Further notes on Whakapapa

There has been a tendency to see whakapapa as similar to 'history', that is, as a way of explaining the past. It is possible that our ancestors were not so concerned to explain the past but rather to make sense of the presence through whakapapa. As a series of actions, whakapapa (stories, genealogies) is about clothing and adoring the present - so that we come into some kind of relationship with the present world. Whakapapa is a ritual about the world coming into being in our present reality. Hence, past, present and future are fundamental concepts in whakapapa. One way to illustrate this is by thinking about Ranginui (sky father) and Papatuanuku (earth mother). If whakapapa is about the past (like history), then as one went 'backwards' from the individual, through their human ancestors and toward Rangi and Papa, one would go 'backwards' through time (if whakapapa was about the past). However, as Rangi and Papa are ever present - they are right here with us now - then we see that whakapapa is not so much about the past. Similarly Tāne is always with us, Tangaroa and so on.

On this basis, it is possible to see that whakapapa is not so much concerned with the historical origins of phenomena but rather with 'sources' of phenomena. This could be interpreted to mean their 'essential nature or character'. Words like pūtake, take and taketake are about the source or root of something rather than their historical origin.

Finally, in light of this we should think about the word 'ancestor'. There are two problems. The first is that we tend to see 'ancestor' historically, something in the past, something not with us now. Secondly, we tend to see ancestor as pertaining to human ancestors only. The word tupuna does not have these limitations. Tupuna are ever present and include the tupuna of the natural world - trees, winds, water and so on. Hence, when we use term ancestor, we really should mean tupuna, as some might think we are talking about things that are longer with us (among other things).

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