The Magical Wooden Head

This head bewitched all persons who approached the hill where the fortress in which it was kept was situated, so that, from fear of it, no human being dared to approach the place, which was thence called the Sacred Mount.

Upon that mount dwelt Puarata, and Tautohito, with their carved head, and its fame went through all the country.

To the river Tamaki,

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and to Kaipara,

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and to the tribes of Nga-Puhi,

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to Akau,

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to Waikato, to Kawhia, to Mokau,

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to Hauraki,

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and to Tauranga.

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The exceeding great fame of the powers of that carved head spread to every part of Aotea-roa, or, the Northern Island of New Zealand.

Everywhere reports were heard, that so great were its magical powers, none could escape alive from them, and although many warriors and armies went to the Sacred Mount to try to destroy the sorcerers to whom the head belonged.

To carry it off to their own district, that its magical powers might be subservient to them.

They all perished in the attempt.

In short, no mortal could approach the fortress, and live, even parties of people who were travelling along the forest track, to the northwards, towards Muri-whenua, all died by the magical powers of that head,

Whether they went in large armed bodies, or simply as quiet travellers, their fate was alike, they all perished from its magical influence, somewhere about the place where the beaten track passes over Waimatuku.

The deaths of so many persons created a great sensation in the country, and, at last, the report of these things reached a very powerful sorcerer named Hakawau.

Confiding in his magical arts, said he was resolved to go and see this magic head, and the sorcerers who owned it.

So, without delay, he called upon all the genii who were subservient to him, in order that he might be thrown into an enchanted sleep, and see what his fate in this undertaking would be.

In his slumber, he saw that his genius would triumph in the encounter, for it was lofty and mighty, that, in his dream, its head reached the heavens, whilst its feet remained upon earth.

Having by his spells ascertained this, he at once started on his journey, and the district through which he travelled was that of Akau, and, confiding in his own enchantments, he went fearlessly to try whether his arts of sorcery would not prevail over the magic head, and enable him to destroy the old sorcerer Puarata.

He took with him one friend, and went along the seacoast towards the Sacred Mount, and passed through Whangaroa, and followed the coast to Rangikahu, and Kahuwera, and came out on the coast again at Karoroumanui, and arrived at Maraetai.

There was a fortified village, the people of which endeavoured to detain Hakawau and his friend until they rested themselves and partook a little food.

But he said, ”We ate food on the road, a short distance behind us, we are not at all hungry or weary”.

So they would not remain in Maraetai, but went straight on until they reached Putataka, and they crossed the river there and proceeded along the beach to Rukuwai.

Neither did they stop there, but on they went, and at last reached Waitara.

When they reached Waitara, the friend who accompanied Hakawau began to get alarmed, and said, “Now we shall perish here, I fear”, but they went safely on and reached Te Weta.

There the heart of Hakawau’s friend began to beat again, and he said, “I feel sure that we shall perish here”.

They passed that place to in safety, and on they went, at length, they reached the most fatal place of all, Waimatuku.

Here they smelt the stench of the carcasses of the numbers who had been previously destroyed, indeed the stench was so bad it was suffocating, and they both said, “This is a fearful place, we fear we shall perish here”.

However, Hakawau kept on unceasingly working at his enchantments, and repeating incantations, which might ward off the attacks of the evil genii. And which might collect good genii around them, to protect them from the malignant spirits of Puarata, lest these should injure them.

Thus they passed over Waimatuku, looking in horror at the many corpses strewed about the beach, and in the dense ferns and bushes which border the path, and as they pursued their outward journey, they expected death every moment.

Nevertheless, they died not on the dreadful road but went straight along the path till they came to the place where it passes over some low hills, from whence they could see the fortress which stood upon Puke-tapu.

Here they sat down and rested, for the first time since they had commenced their journey.

They had not yet been seen by the watchmen of the fortress.

Then Hakawau, with his incantations, sent forth many genii, to attack the fortress and magic head of Puarata.

