Manu tiria, manu tiria Manu werohia ki te poho o Te Rāka Ka tau rērere Ka tau mai i te ruhi E tau e koia Koia, koia ko tararauriki Kī mai i Māui, e hara i te Whitu, me te Waru e E tau e koia, koia!
The bird who plants crops The bird who flew into the chest of Te Raka Who stayed there fleetingly Who became tired And rested there Indeed it was there that we sourced Tararauriki Māui taught us to plant in the seventh and eighth Month, and so it is!
Manu Tiria was originally an ancient planting chant written by James Cowan approx. 1905. It was later composed by Jasmine Dallas and Matiu Payne (Ngāi Tahu). Matiu went on to record the waiata in the late 1990s. This mōteatea is a guide for our tipuna for when to start planting and digging. It symbolises the direct tie to Te Taiao that is fundamental within Te Ao Māori. This is a mōteatea that is appropriate to use in occasions that involve planting, environmental respect or for kaupapa centred around connection to Te Taiao.
