Hello Tribe and fellow Star Navigators... as we embark on the Yellow Star wavespell, here in Aotearoa New Zealand we are marking the New Year with Matariki [Alcyone] and her eight children [the Pleiades] rising before the Sun… for me this is akin and complementary to following the Tzolkin as both are part of the reindigenisation of 'time'.

In Aotearoa NZ, Māori New Year is called ‘Matariki’. The wheel of the year, always in motion, has its beginning point here marked by the use of a system older than time itself. A system of the Sun, Moon and stars, when our ancestors followed their movement like we (well some) now ‘follow’ the movement and motions of our favourite ‘celebrity’ stars… As with many words in the Māori language ‘Matariki’ is multi-purpose. Not only is it the name for the new year, it is also the name for 'the Pleiades' star cluster, called Matali’i in Samoa and Makali’i in Hawai’i. A third use is Matariki as the name for the 'mother' star of the cluster, her ‘official’ name being that of one of the Greek ‘Seven Sisters’, and a daughter of Atlas, Alcyone.

I've created my Matariki LightSong (above) to herald and welcome in Matariki 2024. This is made by using my personal star map (astrological birth chart) to weave a song of Light by tracing Matariki’s [Alcyone’s] placement and connections within it. In the language of astrology, Matariki is at the anaretic, very last, degree known as the ‘degree of fate’, in the sign of Taurus and my 4th House of roots, family and foundations... This makes a lot of sense to me and here I am, highlighting the re-indigenisation of ‘time’ from my 'roots' and from a very Pacific, Moana-nui-a-Kiwa, lens... LOL!

The Matariki cluster is central to the Māori system of time and Matariki new year is very, very, different to the modern western world’s arbitrary 1 January 'new year' party-time that has zero connection to the Earth's natural rhythms. Matariki is a deeply reflective time to look back and remember those who are no longer with us, to celebrate the present, and to plan for the future. Before Matariki rises, there is the setting or journey to the ‘underworld’ of Te Waka O Rangi. This is a canoe (waka) with Matariki at the front and Tautoru (Orion’s belt) at the back, captained by a star called Taramainuku. Te Kupenga a Taramainuku is the net of Taramainuku and every night the Matariki constellation is in the sky, Taramainuku casts his net down to earth to gather the souls of the people who died that day. He carries them along behind his waka for 11 months and then takes them to the underworld with the setting of Matariki next to the sun during May. When Matariki rises again, a month later , Taramainuku releases the souls of the dead into the sky to become stars. This is the origin of the saying ‘kua wheturangihia koe’ / ’you have now become a star’.

In addition to rising and signalling the release of souls to become stars, each star within the Matariki cluster has an individual role. Most signal conditions for the year ahead based on appearance (bright=favourable / hazy=unfavourable) and this includes the overall ‘form’ of the entire cluster (tight or spread out). Here are the individual Māori names for each of the nine stars that are read in the cluster and what they represent or signal for the year ahead: [Greek names are in square brackets]

Mother Matariki [Alcyone] - health & wellbeing

o daughter Pōhutukawa [Asterope] - those who have passed on

o daughter Tipuānuku [Pleione] - the ground / earth

o son Tipuārangi [Atlas] - sky / forests

o daughter Waitī [Maia] - fresh water

o son Waitā [Taygete] - salt water

o daughter Waipunarangi [Electra] - rain

o son Ururangi [Merope] – wind

o daughter Hiwa-i-te-rangi [Celaeno] - dreams & desire

The time to ‘read the signs’ for the year ahead is very specifically during the month of Pipiri and when the moon is in its Tangaroa (last quarter) phase… This year that window for reading the signs of Matariki, the Tangaroa moons, occur from the 29th of June to the 2nd of July. With the need for us all to return to a more ‘natural’ way of living, the fact that this precious indigenous knowledge and wisdom has been shared so freely and generously is something I really appreciate and am truly grateful for…

I hope YoU, reader, have been inspired / encouraged to unearth your own locale’s indigenous system / knowledge for living by the stars while here on Earth…

with Love, from my heart's Light to Yours,

Li' ✨

[Yellow Solar Star]

Note: This information is my understanding gleaned from the excellent teachings of the Māori Astronomer, Professor Rangi Matamua, a key instigator in the revival of Matariki new year and its official observance as a celebration and public holiday in Aotearoa New Zealand’s national calendar. This tribal knowledge was taught and handed down to Prof. Rangi from his whanau (family). Each Iwi (tribe) will have their own version and some details may differ. For example, some Iwi look for the heliacal (ahead of the Sun) rise of Puanga (Rigel of the Orion constellation) instead of Matariki and some will only reference 7, not 9, of the Matariki stars.