Greetings / Namaskar

According to the Maori people of New Zealand, Rangi was the Sky Father and h
is wife was the Mother Earth, Papa.  In the mythology of the Maori of New Ze
aland / Aotearoa, Papa is the personification of the Earth and is a female g
oddess. The personification
of the Sky - Rangi, a male god, fell in love with Papa and embraced her. The
re is complete oneness.  And there is also no attributional qualifications o
r vibrations in the Universe.  This was at a time when there was no light in
 the universe. At the begi
nning of time, Rangi, the male sky, and Papa, the female Earth, were entwine
d in a static embrace. Rangi wanted with this embrace to prevent the creatio
n of the world.  However, the Creative Principle
(Papa) was permitted to act on that Consciousness (Rangi).  Papa and Rangi h
ad many children. Creation personified, and expressed in multiplicities.

The journey is then back to the source.  There is a spiritual essence in eve
rything.  While there is apparent heterogeneity, in essence all is homogenou
s.  That is the theme of the piece below, which takes an approach of melding
 Maori spiritual mythology
and Tantric meditation.

Dharma

ONE
---

Perhaps now is the opportunity to look at the beginning.  Is Papa just anoth
er name for the Cosmic Consciousness in whom all things lie?  Is Rangi just 
another name for the Cosmic Operative Force which has the ability to create 
everything?  Sky Father and
Earth Mother.  Therefore were Papa and Rangi the parents of all creation?  I
f so, then the universe is my homeland because I am a child and we are all c
hildren from the same never ending forces of creation, operation and destruc
tion.  We are all citizens
of this Cosmos.

Rangi and Papa cannot bear to be separated.  Nor can we people as expression
s of those same forces be separated from each other.  We may have different 
expressions - indeed we must all have different expressions. That is a fact 
of life in a world, rather
a universe, of relativity. Everything is different.  But Rangi and Papa are 
just like two sides of a piece of paper.  They are one.  Try to separate the
m and there will be immense pain. This universe is their creation.

This universe is within their imagination.  Together this is the imagination
 of Io (the Macrocosmic Mind - GOD).  The universe is created in the imagina
tion of Io, the Supreme Entity, so the ownership of this universe lies with 
Io and not the microcosms (
including us people) created out of Io's imagination.

All the property of this earth, moveable as well as immovable, animate and i
nanimate, does not belong to any particular individuals, but everything is t
he common property of us all.  We all have a common source in the spiritual 
sense.  Every living being
should be able to utilise their rightful share of this property, just like t
he members of a joint family.

Like members of a joint family, living beings should safeguard this common p
roperty in a befitting manner, utilise it properly and make adequate arrange
ments so that everyone enjoys it with equal rights.  The Treaty of Waitangi 
seems to be saying the same
thing.  So we in Aotearoa, in partnership together with each other, must sha
re our resources (physical, mental and spiritual) and ensure that everyone l
ives with a sound body and a sound mind and with the basic necessities.  Sha
ring resources of all type
s does not mean we all become the same.  That is an impossibility.  It just 
means there are so many different expressions in the web of life.

Maori tribal land perhaps had behind it the idea of joint property and that 
we should not forget even for a moment that this whole animate world is a la
rge joint family.  Nature has not assigned any property to any particular in
dividual.  Individual owner
ship has been created by opportunists and selfish motives.  So it was with R
ussell as a land speculator in the 1860's.

Under the Native Lands Act 1862 he sponsored a system that was socially defe
ctive and that only provided opportunities for those who liked to grow fat i
n a parasitic way.  This was just a step in the destruction of Maori cultura
l and spiritual values, whi
ch recognised the importance of the land.

A member of a partnership or joint family cannot be called a social being if
 they do not have a common heart with other members, or if they do not accep
t the high ideals and the self-evident truth of joint rights.  Accordingly a
 system of individual owner
ship cannot be accepted as absolute and final. Individual versus collective 
life is the main difference between European and Maori cultures.

