Kura-waka

The name of the place where the first human being was made by the god Tāne. The god desired to have a child in order to give birth to Man. He wanted to marry his mother, Papa, but she advised him to seek out several of his ancestors, but they only gave birth to objects, and he was displeased with them all. Finally his mother told him to go to the beach at Kura-waka, where he was to gather up the earth in the form of a man.

So Tāne went and scraped up the earth, formed first the body, then the head, and the arms; then he joined on the legs, and patted down the surface of the belly, so as to give the form of a man. When he had done this, he returned to Papa and told her he was finished. She instructed him to go his ancestor Mauhi, who would give him the raho; then on to Whetē, who would give the timitimu; then to Tāua-ki-te-marangai, who would give the paraheka; and finally to Punga-heko, who had the huruhuru.

Tāne went to these female ancestors, who gave him the things asked for. Then he named this female form Hine-ahu-one ("the earth-formed maid"). See also Tiki and Io-wahine.

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