As Āotearoa has just embraced its new official public holiday— and the te ao that comes with it — we’ve had the pleasure of seeing Matariki commemorated in an array of unique ways by those in our community.
That very much includes new member, broadcaster Miriama Kamo (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Mutunga). An inspiring piece in Capsule commemorates not only Miriama’s book on Matariki, but also the path to a personal connection with this celebration we share in greater togetherness this year.
“It’s a really beautiful way of connecting back to the planet – whatever your belief system is.”
“We need to approach Matariki with a sense of wonder and curiosity about the evolution of this knowledge as well,” she says, in conversation with Capsule.
Miriama shares that to her, Matariki means many things: “a time when we rest, we acknowledge, we celebrate and we honour, and we look after each other, as people and as whānau and as iwi.”
Not only that, Miriama muses on how it’s a unique way of connecting with our relationship with our wider environment, the earth. “It’s a really beautiful way of connecting back to the planet – whatever your belief system is, whatever your mātauranga is around sustainability – I think it gives us a really wonderful framework to connect back to concerns like water quality and soil erosion” — a thought we can all place into our equity-focused ketes, no matter our industry, roles and organisation.
“With different beliefs and customs surrounding Matariki among different iwi, “it’s not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach.”
Matariki is also becoming of questioning and curiosity. “With different beliefs and customs surrounding Matariki among different iwi, “it’s not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach, it’s not just one line of knowledge. If you’re Māori, you want to find out ‘how does it work inside my own iwi and what are the traditions we followed, and why were they important?’”
Explore Miriama’s full interview with Capsule to hear more reflections on what this means for New Zealand, Miriama, and how this is all encompassed in her co-authored book, Matariki Around The World: A Cluster of Stars, A Cluster of Stories.