The Beginning II

Our story begins in darkness, for a bittersweet embrace is all that there was. Papatuanuku the Earth Mother and Rangi Nui the Sky Father held tightly to each other for eons.  As the centuries passed by Papatuanuku bore children, they were all boys.

Some say that there were many many sons, some say 9, others say 7, but for this story there were 5.  Tane Mahuta, Tangaroa, Tawhiri Matea, Tumatauenga, and Ruaumoko.

The boys grew to manhood in the darkness that was created by their parents embrace.  They crawled about on their mother’s body and knew nothing more than what there was, but Tane Mahuta was a clever young lad.  He had broken the rules many times and had seen something more when crawling close to the edges of his mother’s body.  He had seen something that had hurt his eyes when he looked at it but after a while his eyes had accustomed themselves and he had stared at this new thing.

Many times Tane had returned to this place, and each time he craved to see more but his confines did not allow for this.  There must be something more!  There must be something more!

One day he led his brothers to this place to see what they thought.  No one liked this new thing.

Ruaumoko complained, "It hurts me brother.  There can be nothing good there if it causes pain."

"No I don't like it either," Tawhiri Matea said . 

"But there must be something more to our being here," Tane argued, "We cannot be born to live such boring lives...surely."

His brother’s reactions now made him uncertain, so he went away from his brothers, to think.

The years turned to decades and Tane Mahuta still returned to that place from time to time.  He questioned his brothers further and Tangaroa became more interested with the things that Tane would say about 'The Beyond'.  There was a little curiosity going on and it was such a new feeling that Tane Mahuta became heightened by it.  There was something other than this life of darkness and confinement.  Their parent’s love was so intense that it was what the boys fed on. They felt the comfort of protection and were terribly afraid of things unknown.

"I want to find this other thing," Tane announced, "I don't know what it is or what it is called but it beckons to me."

"But how do you do this, brother?"

"Yes, tell us this, Tane, what are you going to do?"

"Will you bring pain, Tane?"

"Yes, will it hurt us, Tane?"

"And what of our parents.  Will you tell them, Tane?"

"Yes. Will it hurt them?"

Tane could not answer these questions for he did not know.  He pondered the questions for many years and then one day came to his brothers.

"I will separate our parents."

His brothers all gasped in disbelief.

"How do you propose to do this?" Tangaroa asked.

Tane rolled onto his back, "I am placing my feet into our fathers belly."  He said as the darkness did not allow them sight.

He could hear the different sounds that each of his brothers were making.  They were uncertain and confused.

"And now I shall push with all of my might"

"Aue!" The brothers cried, but Tane was pushing.

Rangi Nui was not prepared for this sudden assault, his  grip loosened easily and he could feel himself being wrenched apart from his love. The noise was horrendous and the added cries of Papatuanuku together with Rangi Nui were sure to deafen all of their sons.

As Rangi Nui was flung into the heavens, his disbelieving cries came to the brother’s ears.

"Why have you done this our son? Aue, Why have you destined me to loneliness?"

Tumatauenga leapt upwards, his eyes watered with pain and his body complained at this new freedom, but he reached skywards as Tawhiri Matea also did.  Rangi Nui reached down and the two brothers clung to their father’s hand.  They went skyward so that their father may not be alone.

Tane, Tangaroa and Ruaumoko hid their eyes from the blinding light and listened to all that was going on about them.  Their Mother wailed her heartache and their Father his despair.  They also heard the terrible accusations from Tawhiri Matea and Tumatauenga.

"See what you have done, Tane Mahuta!"

"Why have you done this terrible thing to all of your family?"

"Such pain...such pain"

It's seemed that many years passed before some of the chaos lessened.  The three brothers who remained with their mother huddled together in the great barren space that surrounded them.  The protection and love had completely disappeared leaving all three very scared.

Tane was the first to venture away from the group.  He saw that there was great distance in every direction and water at the edges of his mother’s body. There were many thoughts that came to Tanes mind of things that may come to be and he returned to his brothers to speak to them about it.

"I cannot speak to you Tane.  I feared pain when you first spoke of all of this, and pain is what you have bought me.  My eyes do not like this light and my body does not like this nothingness.  I do not choose to be a part of anything more that you think up."

Tangaroa spoke with less disdain, "I do not know what to think yet my brother. There is much pain here that I cannot cope with, but I will come with you to see what you have seen."

When they arrived at the deep waters Tangaroa gazed longingly at it.  He touched it tentatively with a foot, and then the other until he was waist height.  He turned to see his brother Tane looking thoughtfully at him.

"This is the most wonderful thing I have ever felt," he said.

The silence was long before he spoke again.

"I have come to know that I will never be happy where I feel the grief of my mother so strongly, my brother.  I do not hate you for what you have done, and yet I cannot fully accept it either.  If you had not done what you have done I would never have known this calling that I have right now.  You will always be my brother but I do not think I can return with you.  We will meet again in the years that come"

Tane listened in silence and then watched as his brother moved further into the depths until he disappeared.  For a long time Tane sat and watched the waters.  His brother had said he had found his calling, and when he did not reappear, Tane knew that indeed he had.

When Tane arrived back at the place where Ruaumoko was, he found nothing but a hole in the ground, big enough for him to crawl down into it.  He did, down down down, he thought it would never end, but eventually he came upon his brother digging away at the earth.

"What are you doing brother?"

"Do not call me your brother Tane.  If not for you I would still be within the haven created by my Mother and my Father.  Because of what you have done I have chosen to live deep in my Mothers womb."

Tane remained silent.  His plans were not as he had planned.  His brothers were not seeing the opportunities he had opened up for them.

"I have chosen my journey Tane.  I shall never let you forget me, for I shall always be here to remind you of my eternal anger.  Leave me now for I no longer wish to be in your company."

Tane sadly made his way to the top of Ruaumokos cave.  He sat upon the land that was his mother and looked to the heavens above.  The tears of his Father and brothers fell lightly and he bowed his head in utter shame and sadness.

"I am sorry for this deed I have done," he murmured.