Tūmatauenga (''Tū of the angry face'') is the primary god () of war and human activities such as hunting, food cultivation, fishing, and cooking in

Māori mythology Māori mythology and Māori traditions are two major categories into which the remote oral history of New Zealand's Māori may be divided. Māori myths concern fantastic tales relating to the origins of what was the observable world for the pr ...

. In creation stories, Tū suggests to kill his parents to allow light into the world. After they are instead separated, he wars with his brothers and becomes the origin of humanity's activities, and the reasons for their behaviour when interacting with the creations of his brothers. As the god of war, all were dedicated to him and he was treated with the greatest respect and awe. Tūmatauenga inspires the

New Zealand Army , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

's Māori name: where all soldiers are deemed of the same ''iwi'' ("tribe") under the deity's patronage regardless of racial heritage. The

marae A ' (in New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian), ' (in Tongan), ' (in Marquesan) or ' (in Samoan) is a communal or sacred place that serves religious and social purposes in Polynesian societies. In all these languages, the term a ...

is often considered the – fiery ovens of Tūmatauenga – the realm of Tūmatauenga, whereas all areas where battles take place become – the battle domain of Tūmatauenga.

Names and epithets

After his victories over his brothers, Tū assumed many names; one name for each of the characteristics he displayed in his victories over his brothers, including: *Tū-kā-riri (Tū the angry) *Tū-ka-nguha (Tū the fierce fighter) *Tū-kai-tangata (Tū who destroys humankind) *Tū-kai-taua (Tū the destroyer of armies) *Tū-mata-whāiti (Tū the cunning) *Tū-mata-uenga (Tū of the angry face) *Tū-tawake (Tū who hastens) *Tū-te-ngaehe (Tū who tears apart) *Tū-whakaheke-tangata (Tū the demoter of personages) *Tū-whakamoana-ariki (Tū who enriches the sea)

Earth's creation

A traditional creation story tells that all the children of

Rangi and Papa In Māori mythology the primal couple Rangi and Papa (or Ranginui and Papatūānuku) appear in a creation myth explaining the origin of the world (though there are many different versions). In some South Island dialects, Rangi is called Raki or Ra ...

, the sky father and

earth mother A mother goddess is a goddess who represents a personified deification of motherhood, fertility goddess, fertility, creation, destruction, or the earth goddess who embodies the bounty of the earth or nature. When equated with the earth or t ...

, lay in a tight embrace together, their children forced to crawl in the darkness between the two. One day, their children become so sick of this that they discuss a plan to separate them and allow light into the world. Tū advises his brothers to kill their parents, but the kinder proposal of Tāne is accepted and he instead forces the primordial pair apart. In a Te Arawa version, Tū thinks about the actions of Tāne in separating their parents, and makes snares to catch the birds, the children of Tāne, who can no longer fly free. He then makes nets, and traps the children of

Tangaroa Tangaroa (Takaroa in the South Island) is the great of the sea, lakes, rivers, and creatures that live within them, especially fish, in Māori mythology. As Tangaroa-whakamau-tai he exercises control over the tides. He is sometimes depicted a ...

. He makes holes to dig the ground, capturing his brothers Rongo-mā-Tāne and

Haumia-tiketike Haumia-tiketike (or simply Haumia) is the god of all uncultivated vegetative food in Māori mythology. He is particularly associated with the starchy rhizome of the ''Pteridium esculentum'', which became a major element of the Māori diet in form ...

, heaping them into baskets to be eaten. Of all the children of

Ranginui In Māori mythology the primal couple Rangi and Papa (or Ranginui and Papatūānuku) appear in a creation myth explaining the origin of the world (though there are many different versions). In some South Island dialects, Rangi is called Raki or Ra ...

and Papatūānuku, Tāwhirimātea fought Tūmatauenga to a standstill and forced him to withdraw, making him the only brother that Tūmatauenga cannot subdue completely, whose storms and hurricanes attack humankind to this day because of his indignation at the actions of his brothers. Although Ranginui and Papatūānuku were not human in form, Tūmatauenga and his brothers were.

Human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, cultu ...

kind - the descendants of Tūmatauenga - increased upon the earth, until the generation of Māui and his brothers. Tūmatauenga's actions against his brothers provide a pattern for human activities. Because Tūmatauenga defeated his brothers, people can now, if they perform the appropriate rituals, kill and eat birds (the children of Tāne), fish (the children of Tangaroa), cultivate and harvest plants for food (the children of Rongo-mā-Tāne and Haumia-tiketike), and generally harness the resources of the natural world. Tūmatauenga is also the originator of warfare, and people make war now because Tūmatauenga provided the example. When rituals were performed over warriors before a battle, or when an infant was dedicated to a future role as a fighter, Tūmatauenga was invoked as the source of their duty. The body of the first warrior to fall in a battle was often offered up to Tūmatauenga. While Tūmatauenga is the origin of war, powerful local deities such as Kahukura, Maru, or

Uenuku Uenuku (or Uenuku-Kōpako, also given to some who are named after him) is an atua of rainbows and a prominent ancestor in Māori tradition. Māori believed that the rainbow's appearance represented an omen, and one kind of yearly offering mad ...

were also called upon during times of war.

In popular culture

A song by

Alien Weaponry Alien Weaponry is a New Zealand thrash metal band from Waipu, formed in Auckland in 2010. The band consists of drummer Henry de Jong, guitarist Lewis de Jong and, since August 2020, bass player Tūranga Morgan-Edmonds. All three members have M ...

, (''eat people''), from the album constantly refers to Tūmatauenga, as the god of war; cannibalism was a part of warfare for the

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

. also referred to the ''people eaters'' - or groups of men tasked with fighting and gathering food.Archived a
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and th
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In addition, Kaitangata was a mortal who was taught how to fish.

References

External links

Tūmatauenga by Cliff Whiting

Tūmatauenga by Adam Williams and Joshua Watene

Tūmatauenga at Eden Park by Boydie Te Nahu, October 2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tumatauenga Hunting gods Māori gods Māori mythology War gods

Names and epithets

Earth's creation

In popular culture

See also

References

External links