“Kaua e kōrero mo te Awa, me kōrero ki te Awa”

“Do not merely speak of the River, speak instead to the River.”

E rere kau mai te awa nui nei
Mai i te kāhui maunga ki Tangaroa
Ko au te awa
Ko te awa ko au.

The great river flows
From the mountains to the sea
I am the river
The river is me.

The Whanganui Iwi view the Whanganui River as a living being, Te Awa Tupua; an indivisible whole incorporating its tributaries and all its physical and metaphysical elements from the mountains to the sea. The enduring concept of Te Awa Tupua – the inseparability of the people and River – underpins the desire of Whanganui Iwi to care for, protect, manage and use the Whanganui River through the kawa and tikanga maintained by our tūpuna and their descendants.

TE AWA TUPUA

For more than a century, the laws, regulations and actions of the Crown have broken the Whanganui River down into parts. The Te Awa Tupua framework takes a catchment-wide approach to ensure that all of the waterways that form the Whanganui River are viewed and managed, not in isolation, but with reference to the whole River as an interconnected ecosystem.

Te Awa Tupua acknowledges the mana and mauri (spiritual power and essence) of the Whanganui River system as a whole, including its tributaries and all of its elements from the mountains to the sea.  

Therefore, the health and wellbeing of one element of the River is intrinsically connected to the health and wellbeing of the whole River, including its mauri and its mana.

TUPUA TE KAWA O TE AWA TUPUA – VALUES AND CUSTOMARY LAWS REFLECTING THE INNATE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE RIVER.

Te Awa Tupua recognises a set of indigenous values and customary laws that  reflect the innate relationship of the River to the people and the people to the River as guardians and sovereign partners in protecting the mana of the river and leading water policy, management, and planning.  It also represents a move towards restorative justice and sustainable practices for healthy waterways.

Te Awa Tupua recognises and is driven by four kawa, or four universal truths or principles that convey our relationship as indigenous peoples with nature, conveyed via the dictates of our tribe’s tikanga, or practical, day to day, expressions of connection with our River.

 Ko Te Kawa Tuatahi – the first principle

Ko te Awa te mātāpuna o te ora: the River is the source of spiritual and physical sustenance:

In this we understand that Te Awa Tupua is a spiritual and physical entity that supports and sustains both the life and natural resources within the Whanganui River and the health and well-being of the iwi, hapū, and other communities of the River.

 Ko Te Kawa Tuarua, the second principle

E rere kau mai te Awa nui mai i te Kahui Maunga ki Tangaroa: The great River flows from the mountains to the sea:

Te Awa Tupua is an indivisible and living whole from the mountains to the sea, incorporating the Whanganui River and all of its physical and metaphysical elements.

 Ko Te Kawa Tuatoru, the third principle

Ko au te Awa, ko te Awa ko au: I am the River and the River is me:

The iwi and hapū of the Whanganui River have an inalienable connection with, and responsibility to, Te Awa Tupua and its health and well-being.

 Ko Te Kawa Tuawhā, the fourth principle

Ngā manga iti, ngā manga nui e honohono kau ana, ka tupu hei Awa Tupua: the small and large streams that flow into one another form one River:

Te Awa Tupua is a singular entity comprised of many elements and communities, working collaboratively for the common purpose of the health and well-being of Te Awa Tupua.

These four principles embody the status of Te Awa Tupua and from there our communities can begin to align our behaviours to accord with those principles. To assist this to happen, Te Awa Tupua has all the rights, powers, duties, and liabilities of a legal person.