In Māori accounts Rehua is presented as a member of the ancestral sky-family: a son of Rangi (the sky father) and Papa (the earth mother) and an eldest brother to figures such as Tāne in some traditions. A Ngāi Tahu legend describes Rehua as first manifesting as lightning and later assuming a human shape when he travelled into the skies. In Tahitian tradition Rehua functions as a star-god and is described as producing certain star-groups (for example, the Twins and the Pleiades) and being the star of the New Year.
Sources do not provide a single detailed anthropomorphic portrait. A Ngāi Tahu tale reports Rehua first manifested as lightning and, when visited by his brother Tāne, appeared with birds in his hair that fed on his lice. Other accounts identify Rehua with particular bright stars — in Māori material he has been equated by some groups with Antares (noted for Tūhoe), and other sources list Betelgeuse or Sirius — indicating a prominent celestial, star-aspect rather than a fixed physical form.
Because he resides in the highest heaven (named in some versions Te Putahi-nui-o-Rehua in Rangi-tuarea, the tenth and highest heaven), Rehua is described as 'untouched by death' and is attributed the power to cure blindness, revive the dead, and heal any disease (Māori sources). In Tahitian material he is described as producing stellar groupings (the Twins and the Pleiades) and is considered the 'lord of the year' or the star of the New Year, linking him to calendrical and stellar production functions.
Aitu (Māori)
Malevolent spirits in Māori tradition, often taking the form of plants or animals and associated with trouble-making and mischief. (Note: - Power tier should be Greater, not Lesser (Aitu being lesser gods in some cultures, but also associated with deity-level abilities) - Abilities: Add detail about their role as patrons of specific vil)
Aiwohikupua
Aiwohikupua is a personal name attested once in the supplied corpus of collected Hawaiian-language narrative material. The available sources provide only a short fragmentary occurrence of the name and no corroborating description, role, or attributes.
Akava'ine
Akava'ine is a Cook Islands Māori social and gender category for people assigned male at birth who live or present as women or otherwise occupy a gender-variant/transgender role. The term (Cook Islands Māori) literally means "to behave as a woman" and has both historical ethnographic mentions of gender-variant individuals in the Cook Islands and a contemporary use (since the 2000s) among Cook Islands Māori, including diaspora communities.
Akua
Akua is the Hawaiian common noun for a god, deity, or divine being; in the provided sources it functions as a lexical category applied to indigenous Hawaiian deities and as the translation-term for the Christian God in Hawaiian-language liturgy and scripture.
Aotea (Canoe)
Ancestral waka in Māori tradition, significant in the migration of the Māori people to New Zealand. (Note: - Power tier should be at least Greater (deity-level), considering Aotea is associated with significant spiritual and cultural importance to the Māori people's migration. - Abilities should include de)
Aotearoa (Canoe)
An ancestral vessel in Māori tradition, associated with the migration and settlement of New Zealand. (Note: 1. Power tier should be Ancient, not Primordial. 2. Remove "Historical significance" from sensory cues as it is a general statement rather than a specific cue. 3. Add "Its presence is often associated)
Apakura
Female figure in Māori mythology, wife of Tūhuruhuru and/or Tūwhakararo, associated with multiple generations of whānau. (Note: 1. Power tier: Given her association with multiple generations of whānau and the miraculous birth story involving Whakatau, it's likely she should be classified as a Greater entity. 2. Abilities: Add )
Arahura (Māori canoe)
Divine Māori canoe made of pounamu, associated with the Ngāi Tahu tribe and spiritual significance. (Note: * Power tier: Not specified, assume Lower or Lesser as it's associated with the tribe and not described as a deity-level being * Abilities: Remove the mention of spiritual significance and connection )
Arautauta
The Arautauta is a significant waka (canoe) in Māori tradition, playing a key role in the migration of people to New Zealand. (Note: - Power tier: Should be Primordial (as it's a significant waka in Māori tradition) - Abilities: Should mention its use for transporting people and goods as a notable aspect of its significance - Appea)
Arawa (canoe)
In Māori tradition, the Arawa is a supernatural canoe representing the ancestors' journey to New Zealand. (Note: * Power tier: Primordial (or not specified at all, as there's no indication of supernatural powers beyond its symbolic and cultural significance) * Appearance: No physical description mentioned in sou)
Ascalapha odorata (Hawaiian)
A nocturnal moth associated with death or misfortune in Hawaiian tradition, possibly tied to Central and South American folklore. (Note: - Summary should note that Ascalapha odorata's association with death/misfortune is found in Central and South American folklore, not explicitly mentioned in Hawaiian tradition. - Power tier: Primordi)
Atanua
Atanua is the Marquesan (Polynesian) goddess of the dawn who, in local cosmogony, is the consort of Atea and mother of the first man; she is also credited in the surviving summary accounts with creating the seas as the result of a miscarriage.
Community Record
- [1]Rehua (Wikipedia). Wikipedia, 'Rehua'wiki
- [2]Rehua (Wikidata). Wikidata entry Q693587other