Crew Blog | Toiora Hawira: Waka is a Connection, A Bridge that Binds Us All Together as One

Written by Toiora Hawira

I feel honored to be sailing in the wake of Hōkūleʻa to my home land of Aotearoa with the thought in mind that she represents the revitalization of this art of wayfinding.

Tena ra kautau e te hunga e whai nei I nga kupu whakamarama I runga I te wharangi ipurangi nei. Tenei au he mokai no runga ana mai o Te Wharetoka O Paerangi, he tai no uta e rere I runga I Te Wainuiarua ki tai, ko tahi tuu no Rauru Kii Tahi, tenei au ka mihi,  tihei mauriora ki a tatau katoa.

Greetings to the multitudes who follow the updates posted here.  I am a descendent from the House of Stone of Paerangi, a tide from inland which flows on my ancestral river to meet the tides of the sea. One of Rauru Kii Tahi, I greet tihei mauriora to one and all. 

He aha nga ahuatanga e rere nei,  te mea tutahi he honore nui ki a au ki te whai I nga ngaru marino o Hokulea ki te waa kainga, I runga I te whakaaro, ko ia te putake o enei ahuatanga e whakatere nei, nana I kukume nga taura hei putikitia nga korero, i whakatuu I te whare wananga hei mau ki te matauranga o nga ra o mua.

I feel honored to be sailing in the wake of Hōkūleʻa to my home land of Aotearoa with the thought in mind that she represents the revitalization of this art of wayfinding. It was she who binded together the lines of knowledge and established a house of learning to maintain this gift from the days of our ancestors, a gift that was almost lost. 

I also feel privileged to be part of the crew who return Hikianalia to her birth place on this first voyage home since her maiden voyage to join Hōkūleʻa in Hawaiʻi back in 2012.

Waka to me represents life, a native way of life.  It teaches one how to become one and live in harmony with the natural environment.
Waka symbolizes family, and oneness , no matter which walk of life youʻre from, if you live waka, the waka will unify each and every one of us.
Waka teaches respect, we respect and protect the waka as we would our mother; just as a mother would nurture her children, the waka will do the same.
Waka is a path into the future, a way for us to regain the ways we used to live.
Waka is a vessel of unlimited source of knowledge; it holds the teachings of the past, our history our genealogy, our stories.
Waka is a connection, a bridge that binds us all together as one.

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