Kia toi te mana

Kia tau te mauri

Kia tupu te māramatanga

Let mana endure

Let mauri be in balance

Let enlightenment thrive

Ki ngā pūkenga

Ki ngā pūwānanga

Ki ngā tauira o Te Pūtahi-a-Toi, o Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa

Within the specialists

Within the scholarly experts

And within the students of our academy

Hui te Wānanga

Hui te Rangiora

Hui te Mārama

Whakaea te iho nui, te iho roa, te iho matua

Assemble within the house of knowledge

Assemble within the abode of health, life and vitality

Assemble in accordance with the lunar cycle

Bring to fruition the abundant potential, the infinite potential, the divine potential

Taku tapuwae nei ko tapuwae nui o Tāne

Tāne-i-te-Wānanga

Tāne-nui-ā-Rangi

My journey follows in the enduring footsteps of Tāne

Of Tāne who resides within the house of knowledge

Of Tāne who ascended the heavens

I pikitia ai ki Te Toi Ora

Ki Te Toi Matua

Ki Te Toi Urutapu

Who reached the source of vitality

The source of principle abundance

The source of all things sacred

Tēnei te mauri te whakapiki

Tēnei te mauri te whakakake

Te mauri o tēnei wānanga

Let the vitality of people increase

Let the vitality of people ascend

The vitality of our institution

Tāwhia ki te hiringa o Toi Matua

Tāmaua ki Te Marae o Hine

Tēnei te matatau ka eke

Embrace the divine inspiration of Toi Matua

Uphold the Courtyard of Peace

Let knowledge and expertise arise

I takea mai i Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa

Whakatū tārewa ki te rangi

Whano! Whano! Haramai te toki!

Haumie! Hui e! Tāiki e!

Originating from inception to infinity

So that it may rise up to the greatest heights

Go forth and proceed! Fetch the axe!

It is complete! Assemble together! It is done!

Ko te karakia nei, ko ‘Te Kawa a Toi’, e hāngai ana ki ngā pūmanawa o te tangata me ngā ara ka whakawhitingia e ngā pūkenga, pūwānanga, tauira hoki o te wānanga. Ka whakahaungia tātou kia utaina mai nei ngā kupu whakamārama ki uta ki tēnei whakaputanga mō ngā mahi whakatupu mātauranga a Ngāi Māori, ko ngā pūkenga o Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa.

Ka huri tonu ngā whakaaro ki a nūnui mā, ki a rōroa mā, ki ngā pūwānanga o mua atu nā rātou te ara mātauranga i kōkiri, hei ekenga taumata mō te hunga e whai ake nei. Ka noho tonu a rātou mahi hei ranga wairua mō ngā mahi katoa a Ngāi Māori o ēnei rā.

Ka hoki mai rā i te akaaka o te rangi ki te akaaka o te whenua. I konei ka toko ake ngā whakaaro ki te āhua o Te Pūrehuroa e whakahuatia ake nei. Inā hoki nā Pāpā Kahu Stirling, Ngāti Porou, Te Whānau a Apanui, Ngāti Kauwhata, te roanga ake o te ingoa nei, nāna i tuku mai ki tēnei o ngā wānanga i te tau 1997. He pūkenga matua te tūranga o Pāpā Kahu i taua wā i roto o Te Uru Māraurau i Te Kupenga o Te Mātauranga. Hei tāna, ka mātai ake te titiro ki te rangi i te pō, ka kitea ko te rarangi whetū e kānapanapa mai ana. Kāhore hoki he mutunga. Ka whakaritea tēnā ki te ara o te mātauranga me ngā pūmanawa o te tangata. He tīmatanga, he kunenga, engari ka whai mai Te Pūrehuroa. Ka whakamihia tonutia tēnei o ngā pūwānanga, a Pāpā Kahu, i te nui o tōna atamai. Ko Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa te ingoa e whakamahara ake ana i a tātou, he ara mutunga kore te ara o te mātauranga. I roto i Te Pūrehuroa, ka whai wāhi hoki a Otehā Rohe, a Turitea me Pukeahu, tae noa ake ki ngā nohoanga whenua o ngā tauira ako mai tawhiti i te nukuroa o te ao.

Kāti ko ngā kōrero e whai ake nei, he hinātore ki ngā kete o te wānanga i tīkina atu ai e tēnā, e tēnā o Ngāi Māori ki Te Pūrehuroa. Ka tirohia te whānuitanga me te hōhonutanga o ngā mahi kua oti ake nei i a rātou, ka tatū te ngākau i roto i te mōhiotanga kua puāwaitia te pūmanawa Māori. Kei te taumata whakatiketike o te mātauranga ngā mahi nei, kua tau.

The karakia above, ‘Te Kawa a Toi’, speaks to the potentiality of humanity and references the critical dimensions that are traversed by scholars and students alike. May these journeys of enlightenment now be unleashed and shared more widely. The work of our Māori scholars offers an incredibly significant contribution to both te ao Māori and te ao whānui more broadly. In drawing attention to the criticality of their work, may we also pause for a moment to consider the contributions of earlier Māori scholars at Massey University. Their accomplishments, not only in research but also by way of teaching and contributions to our communities, have paved the way for those in this edition to now follow. The earlier exemplars of Māori research excellence continue to provide inspiration for the current wave of Māori scholars. Their work reflects the inherent distinctiveness of Māori research and absolute recognition of contemporary themes and contemporary realities of relevance to our society, to our people, to our universe.

It is in this context that it is timely to reflect upon the notion of te pūrehuroa, which we refer to so often across the broader spectrum of research at Massey. Indeed, it was a title bestowed upon our university by Kahu Stirling, Ngāti Porou, Te Whānau a Apanui, Ngāti Kauwhata, in 1997. At the time, Kahu was a senior lecturer in Māori Education (Te Uru Māraurau) and based at Te Kupenga o Te Mātauranga on our Hokowhitu campus.

He implored staff and students alike to look to the stars lighting up the southern skies in order to draw insight, inspiration and direction. With the appearance of infinity, he likened this phenomena to our own knowledge trajectories, which span from inception to infinity. In other words, there are no limits to what we might achieve if we recognise the true potency of human potential. Given the theme of this edition of Rangahau, it is fitting to also acknowledge the significance of our name, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa, and the foresight that Kahu had at the time to embrace a concept so distinctive yet so pertinent to Massey University and to the journeys of Māori scholars. It is one that also takes in the broader span of Massey University, from Manawatū Campus, to Albany Campus and Wellington Campus, and reaching out to our many multitudes of students across the world.

The stories that follow shine a radiant, luminous light upon the incredibly distinctive and scholarly nature of research undertaken by researchers at Massey. This publication highlights the scale, diversity and depth of Māori research being advanced by leading scholars at our university. It reinforces the immense contribution that Massey continues to make by way of research to te ao Māori and te ao whānui. We can take profound inspiration from their work and the way in which it contributes to the realisation of Māori potential. This edition of Rangahau exemplifies research excellence that responds to the struggle and elevates new possibilities, all the while amplifying the significance of Māori research in these challenging times.