But "We are all one people" said Captain Hobson at the signing of the Treaty
 of Waitangi.  Why has the fashion been to take this phrase in a negative wa
y.  Papa and Rangi cannot bear to be separated.  This is a recognition of on
eness.  The unity of the un
iverse depends on oneness.  Just because we are all one people does not mean
 that we cannot have different individual or collective expressions, eg Maor
i and Pakeha.  Expressions may be different but that does not mean we cannot
 be in unison as one people
.  So the negative image created around this expression is just an exaggerat
ion.

TWO
---

Everything is the joint property of all living beings.  This has to be recog
nised as a matter of principle.  After its recognition the ideas that this i
s national and that this is foreign, that a particular person is fit for the
 citizenship of a particula
r country while others are not, or have less claim or no rights at all, cann
ot stand.  Such words are narrow expressions.

All persons are world citizens by birth.  The ancient explorers taught us th
at.  Papa and Rangi are still teaching us that.  Every person has the right 
to go and settle anywhere and to live like a human being.  Things are gettin
g so mixed these days.  At
one time Maori people thought that the fantail was the portender of death.  
Upon intermixing of Christianity the perspective of the fantail changed to b
eing one of the portender of life. See how things change through cultural in
termixing.  The same will i
n time happen with the current dogma that Maori women cannot speak on the ma
rae.

Everything is always changing.  That is a part of the process of evolution. 
Social Darwinism is however wrong in fact and in theory.  Evolution is not a
 rat race of one group of persons trying to get there first.  It is not just
 a competitive pursuit.  Th
at kind of evolution is in fact counter-evolution. This is because it implie
s genocide of one culture by the superior culture. How can that have anythin
g to do with evolution in the human sense when it amounts to destruction.

Evolution means working together and also developing ourselves individually 
and collectively (from whatever collective identity we perceive we may have 
and which should be allowed to change and vary through time).  Without indiv
idual good there cannot be
collective good, and without collective good there cannot be individual good
.  The two must be in harmony and balance as envisaged by the Treaty of Wait
angi.

The absence of an integral outlook is the root of most problems today. The p
owerful British groups at the time perpetuated atrocities and injustices on 
others in the process of colonisation.  The Treaty of Waitangi has been brok
en in this fashion so many
times in the past.

An integral outlook means that Maori and Pakeha history is yet to unfold in 
a way not yet completely known.  This is why the Waitangi Tribunal is not ju
st concerned with righting past wrongs but also with finding new formulas to
 see that things do not go
wrong in the future.  It can perhaps shape history, and reshape the past als
o by it excellent efforts in finding the true history of this land since the
 1840's.

With further mechanisation and transportation gradually the people of one pa
rt of the world will have to meet the people of various other parts more fre
quently, and for this definite attention will have to be made to create a be
tter understanding between
people.  The Maori people as shipbuilders, navigators and sea traders expres
sed this as well.  The Treaty of Waitangi tried to spell out this meeting of
 the minds.  At the time of colonisation the British realised that they coul
d no longer adopt the appro
ach of claiming new territory by conquest.  They had to settle and negotiate
 in a civilised way.  The Maori visited England.  They enjoyed this interact
ion and attention.  This is natural.

THREE
-----

The human race has many languages.  These are expressions of humanity. Every
 language is our language - every language is the language of all of us. Let
 us share these treasures.  The dogmatists claim "This is my language, that 
is yours; this is a native
language, that is foreign".  These are defective ideas.  Only this much can 
be said - that we have so many languages and each one of us can express ours
elves in one or more languages from amongst them.

In spite of the fact that all languages of the world stand on an equal footi
ng in respect of position, a common language for the convenient exchange of 
thoughts between people of different parts of the globe will have to be sele
cted open heartedly as the
world language.  Governments in different parts of the world may at their co
nvenience accept the world language and any other language as their official
 language or languages.

