Tangaroa

In Tangaroa we find another important departmental being. In New Zealand he has not the importance that Tane, Tu, and Rongo possess, but he comes next after that trio. Tangaroa in New Zealand is essentially an ocean being; his realm is the ocean. He and Kiwa and Kaukau were the three beings appointed in the dawn of time as guardians for the vast area of Hine-moana, who is the personified form of the ocean. But Tangaroa has here been resolved more particularly into a being representing all fish. He is viewed as the origin and tutelary being of the denizens of the ocean, for fish originated with his son Tinirau, whose name is composed of two words each of which implies numbers, a multitude. Te Puna-a-Tinirau is a mythical place in the ocean from which all fish emanate. Tinirau was connected in a singular manner with Hina (the personified form of the moon). At Mangaia Tinirau was lord of all fish. He is also known at the Hawaiian Isles, where man claims descent from the youngest of his twelve sons.

In the Maori saying He wai Tangaroa i haere ai ki uta (By means of water was Tangaroa enabled to go inland) we have an illustration of the native habit of treating Tangaroa as the personified form of fish. His full name is Tangaroa-whakamau-tai (Tangaroa the sea, or tide, controller). A South Island myth has it that Tangaroa took Papa, the Earth Mother, to wife, and that Rangi, the Sky Parent, was her second husband. This makes Tangaroa occupy a much more important position than is generally acceded to him in New Zealand. In the North Island he is generally said to have been one of the seventy male offspring of the primal parents, but in some cases we meet with different statements. Wohlers tells us that "Tangaroa is known and worshipped by the whole Polynesian race as the chief god and creator of the world." This statement is not correct, as we now know, but he was so viewed in some groups.

A singular myth is that concerning Tangaroa and Rua. In this story Tangaroa is spoken of as dwelling beneath the ocean with many other water denizens. He captured one Manuhau-turuki, son of Rua, and slew him, then dried the body in some way, and set it up on his house roof as a tekoteko, or ornament. Rua went down into the ocean and succeeded in slaying the ocean denizens by means of sunlight, which is fatal to such beings. Another version, an east page 181coast one, speaks of this Tangaroa as having originally belonged to the land, where he dwelt in a house called Hui-te-ananui, on which the body of the son of Rua was placed—a tragedy that was known as the Ahi-tahurangi, or that name was applied to the destruction of Tangaroa's followers by Rua. Rua banished Tangaroa to the ocean; the survivors of the followers of Tangaroa fled to the waters of ocean and land, where, together with the offspring of Te Pu-whakahara, Takaaho, and Hine-moana, they are known as the aitanga a Tangaroa (the progeny of Tangaroa). These followers, the progeny of Tangaroa, are represented by all fish, and those of Takaaho are whales and other ocean monsters, while those of Hine-moana are shell-fish and other such products. These progeny, we are gravely told, do not possess any portion of the ira tangata (life as possessed by human beings); they remain apart as a different folk. Some of them, the giants and taniwha of the deep, such as the Wehenga-kauki, Tutara-kauika, Ruamano, and Arai-te-uru, have their task of assisting distressed mariners and deep-sea voyagers.

This peculiar myth probably contains some hidden meaning unknown to us. The Rua mentioned is one Rua-te-pupuke, one of a number of Rua who are the personified forms of knowledge and its acquisition. The myth of fish having originally dwelt on land finds its counterpart in popular folk-lore, in the story of the great battle between the fish folk and man, which will be told in due time.

The worthy Tangaroa seems to have several other descriptive names, such as Tangaroa-a-timu and Tangaroa-a-mua. The former name apparently connects him with the tide, timu denoting ebbing tai timu = ebb tide. Tangaroa-a-mua is unexplained, but Tangaroa-a-tai was a name adopted when he was appointed as one of the poutiriao or guardians of the ocean.

Tangaroa-a-roto seems to have been yet another name for our subject, and Ngati-Awa of the Bay of Plenty have a story to the effect that Tangaroa-a-roto was the spouse of Marama (the moon), and begat Hetenui-kaukau-ariki, whatever he may have been. A connection between Tangaroa and the moon runs through these old myths. The same tribe gives Tangaroa-a-kiukiu as the parent of Hine-raumati and Hine-takurua, the Summer Maid and Winter Maid, wives of Ra, the sun.