Some of his good genii were sent by Hakawau in advance, while he charged the others to follow at some distance.

The incantations by the power of which these genii were sent forth by Hakawau was a Whengi.

The genii he sent in front were ordered to immediately to begin the assault.

As soon as the spirits who guarded the fortress saw the others, they all issued forth to attack them, the good genii then feigned a retreat with the evil ones following them.

Whilst they were thus engaged in the pursuit, some thousands of good genii, who had been sent forth by Hakawau, stormed the fortress, now left without defences.

When the evil spirits, who had been led away in the pursuit, turned to protect their fortress, they found that the genii of Hakawau had already got quite close to it, and the good genii of Hakawau, without trouble, caught them, one after another, and all the spirits of the old sorcerer Puarata were utterly destroyed.

When all the evil spirits who had been subject to the old sorcerer had been thus destroyed, Hakawau walked straight up towards the fortress of this fellow, in whom spirits had dwelt as thick as men stow themselves in a canoe.

When the watchmen of the fortress, to their great surprise, saw strangers coming, then Puarata hurried to his magic head, to call upon it, his supplication to it was after this manner,

“Strangers come here, strangers come here, two strangers come, two strangers come”.

But it uttered only a low wailing sound, for since the good genii of Hakawau had destroyed the spirits that served Puarata.

The old sorcerer addressed in vain his supplications to the magic head, it could no longer raise aloud its powerful voice, as in former times, but uttered only low moans and wails.

Could it have cried out with a loud voice, straightaway Hakawau and his friend would both have perished,

For thus it was, when armies and travellers had in other times passed the fortress, Puarata addressed supplications to his magic head, and when it had cried out with a mighty voice, the strangers all perished as they heard it.

Hakawau and his friend had, in the meanwhile, continued to walk straight to the fortress.

When they drew near it, Hakawau said to his friend, “You go directly along the path that leads by the gateway into the fortress, as for me, I will show my power over the old sorcerer, by climbing right over the parapet and palisades”.

When they reached the defences of the place, Hakawau began to climb over the palisades of the gateway.

When the people of the place saw this, they were much exasperated, and desired him, in an angry manner, to pass underneath the gateway, along the pathway.

Which was common to all, and not to dare to climb over the gateway of Puarata and Tautohiti.

Hakawau went quietly on over the gateway, without paying the least attention to the angry words of those who were calling out to him, for he was sure that the two old sorcerers were not so skilful in magical arts as he was.

So Hakawau persisted in going direct to all the most holy places of the fortress, where no person who had not been made sacred might enter.

After Hakawau and his friend had been for a short time in the fortress and had rested themselves a little, the people of the place began to cook food for them.

They continued to sit resting themselves in the fortress for a long time, and at length, Hakawau said to his friend, ”Let us depart”.

Directly his friend heard this, he jumped up at once and was ready enough to be off.

Then the people of the place called out to them not to go immediately, but to take some food first.

But Hakawau answered, “Oh, we ate only a little while ago, not far from here, we took some food”.

So Hakawau would not remain longer in the fortress, but departed, and as he started, he smote his hand on the threshold of the house in which they had rested.

They had hardly got well outside of the fortress before every soul in it was dead, not a single one of them was left alive.

The first of the below posts has a list of the previous posts of Maori Myths and Legends

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/how-war-was-declared-between-tainui-and-arawa

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/the-curse-of-manaia-part-1

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/the-curse-of-manaia-part-2

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/the-legend-of-hatupatu-and-his-brothers

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/hatupatu-and-his-brothers-part-2

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/the-legend-of-the-emigration-of-turi-an-ancestor-of-wanganui

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/the-continuing-legend-of-turi

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/turi-seeks-patea

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/the-legend-of-manaia-and-why-he-emigrated-to-new-zealand

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/the-love-story-of-hine-moa-the-maiden-of-rotorua

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/how-te-kahureremoa-found-her-husband

https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/the-continuing-story-of-te-kahureremoa-s-search-for-a-husband

with thanks to son-of-satire for the banner