However no matter what language is accepted as the official language of the 
state by any particular government (eg English and Maori by the New Zealand 
government), there should not be any slackness in facilitating the study of 
the world language.  In no
case can anyone keep themselves aloof from the rest of the world like frogs 
in the well, and keep their heads in the darkness so as to keep themselves a
way from their brothers and sister in other parts of the world.

All languages are subject to birth and death.  Although English is at presen
t an international language, it may not enjoy the same status for an indefin
ite period.  In any particular age only that language which will have the ma
ximum use in different part
s of the world will probably be the world language.  This could be Japanese 
later on.  So in New Zealand we can readily live with and accept both the Ma
ori and English languages as being official languages.  It is practical to r
ecognise English as the wor
ld language.

English is the language of commerce.  This is a popular saying.  The Maori w
ere quick in learning it and also reading and writing it when it was introdu
ced into Aotearoa.  So it can be seen that English was recognised as the lan
guage of commerce even back
in the early 1800's.  It still is today, but may not be for longer as the As
ian economies expand and the English and American economies decline.

A world language helps human unity without affecting the development of diff
erent parts of the world or the people living there, eg Maori in New Zealand
.  This is because the local people still should retain their local identity
 and their own language.  T
here is harmony in this way, as intended by the Treaty of Waitangi.

Unity among the members of any society or social structure is absolutely nec
essary otherwise the structure will start to disintegrate.  Lack of unity am
ong the members of society because of too much self interest and different l
evels of development along
with the formation of different economic or social groupings is wrong.  A la
ck of understanding of each other's acts not only brings about the downfall 
of social structure but can also wipe out groups of local indigenous people 
within society.

The problem, therefore is the preservation of unity in society.  The common 
ideal here must be to create an economic system so that property is shared b
y all members of the society.  For unity in society there should not be any 
small groupings within soci
ety claiming unjustifiable economic and social privileges.  Love for all and
 the idea that humanity is one family should be the guiding principles.  The
 Treaty of Waitangi can be made to work in this way.

At present lack of security of taonga, land, fisheries, and estates can lead
 to the disintegration of important taonga or treasures belonging to the tan
gata whenua of Aotearoa.  If there is no security against injustice in New Z
ealand then the social stru
cture may weaken.  The most important requisites for social security therefo
re, are that there should be no injustice.  Injustice in society has lead to
 the struggle for the Maori people to retain their identities and heritage. 
 If security in society is
to be maintained there should be no economic or racial injustice.  The two a
re often found together (along with sexism).  These injustices are often due
 to lack of appreciation of what other people can offer to society.

The British colonialists thought they were members of a particular race who 
were superior to others when they came to Aotearoa.  This attitude frequentl
y inflicts injustices on other sections of society.  The expulsion of Jews f
rom Germany by Hitler's so-
called superior Aryan race is a glaring example of racial injustice in socie
ty.  This should not happen even if the Jews where not tangata whenua of Ger
many.  Oppression and hunting of the aboriginal people of Australia is anoth
er example.

To remove this type of injustice we must do away with racial distinctions in
 society.  That is no race is superior or inferior.  All members of all race
s should take part as equals.

Sentiments, traditions and customs which are innate or natural in human bein
gs and which do not hamper their development should be encouraged. There may
 be many local and indigenous differences and these should be appreciated an
d encouraged for the indige
nous development of society.  But in no cases should there be a compromise i
n principle to the creation of a human society.

The human race is one family.  There are different dances, songs, and ceremo
nial celebrations from different sections of the human race, that is there a
re different local variations.  These local variations in customs and behavi
our should not be considere
d separate from the human race.

Local indigenous variations of human beings cannot be removed by the force o
f the law as appears to have been intended by the British in breach of the T
reaty during the wars that came to be known as the so called "Maori wars". I
f attempts are made to brin
g about the destruction of common practices, languages and various local man
ners and customs, it will result in violence and mutual distrust and will le
ad collective life to doom.  Thus the education system should be ever vigila
nt of such attempts.

