Whiro

Whiro-te-tipua (Whiro, or Hiro in the Tuamotus) is the lord of darkness and embodiment of all evil in Māori mythology.[1][2] He inhabits the underworld and is responsible for the ills of all persons, a contrast to his brother and enemy Tāne. Elsdon Best suggests that evil seems to have entered the world when the primordial parents were separated.[3]

Whiro-te-tipua
Atua of darkness, evil, and death
AbodeTaiwhetuki
GenderMale
RegionPolynesia
Ethnic groupMāori, Paʻumotu people
Personal information
ParentsRangi and Papa
SiblingsUrutengangana, Tāwhiri, Tangaroa, Kiwa, Tū, Tāne

According to some tribes, when people die, their bodies descend into the underworld, where they are eaten by Whiro. Each time Whiro eats a body, he becomes stronger. This process will eventually make him sufficiently powerful to break free of the underworld, at which point he will come to the surface and devour everything and everyone on it. Cremation is therefore recommended to prevent this, because Whiro cannot gain strength from ashes.

Taiwhetuki - Whiro's House of Death - is a deep and dark cave[4] where all things evil are preserved, such as black magic. It is a place in which countless personifications of illnesses and diseases dwell.[5]

Geckos, skinks, and tuatara were feared because of their spiritual association with Whiro.[2]

See also

References
  1. Marae: The Heart of Maori Culture ISBN 978-1-77550-194-7
  2. "Māori Dictionary search results for 'Whiro'". John C Moorfield. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  3. Best, Elsdon (1924). The Maori - Volume 1. Harry H. Tombs, Wellington. p. 89.
  4. "Black hole "resembles Whiro, atua of darkness" - Māori astronomer". Te Ao Māori News. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  5. Best, Elsdon (1924). The Maori - Volume 1. Harry H. Tombs, Wellington. p. 66.
  • Journal of the Polynesian Society, volume XXVI, Auckland, New Zealand: Polynesian Society (N.Z.)
  • Craig, Robert (1989), Dictionary of Polynesian Mythology, Greenwood Press, ISBN 0-313-25890-2
  • Odyssey Magazine, Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing, 2010
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