MATARIKI 23/06/13

Tonight 2 giants of our culture collide to launch our new year...and set another cultural giant on a return journey to the summer solstice. Te Rakaunui, the full moon (and a super moon to boot... being at its closes to the earth) will herald the turning of the sun... in the morning the seven sisters called Matariki will be up early to greet the dawn... then Tamanuitera will rise from his mid-winter bed to take his first step back toward the warmth and prosperity of summer... The universe has aligned to celebrate the passing of one sun cycle... and the start of another.

The next few days will see king tides come sweeping in as the gravitational pull of the sun and moon combine to create extra pressure on the rise and fall of the oceans. Ka nui te mihi ki nga taumata rangi... me ko ratou kua wheturangitia hei tohutohu te po... ka rawe, ka reka...

Our annual cycle of life revolves around the sun... as does the plant cycle... as does the fish cycle... as does the bird cycle etc. They’re so inter-connected that by understanding the plant cycle... you can often determine the behavior of birds... or contemplate the movement of fish.

Our ancestors appreciated their whole environment... they couldn’t control it... but they could understand it... They couldn’t move those stars... but they could learn to read them... They couldn’t get close to that sun... but they could learn to depend on him... Understanding the sun and his over arching cycle was very important to our ancestors... the sun meant light... the sun meant life... the sun meant knowledge... the sun meant a new day... a new dawn... a new world... and a new way... MAURIORA... NGA MIHI O TE TAU HOU WHANAU...