Ngā Kupu

       Ka tū au ki runga o Te Aratītaha
       Ka titiro ki Te Urewera
       Aku ika a Whiro
       Aku uretoa kairākau!
5     Koutou i mate ai i te marae o te riri ki O-Rākau!
       Okioki mai, oki mai!

       Māringiringi mai ana ngā roimata rurutu kino
       He hōpuapua i aku kamo mō te huinga o te kura
       E moe mai nā i te moremore o te whenua

10   Hīrearea noa rā te tangi a te iwi nui i te pō
       I ōku taringa e hākiri nei ki te āta whakarongo
       Ki ngā maimai aroha a ngā pouwaru mō te puhi o Mātaatua

       I haramai rā i Te Urukāraerae
       I haramai rā me Te Rehu o Tainui
15   I haramai rā i Te Tini o Hinepūkohurangi

       Mōhukihuki te mamae roa ki te tau o taku ate
       E haehae nei i te rironga o te rau o tītapu

       Ka turakina mai taku wao tōtara
       Ka tangihia rā i Manawarū
20   Ka tangihia rā i Wharepūhunga

       Mōteateatia te uri o Tūhoe Pōtiki

Ngā whakamārama

Mai i tōku tamarikitanga, i kōrerotia e ōku kaumātua te toa o Ngāi Tūhoe, i haramai rā ki O-Rākau. Mai i tērā wā ki tēnei rā, ka pupū tonu te aroha i a au mō ngā tamariki o te kohu. I a mātou ko te komiti e whakarite haere ana i te whenua i rangona ai te riri, mō te whakamaharatanga o te tau 150 mai i te pakanga o O-Rākau, ka rongo au i ō rātou wairua, me taku pātai ‘kei whea koutou e takoto nei?’ Me ngā tini whakaaro. Nā wai rā ka tangi, ka puta mai he kupu, ka puta mai he rangi. Nei rā te waiata.

1. Ka tū au ki runga o Te Aratītaha:
This is the pā where Ngāi Tūhoe and Ngāti Raukawa gathered before leaving for battle at O-Rākau. Rewi Maniapoto visited Te Aratītaha and tried to convince Tūhoe to return home but to no avail.

8. He hōpuapua i aku kamo mō te huinga o te kura:
The chiefs and people of Tūhoe who died.

9. E moe mai nā i te moremore o te whenua:
If you visit the true battle site of O-Rākau, you’ll find it’s a flat paddock, there’s nothing to mark where the people are buried.

10. Hīrearea noa rā te tangi a te iwi nui i te pō:
I could hear their murmurs in my ears, both physically and spiritually.

12. Kī ngā maimai aroha a ngā pouwaru mō te puhi o Mātaatua:
When Te Whenuanui returned to Ruatāhuna he was pelted with manawawera. The widows lamented their husbands who failed to return. This is Te Puhi o Mātaatua, these accounts are recorded in that manawawera.

13. I haramai rā i Te Urukāraerae:
This is the wind of Ruatāhuna. In Rūātoki the wind is Te Hau-o-Kiwa and at Waimana the wind is Tūtakangahau. Te Urukāraerae is also a symbol of the ferociousness of Ngāi Tūhoe.

14. I haramai rā me Te Rehu o Tainui:
This is a war atua of Ngāi Tūhoe. According to history the hau of this atua was brought to O-Rākau.

18. Ka turakina mai taku wao tōtara:
This line is taken from the manawera for Te Whenuanui. It encapsulates my own thoughts.

19. Ka tangihia rā i Manawarū:
Manawarū is the mountain at Ruatāhuna.

20. Ka tangihia rā i Wharepūhunga:
This is a Ngāti Raukawa mountain. Tūhoe camped here before traveling to Te Aratītaha.