Rongoa wānanga

In our community engagement mahi, we undertake wānanga about a wide range of different spaces in te taiao. In one of the rongoa books by Pā McGowan it talks about mauri:

“Many kaumatua consider mauri to be the key to rongoa Māori; it is the mauri that gives rongoa the ability to heal”.

To further support our understanding of rongoa, we ventured out of the rohe to a special place in Kawhia, Te Kauri Park. Joining us was a small roopu of whānau from Kauaetangohia to Maraenui.

There we met Pā McGowan and Donna Kerridge who have been facilitating this rongoa wānanga for over 20 years, keeping our traditional practises alive. This is one of the first steps of learning about rongoa Māori.

Over the weekend some of the learnings shared in the wānanga included:

• how to identify the plants used for rongoa.

• where to find them, and how to collect them.

• the tikanga that must be followed.

It’s as exciting and humbling to sit and learn from Rob and Donna, as it is with our very own Koro Danny Poihipi.

We love listening to your stories, waiata, jokes and most importantly your karakia to help keep us safe a hinengaro ā wairua. Pā says that as Māori, when we go to a place we look for our connections and when we learn about our connections we build our relationships.

Ka nui te mihi kia kōrua!

Watch the video here