The New Zealand Railways Magazine, Volume 8, Issue 1 (May 1, 1933)
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The proverbial sayings and aphorisms of the Maori contain much that is poetic, witty or ironical, and often embody sound wisdom. There are poetry and imagination in two of these “Whakatauki” alluding to the ocean.
“Tangaroa ara rau” (“The Sea-God's hundred pathways”), and “Tangaroa pu-kanohi nui” (“The great-eyed Poseidon, who beholds all the far-spreading ocean”).
An eloquent speaker, or a sweet singer: “Me he korokoro tui” (“As sweet-throated as the tui bird”).
The wish is the important thing: “E iti noa ana, na te aroha” (“Though the gift be small, it is given with love”).
Spoken by a man weary of domestic wrangling or of the scolding of wife or relatives: “Kia eke au ki runga ki te puna o Tinirau” (“I might as well sit on the blowhole of a whale.”).
An elderly wife is apt to be neglected by her husband for a younger woman: “Ka ruha te kupenga, ka pae kei te akau” (“When a fishing-net becomes old, it is cast away on the beach”).
A passing gratification contrasted with a lasting pleasure: “He pai kai, kaore e roa te tirohanga; he pai kanohi, e roa te tirohanga” (“Agreeable food soon vanishes; a beautiful face will long be gazed upon”).