Māori Religion

The faith of the Māori, rooted in genealogy linking people to land, sea and the gods.

c. 1300 CE → · Aotearoa New Zealand · Indigenous & Animist

Arriving in Aotearoa around 1300, Māori developed a distinct religion from their Polynesian inheritance. The separation of the sky father Ranginui and earth mother Papatūānuku by their son Tāne sets the world in order. Whakapapa, mana and tapu remain central to Māori life, alongside Christianity and the Ringatū and Rātana churches.

Key figures

• Ranginui and Papatūānuku
• Tāne Mahuta
• Māui

Texts

• Whakapapa (genealogy)
• Karakia (chants)
• Pūrākau (stories)

Beliefs

• Everything is related through whakapapa
• Mana and tapu govern the sacred
• The land is an ancestor

Rituals

• Pōwhiri, the ceremony of welcome
• Tangihanga, mourning rites
• Karakia before key tasks

Grew from

• Polynesian Religion

Connections in the atlas

• Rua Kenana
• Patupaiarehe
• Hei-tiki
• The word mana
• Taputapuātea marae
• Pouākai, the man-eating bird
• Polynesian Voyaging
• Stealing Fire
• The Austronesians
• Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki
• Taniwha
• Spiral