At the Cook Islands Tangaroa and Rongo are said to have been the twin children of Papa and Vatea, the primal parents. The Rev. Mr Gill tells us that Vatea equals Avatea, and means "noon"; but the Watea of Maori (N.Z.) myth seems rather to personify space. At Mangaia Tangaroa is said to have been really the most important of the twins, but Rongo gained precedence in some way. page 182The Rev. Mr. Gill refers to Tangaroa as the god of day—a peculiar title—and says that his home is in the sky. He believes the cult of Tangaroa, Rongo, and Tane to have been a very old one in the Cook Islands, but that it had been partially obscured by the prominence given to certain deified ancestors. At Mangaia Tangaroa is said to have descended from the heavens by way of the rainbow, and to have here taken to wife one Ina (Hina), and this conjunction we meet with elsewhere. In one old Rarotongan story of Tangaroa the names of Oroio and Roaki are mentioned. These are the Roiho and Roake of Maori myth, two of the offspring of Rangi and Papa, brothers of Tangaroa.

Ta'aroa (Tangaroa) is viewed at Tahiti as having been the great original god, and with him is associated Hina, of whom we have already spoken. Ta'aroa was the creative being, and the most important, but Tane and Oro (or Koro) were important secondary beings. Cook recognized the importance of Tangaroa at Tahiti, but remarks, "Their prayers are more generally addressed to Tane, whom they suppose to take a greater part in the affairs of mankind."

Tangaloa (=Tangaroa) was the principal atua of Niue Island, and was there appealed to in connection with war.

At Uea, or Uvea (Wallis Island), Tangaloa is said to have dragged up the land from the depths of the ocean, as he did at Tonga, where he is said to reside in the heavens and to be the originator of thunder and lightning. Tregear shows that Tangaloa was also known at Bowditch Island, of the Union Group.

In the Samoan Group Tangaloa is essentially a creator, an original being who formed the islands, or brought them up from the deep. Here also his wife was Hina. Tangaloa dwelt in space, before earth was; he caused land to appear; he caused man to appear, then the heart, then will, then thought. He then caused spirit, heart, will, and thought to enter man, and so man became intelligent. He caused Immensity and Space to bring forth Po and Ao (Night and Day); they produced the sun. He also caused the nine heavens to be formed, and he, Tangaloa, resided in the ninth heaven, where his place of abode was Fale-'ula (Maori, Whare-kura). Turner remarks of Tangaloa at Samoa, "At one place he was seen in the moon, and principally worshipped in the month of May."

Tangaroa is known at Manihiki, as shown by Tregear, and doubtless at many other isles, the lore of which has not been made known to us.

At the Hawaiian Isles Tangaroa bears but an indifferent reputation. He seems to take the place of Miru, Whiro, and Hine-nui-te-po in the subterranean spirit-world. Perhaps he is best compared to Whiro, page 183inasmuch as he represents evil. At the Marquesas Tanaoa (the r dropped in this dialect) is said to have represented darkness; from Darkness sprang Atea, and from Atea (Light) sprang Ono (=Rono =Rongo).

The following passage from Fornander is of interest: "That the Marquesan Tanaoa [Tangaroa] and the Hawaiian Kanaloa [Tanga-roa] embody the same original conception of evil I consider pretty evident. With the Marquesans the idea is treated in the abstract. With them Tanaoa [Marquesan dialect drops r] is the primary condition of darkness, chaos, confusion, elevated into a divinity battling with Atea, the god of light and order. With the Hawaiians Kanaloa is the same idea in the concrete, a personified spirit of evil, the origin of death, the prince of Po, the Hawaiian chaos, and yet a revolted, disobedient spirit, who was conquered and punished by Kane [Tane]."

In vol. 1 of Fornander's work The Polynesian Race is a creation chant of the Marquesas containing many references to Tangaroa.