Hine-nui-te-po

Also known as: the Great Mother of Nature / the Great Mother of Night / the Great Mother of Rest / the Mother of All · Role: the Great Mother of Night · First appears: Chapter I · Tiki--The Ancestor of Mankind

In Chapter I · Tiki--The Ancestor of Mankind, the world came from Hine-nui-te-po, and she swallowed it “again.” Chapter II · The Creation of Hawaiki tells that Rangi took her as his wife and that their son was Ha-nui-o-rangi. Chapter III · The Poi-dance says she once devoured Maui, as Darkness devours the Sun.

In Chapter V · The Chant of Rangi-nui, Maui entered her trying to kill her so that people might live for ever, but died. In Chapter VII · The Fight of Night and Day, she commanded her slaves to admit men who entered crawling headfirst, but to kill those standing upright in their canoes. Her slaves captured Maui-mua, the Evening Sun, and she pressed him to death; Maui-potiki returned to the world and set fire to her. Chapter XI · The Death of Maui recounts how her teeth killed Maui, whom she took into everlasting darkness. A father’s words there call her Maui’s ancestress: “go brave there where you find your ancestress flashing with fire on the horizon, and conquer her.”

Relationship record

Life events

• Hine-nui-te-po swallowed the world again.(Chapter I · Tiki--The Ancestor of Mankind)
  • “Hine-nui-te-po has swallowed the world again”
• Rangi took Hine-nui-te-po as his wife, and their son was Ha-nui-o-rangi.(Chapter II · The Creation of Hawaiki)
  • With: Rangi Ha-nui-o-rangi
  • “Rangi took Hine-nui-te-po for his wife, and their son was Ha-nui-o-rangi, the Great Breath of Heaven.”
• Hine-nui-te-po devoured Maui.(Chapter III · The Poi-dance)
  • With: Maui
  • “Hine-nui-te-po, the goddess, once devoured Maui, as the Darkness nightly devours the Sun, and now keeps enclosed the world.”
• Maui entered Hine-nui-te-po trying to kill her, but died.(Chapter V · The Chant of Rangi-nui)
  • With: Maui
  • “Maui once entered Hine-nui-te-po, trying to penetrate her, so that she might be killed and man may live for ever; but that was the death of Maui.”
• Hine-nui-te-po commanded her slaves how to treat men entering her pataka.(Chapter VII · The Fight of Night and Day)
  • “She has commanded her slaves that, when a man came, crawling with his head forward, they should let him go into her pataka and not kill him, for he would be an atua and of great tapu; but should they perceive a man standing upright in his canoe, they should take him and put him to death.”
• Hine-nui-te-po captured Maui-mua and pressed him to death.(Chapter VII · The Fight of Night and Day)
  • With: Maui
  • “Out of Maui-potiki, the Morning Sun, has grown Maui-mua, the Evening Sun, and he now is captured by the slaves and pressed to death by Hine-nui-te-po.”
• Maui-potiki returned to the world and set fire to Hine-nui-te-po.(Chapter VII · The Fight of Night and Day)
  • With: Maui
  • “he returns to the world and puts fire to Hine-nui-te-po.”
• Hine-nui-te-po killed Maui with her teeth and took him into everlasting darkness.(Chapter XI · The Death of Maui)
  • With: Maui
  • “Wrath overcame her, and quickly she snapped her jaws together, biting through Maui and killing him with her sharp teeth of obsidian. Then she took him down into the everlasting darkness.”

Chapter I · Tiki--The Ancestor of Mankind

• child: Rangi “Out of the womb of Hine-nui-te-po came the world, and to her all must go back--as the fire to the ashes.”
• child: Papa-tu-a-nuku “Out of the womb of Hine-nui-te-po came the world, and to her all must go back--as the fire to the ashes.”

Chapter II · The Creation of Hawaiki

• married with Rangi “Rangi took Hine-nui-te-po for his wife”
• child: Ha-nui-o-rangi “and their son was Ha-nui-o-rangi, the Great Breath of Heaven.”

Chapter III · The Poi-dance

• enemies with Maui “Hine-nui-te-po, the goddess, once devoured Maui, as the Darkness nightly devours the Sun, and now keeps enclosed the world.”

Chapter V · The Chant of Rangi-nui

• enemies with Maui “Maui once entered Hine-nui-te-po, trying to penetrate her, so that she might be killed and man may live for ever; but that was the death of Maui.”

Chapter VII · The Fight of Night and Day

• enemies with Maui “Out of Maui-potiki, the Morning Sun, has grown Maui-mua, the Evening Sun, and he now is captured by the slaves and pressed to death by Hine-nui-te-po.”

Chapter VIII · Maui--The Creation of New Zealand · Part 2

• enemies with Maui “Ah! his great power attempted his greatest deed: to take the heart of Hine-nui-te-po, that man may live for ever; but his incantations were overcome by the Mother of All, and she swallowed him, as she swallows all--Maui-i-tiki-tiki-a-taranga.”

Chapter XI · The Death of Maui

• enemies with Maui “Wrath overcame her, and quickly she snapped her jaws together, biting through Maui and killing him with her sharp teeth of obsidian.”
• younger kin: Maui “It is well, my youngest son; go brave there where you find your ancestress flashing with fire on the horizon, and conquer her. Go, son of mine!”

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Extracted from the original text of Te Tohunga. Made with Rho MD.