2. Long long ago, deep down in the moana, there lived a mother fish and her seven
baby fishes.
3. One day, Mother Fish was heading out to find food for her tamariki. She warned
them about Tataraimaka, the fierce giant. “Whakarongo carefully my children;
while I’m away, stay close to the rocks. Do not go out in to the open moana because
today is the day Tataraimaka goes fishing.”
4. The little fishes saw the smooth sea, the bright sun and the waves calling them to
play. They soon forgot everything their mother had told them and started chasing
each other out in the open water.
5. Suddenly, a shadow fell over the fish. They looked up into the harakeke net of
Tataraimaka. His huge, black net hit the water and caught all of the fish. They
cried for their mother, their tears making the water salty.
6. Tane, the God of forests and birds, heard the fishes cries. He felt sorry for them.
He tore the net away from Tataraimaka and threw it up into the high heavens.
7. There, the seven fish were turned into seven sparkling stars.
We can see these stars in the night sky.
These are the star cluster we know as Matariki.
