky World or The Summit of Heavens is not as widely known or recorded as Rarohenga in traditional accounts. Subsequently, it is often argued as a modification to the mythology when it was translated by non-Māori authors. As stated by Critic Jahnke, early writers would often freely translate Māori to English and would rewrite substantial passages. Herbert Williams comments on this action, in reference to the famous Māori translator John White, as an academic act of “unpardonable recklessness”.

As stated by Māori ethnographer Elsden Best: “Māori folk adapted the myths and teachings of Christianity. This is where ideas of the spirits of the evil person going to the underworld, and those good ascending to the heavens, crept into statements. Such beliefs were unbeknown to the Māori in pre-missionary days”. This “transcultural interlocution” can be witnessed when examining the historical works of writers such as S. Percy Smith. Smith recorded that spirits who conducted evil would be eternally punished and presided over by malicious spirits (‘Whiro-te-tipua’) in Rarohenga. Whereas the “good” spirits would ascend to the mountain of ‘Tawhiti-nui’ and enter a realm of eternal reward.

Critics such as Jahnke argue this as an example of cultural accommodation and assimilation to the Eurocentric belief of the afterlife that divides souls as good or evil. Critic Buck too maintains this is a loss of “cultural integrity”, where the translation of oral history and culture has been destroyed by Western influence: “The cosmogony of separating life from darkness… appears to have been post European additions made after the knowledge was acquired of the biblical story of ‘Creation’. The separation of the spirits through the East door to ascend to the supernatural realms, and the ‘sinners’ through the South door to the underworld is contrary to the Māori and Polynesian concepts of the future world”.

Primary Deities

Within Rarohenga, several significant Guardians, Gods and Goddesses occupy the realm. This includes:

• Hinenuitepō: Hinenuitepō is one of the most well-known mythical figures of Rarohenga. She is the controller of human fate and destiny in death. She is also referred to as Hine-titama or ‘The Dawn Maid’, which was her identity before fleeing to the underworld upon finding out her husband Tāne was also her father.

• Makeatutara: Makeatutara is the father of Māui and executive Guardian of the Underworld. Makeatutara is acknowledged for making humankind mortal.

• Ue-tonga: Ue-tonga is recognised as the celestial Chief or Noble, who gifted man with the wisdom and knowledge of the permanent tattoo and other significant artforms.

• Niwareka: Niwareka is recorded as a ‘turehu’ (fairy-like individual), the daughter of Ue-tonga and the wife of Mataora. Niwareka would lead Mataora into Rarohenga after Mataora struck her during a disagreement, where he would discover the artistry of tattoo and weaving.

• Te Kuwatawata: Te Kuwatawata is the Guardian who holds the entrance to the underworld of the spirits at Poutere-rangi.

• Tiwaiwaka: Tiwaiwaka is the Guardian of the base of the spirits ascent.

• Whiro: Whiro is regarded as the personified form of darkness, evil, and death who dwells in the underworld.

Geography

The Māori’s hold a deep connection to the land (whenua), which is evident in the continued, spiritual significance of real-world locations because of their role in the soul’s journey to Rarohenga.

Cape Reinga (Te Rerenga Wairua) is one of the most well-known spiritual sites in New Zealand. Mythology proposes that here the spirit descends into the underworld by sliding down the root of a tree into the sea. The spirit then travels underwater to the Three Kings Islands, where they climb the highest point of the island and bid their last goodbye to the human world. Explorer, Māori scholar and interpreter, Edward Shortland describes this location as a place where the spirit arrives at two hills after travelling northward. These hills are ‘Wai-hokimai’ and ‘Wai-otioti’, where the spirit strips off its worldly clothes, and finally turn its back on the land of the living. Shortland states, “there are two long straight roots, the lower extremities of which are concealed in the sea, while the upper ends cling to a pohutukawa tree. The spirit stands by the upper end of these roots, awaiting an opening in the seaweed floating on the water. The moment an opening is seen, it flies down to the Reinga. Reaching the Reinga, there is a river and a sandy beach. The spirit crosses the river. The name of the newcomer is shouted out. He is welcomed, and food is set before him. If he eats the food, he can never return to life” .

Additionally, there are several immaterial sites that are central to the geography of Rarohenga. This includes checkpoints such as Pou-tere-rangi, which is described as the Guard House and entry to the underworld. This site is maned by Te Ku-Watawata, and divides Rarohenga to humankind. Original texts express that humans were once able to journey through this point and between worlds. However, after a heated disagreement between Te Ku-Watawata and Mataora, the passage was closed to humans forever. Te Ku-Watawata declared “never again will the door of the lower world be opened to the upper world, but only downward to the underworld; only spirits shall traverse both realms”.