Papaki Tū

Papaki Tū
Te tai ra, te tai ra
He tai mate, he tai mihinga tangata ka Papaki Tū
T ‘is a tide, t ‘is a boisterous tide of remembrance and of salutation, t ‘is Papaki Tū
Ka papaki tū ki Te Reinga, he tai poroporoākī ki runga i a rātou
As it breaks upon Te Reinga, I lament those who have passed.
Haere mai, haere ki tua o paerau engari kaua e taka ki tua o pae maumahara
Welcome and farewell, may they pass beyond the hundredth horizon but not beyond the horizon of forgetfulness.
Ka pō, ka ao, ka awatea
Ka awatea, ka papaki, papaki tū ki runga o Te Taitokerau
Night gives way to dawn and daylight, breaking across Te Taitokerau
Ka whakarongo ake ahau ki te reo o te kōrari e “kekekeke” mai ana, he harakeke, he harakeke.
I harken to the language of the kōrari, t ‘is flax, t ‘is phormium tenax.
Miria, ruia, tahia, opea mai ra ki te ao tūroa nei.
File in, sort in rank, consolidate, and mobilise forth into this realm.
Ka tihewā mauri ora
T ‘is the breath of life
Tihewā Papaki Tū
The breath of Papaki Tū