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Friday 17 June 2016

Descriptive: The Powhiri Ceremony

A Powhiri is a traditional Maori welcoming that is very sacred. You can not entire a Marae without being welcomed.

The Powhiri stars from the entrance of the Marae, all the way up to the Wharenui. There was a red archer on the top and a beautiful wooden floor with seats on either side. There was a big door behind the wooden floor, leading into the Wharenui and white step at the bottom. There was a concrete path leading up to the steps and on the sides two small fields of grass. Also on the left was a tall red statue, which I think represented Tu the god of war. As soon as I walked in I felt very sacred and peaceful. I also felt as if this wasn’t a place to mess around. I looked around and saw that everybody else was looking down, looking very peaceful.

At the beginning of the Powhiri the woman called to us first. She sounded very elegant and graceful. Then Ana-Lei called back, the woman responded. They both sounded like they were singing to each other. It was almost as if I was in a trance where I couldn’t get out from. We quietly walked into the Wharenui. The Wharenui was a rectangular squared room. The ceiling was painted light blue, with lights at the top and the carpet was soft. There were 3 rows of chairs all facing the front. But the girls were seated on the floor beside the chairs.

There were also 2 other women and men there, they sat at the front. They looked like they were very important people within the Marae. The 2 men spoke speeches to us in Maori. They almost sounded like they were singing, because of how natural it sounded. We sang 2 songs which were He Honore and E Toru Nga Mea.

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