Iwa - Rāhina 9 Hakihea - Wairuatanga

Day 9 - Monday 9th December - Wairuatanga

He kaupapa mō te rā

Wairuatanga

Our spirituality connects and holds the whole of our life together. For Māori, our wairua is an integral part of our identity. Wairua is our soul or life essence, the source of our emotions and our wellbeing. Wairuatanga is our spiritual expression. Wairuatanga speaks into every aspect of how we live out our daily lives and our faith.

One’s wairua is ever present in our attitudes, behaviour, perceptions, kōrero, and that outward expression that we can see and hear. However, when there is a deeper sense of joy, grief, anger, happiness, wonder & discovery, we tend to feel, rather than simply see and hear, the wairua of the other in their outward persona. Equally our interaction with that will convey our own wairua status also.

“Māu te kai, mā te whare takahia, māku te kauae ki te marae”. Things that are out of sight may be more valuable than those within one’s view.  

He Karaipiture (Bible Reading)

John 1:6-8

I tonoa mai he tangata e te Atua, ko Hoani tōna ingoa. I haere mai ia hei kaiwhakaatu, hei whakaatu mō te mārama, kia meinga ai e ia ngā tāngata katoa kia whakapono. Ehara ia i te mārama, engari, i haere mai hei kaiwhakaatu mō te mārama.

God sent his messenger, a man named John, who came to tell people about the light, so that all should hear the message and believe. He himself was not the light; he came to tell about the light.

Whakarongo/Titiro Mai (Listen/Watch)

David Tapene - Kaiwhakamana (Enabler) for Te Pīhopatanga o Te Taitokerau, sharing his ‘wairuatanga’ with us all. Ngā mihi David.

Ngā mea waihanga (Create)

Dried natural hydrangeas. These are collectable in April-June and make a bold statement when hung on Christ-mas trees in their natural state or painted also.  

The thing about Taiao and the settings in which a plethora of flora is placed is that it isn’t always about the aesthetic aspect but rather, it is more about the experience of gathering, preparation, smells, gratitude, achievement, make our wairua feel.

He Whakaaroaro (Reflect)

Christ-mas is a celebration of light. In Aotearoa, we reach our longest days, with the sun’s rays stretching from early in the morning to late into the evening. In northern countries the opposite happens, with the days getting shorter and the cold evenings are lit by the sparkle of twinkle lights and candles. We crave light. We’re drawn to light. We literally need light to live. Light is integral to our wellbeing. As God’s messenger, John used light as a way to explain God-With-Us. He took something familiar that we understand even today to explain what is hard to understand. Sometimes words just don’t feel enough to explain our spirituality, intertwined in all we do, say, think and feel. Our wairua goes to the core of our being, the centre of our strength, the heart of our wellbeing.

Ki ngā Māori, koia nei ngā pūrākau mō te orokohanga o te ao, arā, te putanga i te pō ki te whaiao, ki Te Ao Mārama. To Māori this is the creation stories and the emergence from darkness to the world of light, Te Ao Mārama. 

Whakahokia mai (Respond)

Light a candle or turn on some twinkle lights. Think about your own wairua, your spirituality. Think about what it means for Jesus, Light of the World to be at work in your life. 

Karakia (Pray)

The Auckland Māori Anglican Club rejoice in their rendition of Waiata 23 - 2016.

Subscriber Contributions

A photo of pōhutukawa in flower from Mary Nicholas sent on 1 December with the words, “Our first sign locally that Advent is upon us. It’s the flower that would have greeted those first messengers of Te Harinui - the tidings of Great Joy.”