He kōrero tā te Heawahine

E ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā kārangatanga maha o te motu, tēnā koutou katoa.

Ki ō tātou kaumātua, ki ō tātou kuia, ki ngā rangatira o te motu, ki ngā iwi kua tae mai nei, ki ō tātou whanaunga nō Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa, tēnā koutou.

To the Prime Minister, Ministers of the Crown, our mareikura ki Ōrākei and Deputy Mayor of Auckland, our civic and community leaders, our partners, distinguished guests, my Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei whānau, and all who are with us this Morena. Whether here on the whenua or watching from homes across Aotearoa, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.

I want to especially acknowledge Professor Rangi Mātāmua, whose scholarship, leadership and generosity have helped deepen our country’s awareness and understanding of Matariki, and have helped return its meaning to the centre of our national life.

E te rangatira, tēnā rawa atu koe. We are honoured to have you with us this morning, and we look forward to hearing from you shortly. On behalf of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, ngā uri o Tuperiri, it is my great privilege to welcome everyone to Takaparawhau.

E te rangatira, tēnā rawa atu koe. We are honoured to have you with us this morning, and we look forward to hearing from you shortly.

On behalf of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, ngā uri o Tuperiri, it is my great privilege to welcome everyone to Takaparawhau.

This morning, we stood together in the early hours, looking to the place where Matariki rises. The karakia have been offered. The names of those who have passed have been called. The steam of the umu has risen into the sky. The year has turned. This whenua holds deep meaning for our people. It looks out across the Waitematā, across Tāmaki Makaurau, and across the many histories, journeys and relationships that have shaped this city and this country. To have stood here as the sky changed and a new day came towards us is to be reminded that we are part of something much larger than ourselves. We are all part of the long story of our tūpuna, and of the hopes of our mokopuna. We are part of the communities, whānau and peoples who have made this place their home. And we are part of a shared future that asks each of us to act with courage, generosity and care. Matariki gives us this moment. It invites us to pause. To remember. To give thanks. And to look forward with hope.

For generations, the rising of Matariki has helped Te Ao Māori hold time in a way that connects the living, the departed and the generations yet to come. It is not only about the movement of stars. It is about the movement of life — grief and renewal, kai and sustenance, knowledge and wisdom, and the bonds between people, the whenua, the waters and the sky.

The hautapu, where kai is offered to the stars of Matariki, reminds us that the new year begins with remembrance. Before we rush forward, we pause, we remember. So this morning, each of us carries our own memories of those who are no longer with us. Their names, their faces, and their stories are deeply personal and precious to every one of us. And we allow their memory to rise with the dawn. Their work remains. Their lessons remain. Their aroha remains. They are not gone from us. They are woven into us.

Matariki also asks us to be grateful for what feeds and sustains life. In the ceremony we have just shared, kai was offered in honour of the stars and the domains they represent — food from the earth, from the forests, from the fresh waters and from the sea. That offering carries a simple and powerful truth: we do not stand apart from te ao marama - the living realm that holds the whenua, the waters, the sky, our tūpuna, and those still to come. We belong to it. We depend on it. And we carry responsibilities to it.

Here in Tāmaki Makaurau, that truth is all around us, in the harbour before us, in the maunga that hold our histories, in the whenua beneath our feet, and in the many communities who give this city its life. This year’s kaupapa, Matariki Herenga Waka - For Everyone, speaks beautifully to this place. It draws from the old truth of Tāmaki Herenga Waka, Tāmaki Herenga Tangata: Tāmaki as a gathering place of many waka, and many peoples. This has long been a landing place, where waka arrive, rest, trade, connect and continue on. Our tūpuna understood that the richness of a place lies not in what it keeps, but in what it shares.

For Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, herenga waka is not only about the past. It is about the future we choose to build together.

In Aotearoa we do not all come from the same waka. We do not all carry the same stories or see the world through the same eyes. But difference should not divide us. When it is held with respect, it is a source of strength, and in the understanding that far more unites us than separates us. We share a duty to those who will come after us. We share the hope that our tamariki will grow up safe, confident and well. We share a responsibility to care for the whenua, the moana, and the places that sustain us.

Our journeys may begin in different places, but we look to the same horizon. And when our peoples come together in good faith, we are immense. When iwi, the Crown, local government, communities, schools, churches, businesses and neighbours choose to work for the common good, we can and will do extraordinary things. That is the spirit this moment asks of us. A spirit of manaakitanga. A spirit of kotahitanga. A spirit of honest partnership. A spirit that understands that the wellbeing of one group does not have to come at the expense of another. A spirit that knows when our most vulnerable are lifted, all of us are strengthened.

When our young people are given confidence and opportunity, we all benefit.

When te ao Māori is respected and able to flourish, Aotearoa New Zealand is richer for it. When the Treaty relationship is treated with care and maturity, our country is stronger. And when we care for the whenua and the moana, we are protecting the life force of the generations to come. This whenua teaches us these things.

Takaparawhau has known struggle. It has known loss and division. But it has also known restoration, courage, resilience and hope. It reminds us that history is not something we leave behind. It travels with us. It shapes the ground we stand on. And it asks something of us. History should not hold us only in pain, nor should it be pushed aside. It should make us wiser, more generous, and more determined to build relationships that are honest and enduring. That is why this gathering matters. For those watching at home, I hope this morning offers you a quiet moment to think of your own whānau, your own loved ones, and your own hopes for the year ahead.

For those here with us, as we share kai together this morning, I hope you feel the warmth of this whenua and the manaaki of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei.

So as the light grows over the Waitematā; May we remember those who have passed, with aroha. May we give thanks for the blessings that sustain us. May we honour the many waka, histories and communities that make this country what it is. May we work together for the wellbeing of all our people. And may the year ahead be one of healing, courage, connection and hope.

Before I close I would like to share with you a reading that was done for our Matariki celebration last year. The background to this is that when our beautiful cousin Sharon was here with us, we called her our Commander in Chief and our roopu are called Te Infrantry – The Elite Squad. It’s a sisterhood and one of our sisters Manu Neho writes a reading for us each day, even now that Sharon has passed. These have become part of our daily fabric and for me personally, it uplifts me, calms me, strengthens me and energizes me as I begin each day. Here is a brief part of that reading from 10 July 2025.

As Matariki rises to herald the Maori New Year, we pause in reverent stillness, honoring the closing of one sacred cycle and the awakening of another. As Matariki invites us to remember those who have gone before, to give thanks for the abundance of the present and to set our intentions for the year ahead, we stand together in that ancient rhythm. May our reflections become wisdom, our gratitude become illumination, our intentions become living with kindness, and may our sisterhood remain a sanctuary of remembrance, healing and joy. May the stars of Matariki remind us that every ending carries the seed of a new beginning and that together we continue to weave a tapestry of light for one another and for those whose lives we are called to touch. We step into this new year aligned in purpose, conscious in spirit, unwavering in faith and united in love – as we always have and as we always shall and so it is and ever shall be. Light up dear Sisters.

On behalf of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, thank you for joining us here at Takaparawhau.

Mānawatia a Matariki.

Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.

Marama Royal,

Heawahine - Te Poari Matua ō Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei