The Maori creation story describes how Rangi and Papa (heaven and earth) were originally joined closely together in darkness. They had six sons - Tane-mahute created forests, Tawhiri-matea created winds and storms, Tangaroa created fish and reptiles, Tu Matauenga created fierce humans, and two others created cultivated and uncultivated food. After a long period of darkness, the sons separated Rangi and Papa, allowing light, but Tu Matauenga ate four of his brothers, sparing only Tawhiri-matea, explaining modern human fierceness, eating habits, and storms.

1. Contemporary Traditional Maori Culture, part 2 The maori creation story:The Separation of heaven and earth By kevin blanco, 1/23/12 period 4 culture and geography Source: Geogre grey 1956 polynesian mythology christchurch, whitcombe and tombs ltd 250 250 p and mr. ruben meza

2. All humans are descended from one pair of ancestors rangi and papa who are also called heaven and earth

3. in those days , heaven and earth clung closely together and all was darkness

4. rangi and papa had six sons: the tane -mahute the father of the forest of thier inhabitantants

5. Tawhiri -ma tea the father of the winds and storm

6. tangaroa the father of fish and reptiles

7. tu matauenge the father of fierce human beings

8. the father of food that grows without cultivation

9. the father of cultivated of food

10. in the beginning these six sons and all other being lived in darkness for an extremely long time able only to wonder what light and vision might be like

11. after a battle between the six sons tu matauenga ate 4 of his brothers as food sparing tawhir ma tea the father of winds and storms

12. this is why today people are fierce and have war why people eat plants animals and why there are storms