Te Awa Atua: Menstruation in the Pre-Colonial Mori World

(Paperback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Te awa atua is a ceremony of purification and renewal that regenerates life. The blood that flows from the inner temple of the cosmos - the womb - is a living prayer of continuation. When we recover the ceremony of te awa atua we ritualise the womb as an altar of communion with the Atua Whine.

Te Awa Atua has been described as groundbreaking, timeless and incendiary scholarship. It recovers traditional Tangata Whenua menstruation ceremonies, stories and attitudes that have been largely censored from the historic record. The author examines karakia, prkau, mteatea, navigational and tribal histories and interviews with elders to unearth sacred ritual teachings that demonstrate the mana of the blood, and the mana of wahine in customary society.

This book is based on a Masters thesis, edited to make it accessible to the average reader.