Celebrate the beginning of the new year

Celebrate the beginning of 2015 by experiencing the Hikurangi Dawn Ceremony which will be held tommorrow near the summit of the maunga.

This iconic event  provides the opportunity for tribal members and their manuhiri to welcome in the new year and the first rays of Tama- Nui-Te -Ra aloft our sacred mountain.

For first-timers or returning attendees, this uniquely cultural and spiritual experience begins with a 4am start assembling at the base of Pakihiroa Station. Four-wheel drive vehicles are a necessity to make the 45 minute (or 10.5 km) journey up the maunga where participants gather at Te Takapau a Maui Tikitiki a Taranga. It is here among these nine spectacularly carved whakairo, created for the Year 2000 Millenium celebrations, where a karanga will welcome in 2015, followed by a karakia, haka and waiata.

At the conclusion of the ceremony korero will be provided about the whakairo who represent Maui and his whanau, before everyone descends back down the maunga to the Pakihiroa Woolshed for a BBQ breakfast.

A limited edition calendar featuring Te Takapau a Maui has also recently been produced.  Calendars will be available for sale at the ceremony and also at Pa Wars.

For more information go to our events page or contact Paora Brooking  at Te Runanganui o Ngati Porou, Cell: 021 865 316, Email: pbrooking@tronp.org.nz