Social synthesis naturally arises as people come into intimate contact with 
one another and as the corners  of the world become nearer.  This means that
 the local variations of conduct will assume ever new forms as a result of f
requent mixing.  Maori and
Pakeha intermixing is a somewhat naive analysis. There are so many variation
s in this so-called Pakeha categorisation. Thus Maori and Yugoslav mixtures,
 Maori and Pacific Island intermixture, etc has created a wonderful diversit
y.

There are some Pakeha guilt trippers still around who like to think they hav
e to blame themselves for all the that has gone wrong.  But this is just neg
ative thinking.  We all need to keep analysing our attitudes and this is an 
ongoing process.  Just beca
use we have done something wrong in the past as individuals or as a collecti
ve group does not mean we need to carry around these burdens forever, if we 
have rectified our past mistakes. We all have the scope to change and move o
n in a positive way.

FOUR
----

The flowers of different gardens will unite into a bouquet and this bouquet 
will be more beautiful than the individual flowers.

The melodies of the Pacific can be intermixed with Indian ragas while classi
cal music can take the shape of Maori tunes and mixed harmonies. Dame Kiri T
e Kanawa is a living example of the intermixture of good things between the 
cultures.  Although not liv
ing in New Zealand (except for a bach in Taupo) she is a world "citizen" in 
her activities.  She mixes European music/opera with her cultural background
.  She lives sometimes in England and sometimes in the USA.  She has proven 
that the world has come clo
se together.

If different human communities make an effort in establishing social blendin
g then social synthesis will continue to develop.  To some extent we notice 
the reflections of this intermixing in cosmopolitan cities in Australia and 
USA.  Active Maori communit
ies exist in both Sydney and Melbourne.  This is a good development in the s
pread and intermixing of cultures.

It would be wrong to preach an ideology (or rather a dogma) that there shoul
d be no further outside influences coming into Aotearoa.  Aotearoa cannot li
ve in isolation from the rest of the world.  It is too small to shut itself 
off from the rest of the wo
rld.  We cannot live like frogs in the well.  Inevitably Aotearoa will have 
more cultural influences coming into its realms.  However this should not de
tract from the development of indigenous cultures within Aotearoa.  A strong
 culture can survive while
parts of its also become parts of other cultures.

What has happened in the past is that the colonialists have set one group of
 people against another.  They could do this because of political support an
d with the help of politicians indulging in tall talks from high posts. We a
s a society have not remain
ed vigilant of such people.

Honest and benevolent people of society must adopt a feeling of co-operation
.  Politics is not a solution.  We need to identity as human beings.  Party 
politics has tended to create different negative sentiments amongst the peop
le.

The greatest social welfare can be achieved by mobilising the living spirit 
of those people who are desirous of establishing service and constructive wo
rk to bring about social welfare.  We as educationalists have to remain enga
ged in the task of social w
elfare with all sincerity without having any ulterior motive in mind.

Unity and good sense carry people forward towards success in life. Unity can
not rest on any geographical, racial and personal differences.  That is why 
only a spiritual philosophy should be adopted as the pole-star of life. We a
re all children of God. The
re is only the same God.  All humanity belongs to one race.  Every human bei
ng has got equal rights.

FIVE
----

We cannot just think about the welfare of our own community or family in tod
ay's global world.  It is necessary to act locally and think globally, howev
er we cannot ever violate the interests and natural growth of other communit
ies.  We cannot these days
think only of our own group in isolation. That would amount to what could pe
rhaps be described as geo-sentiment. This is only thinking about one's own g
roup in a particular area, while lacking a global or universal outlook.

The principle for the world today that can cure injustices is that of Social
 Equality.  This must be understood from the core of one's heart.  We have d
eveloped our conscience in understanding the issues of inequality in Aotearo
a.  This means that we as a
group have begun to understand in fine detail how things have gone wrong in 
the past between the Maori and other races or "visitors" to New Zealand.  No
w we need to do more study on these matters.

