Tau ana tā Tūpai tokotoko ko Papauma ki te tihi o Tītī-a-Okura ki te wāhi e kiia nei ko Tauwhare Papauma. I taua tokotoko rā te mauri o ngā manu. Ka poua a Papauma te maunga, ā, ka haruru. Nā reira i tapa ai te maunga, ko Maungaharuru.

Ka tū te kārearea i te keokeonga o Tarapōnui-a-Kawhea. Ka rere. Nōna e hāro ana ka titiro whakatau iho ia ki ngā awa o Waikari, Waitaha, Anaura e ahu mai nei i te mātāpuna kai Maungaharuru. Ka puta atu te wai o Waikari i Te Puta a Hinetonga ki Omoko, pātōtō i te ata, pātōtō i te pō.

Ka rere whakatetonga te kārearea me tana kite iho i Te Wai-o-Hingānga, ka tahuri atu ki te rāwhiti ko Te Ngarue, he tipua, he taniwha.

Ka whātaitai iho taua kārearea i ngā roto e kiia nei ko te waiū o ō tātau tīpuna. Ko Te Pōhue. Ko Opouahi he wāhi tapu, he roto tuna. Ko Orakai, ko Waikōpiro ngā kanohi o Tūtira. Ko Tūtira he pātaka kai, he oranga ngākau, he oranga wairua, he oranga tangata.

Tahuri mai te kārearea ki uta me tana rongo i ngā tai o Moeangiangi, o Arapawanui, o Waipātiki, o Tangoio, o Tangitū e papaki kau ana. Ko Tangitū he tohorā, he kaitiaki. Ka kitea e te kārearea ngā hāpuku e rere ana i ngā toka o Omoko, o Whakapao, o Urukaraka, o Te Ngaio-iti, o Te Ngaio-nui, o Whakatapatu, o Kōtuku, o Te Ahiaruhe, o Tarahau, o Rautoetoe, o Te Una, o Panepaoa, o Pānia hoki.

Rere ana anō te kārearea, tau atu ana ki te puhikaioreore o te rewarewa e tū ana i te taha o Punanga te Wao, ā, ko te whakairinga o te kupu, te whakapiringa o te tangata, ki reira whakatā ai. Nā, ko Punanga te Wao te whare tīpuna o Ngāti Marangatūhetaua, o Ngāi Tauira, o Ngāti Kurumōkihi me Ngāi Te Ruruku.

Ā, ka hoki anō te kārearea ki te keokeonga o Tarapōnui-a-Kawhea. E hia kē ngā pā kua kitea, nā reira i puta atu ai te whakatauākī, ‘Ko tō rātau pā kai ngā rekereke’.

Mai i Maungaharuru ki Tangitū, mai i Waikari ki Keteketerau, nikā rā ngā ino whakaheke o Punanga te Wao e tū whakangāueue ana, nō konei mātau.

The staff of Tūpai, named Papauma, perforated the apex of Tītī-a-Okura at a location referred to as Tauwhare Papauma. That staff contained the life-force of bird life. Due to this event the mountain reverberated and roared. Hence the mountain’s name, Maungaharuru.

The Kārearea stands upon the peak Tarapōnui-a-Kawhea. He takes flight. Whilst in flight, he looks intently, absorbed by the tributaries of Waikari, Waitaha, Anaura the waters of which emanate from Maungaharuru. The waters of Waikari flow out through Te Puta-a-Hinetonga on to the reef of Omoko, consequently giving us the proverb ‘Pātōtō ki te ata, pātōtō ki te pō’.

The Kārearea takes flight towards the south and sets his eyes upon the river Te Wai-o-Hingānga, now he looks to the east and gazes upon the river Te Ngarue, a phenomenon, a denizen, a custodian.

As the Kārearea journeys on, he scans the lakes which are deemed to be the life-blood of our ancestors. Te Pōhue being one of these lakes. The sacred site of Opouahi with its profusion of eels. Orakai and Waikōpiro, the eyes of Tūtira. And Tūtira, celebrated as a place of sustenance to replenish one’s mind, body and soul.

The Kārearea now turns towards the shoreline, being within audible range to hear the tides of Moeangiangi, Arapawanui, Waipātiki, Tangoio and Tangitū caressing the shoreline. Tangitū, a whale, a guardian.

The Kārearea becomes aware of groper swimming the reefs of Omoko, Whakapao, Urukaraka, Te Ngaio-iti, Te Ngaio-nui, Whakatapatu, Kōtuku, Te Ahiaruhe, Tarahau, Rautoetoe, Te Una, Panepaoa, Pānia.

The Kārearea again proceeds on his journey and comes to rest on top of the Rewarewa tree, within view of Punanga te Wao, the place where our stories and history are held, where its descendants gather. The ancestral house of Ngāti Marangatūhetaua, Ngāi Tauira, Ngāti Kurumōkihi and Ngāi Te Ruruku.

The Kārearea now returns to the peak, Tarapōnui-a-Kawhea. During his excursion, he has seen copious amounts of dwellings, hence the proverb ‘their lodgings were in their heels’.

From the illustrious mountain Maungaharuru, to the emerald-coloured sea Tangitū, from the flowing waters of Waikari to Keteketerau, the descendants of Punanga te Wao stand steadfast and proud in saying, ‘this is our home’.