Study is essential, knowledge is essential to come to an understanding. This
 requires the path of rationality.  If we only follow a path of going by our
 sentiments then we could become caught in the current of sentiments and not
 be able to discriminate fu
rther and develop finer methods of understanding the impact, interaction and
 future of the Treaty of Waitangi in Aotearoa and cultural development in Ao
tearoa.

Parallel development of Maori and so-called Pakeha will not achieve anything
 on it own.  Sure there can be development of local indigenous cultures, but
 to have two developments completely separated from each other is inconceiva
ble in practice.  It would
create unnecessary distinctions, particularly where there is intermixing of 
Maori and Pakeha matrimonial and blood relations.  A synergistic approach is
 what is happening. That is, all of the cultures can take things from each o
ther in a sharing way (not
an exploitative way) to develop for their people what is appropriate to thei
r needs.

We need to eradicate all inequalities.  If we compromise then there will onl
y be disparities in collective life.  The progress of all would be accelerat
ed if the inequalities were uprooted.  The Treaty of Waitangi can be interpr
eted in its spirit and inte
nt as trying to achieve this objective. These are of course cardinal objecti
ves which should exist in the human heart anyway.

The principle of Social Equality contains the seeds of wellbeing for all of 
us.  We as educationalists need to cherish the ideal of forever promoting th
e welfare of all.  This requires removing all superiority and inferiority co
mplexes that have been supp
lanted in society due to social conditioning. If anyone feels that they are 
treated as a second class citizen in this country then it is the result of f
ear complexes created by social inequalities.  This is a form of  exploitati
on.  That is why the encour
agement of Maori language through the media and in communication in general 
is so important.  The more it is used the more stature it acquires. The more
 influence and prestige it gives to the tangata whenua.  This gives rise to 
control of one's destiny an
d removes all the influences of psychic exploitation.

Much of what we call Pakeha culture is actually pseudo-culture.  It is ridic
ulous to think that going to MacDonald's for a hamburger or smoking Winfield
 cigarettes is culture.  Addictions of this nature are a creation of pseudo-
culture.  Today it is obvio
us that large cigarette companies are aiming there advertising campaigns at 
women and the working classes.

In turn this form of exploitation has created high death rates in the Maori 
community from lung cancer and related diseases.  We must set the example by
 overcoming the effects of this pseudo-culture.  If the Pakeha culture can d
evelop its core values base
d on human well being and co-operation, then the partnership in the Treaty w
ill be enhanced.

SIX
---

We must keep our eyes open and be reflective and vigilant in how we approach
 things.

In my reflective journal I have attempted to place myself in a social contex
t as if roaming around as part of a flow of consciousness and part of a coll
ective mass or at times different parts of different collective masses.  It 
is a method of saying, "Yes
, I am a reflection of society and let that society have a look at itself". 
 For this purpose the word "we" was used regularly.  It signifies my positio
n in society as if I were the society having a look at itself.

In a course on bicultural issues it is necessary to recognise that we are re
flections of a society which is hopefully advancing forward. Unfortunately t
oday a lot of humanity is in despair and people think too much about their i
mperfections.  They think:
"Can I do it?".  It is better to think along the lines "Yes, we are human be
ings and each of us are destined to do great things - that is why we are her
e."  This type of positive thinking is needed to remove the injustices of th
e past and the breaches of
the Treaty of Waitangi.

Our underlying motive is surely to move in harmony with each other. There ma
y be quarrels along the way.  But there will always be clash and cohesion in
 anything we do.  There will always be the need to struggle through the bad 
times and enjoy the good.
So let us move together, let us sing together in karakia and let us come to 
know our minds together.

In this way we can share from our past so that all people together may enjoy
 the universe and the diversity of interaction in this world and this countr
y.  Let us unite our intentions for a united human race with maximum colourf
ul expressions from our dif
ferent cultural heritages and backgrounds. While doing so let our hearts be 
inseparable.  Let our minds be as one mind but with so many different expres
sions like different flowers in a bouquet of flowers held in a hand of unity
 as we truly come to know o
ne another.

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