traditional knowledge conference 2008 te tatau pounamu

activities. Therefore takepū can be either a single word, such as “tiaki”, or a phrase like “huia te take”(dialogue and consider all facets of the issue). Treating takepū in this manner acknowledges the fact thatboth lenses illustrate their applied nature: that they are bodies of knowledge and key strategic positionsand are in fact multi-featured. When takepū are always being deliberately invited into our contexts thereis a consistent call being extended to cultural thinking and application: to participate, to inform, to guide.Here is the takepū of tomo mai (welcome in) in regular action, heightening the chance of culturalconscientization to occur over and over again.Te Whakatinana (Application)This flows into a vital question, “how are takepū used?” Contextualization is a strategic undertakingthat must always be applied in order for takepū to have its proper and intended place in every kaupapaand relationship. It allows the identifying, defining, interpreting, naming and exampling templates to bealways set and deliberately fitted into place. As takepū come from out of te reo (the language), with itsdefinitions and interpretations, they need to be contextualized and redesigned into each kaupapa and itssets of relationships. Takepū require the heart to take part actively in selecting and clarifying how theycan be applied. In addition they must also be applied with respectfulness and integrity. By doing so thepotential of offering “positioned” insight, explanation and interpretation for application becomespossible. The following are some examples.When the positions, “tā te Māori whakaaro” (Māori thinking), “tā te Māori titiro”, (Māori views),“tā te Māori tū” (the Māori stance) and “tā te Māori mahi” (Māori applications) are stated and heardthey are powerful space claimers, immediately centring Māori into our cultural parameters andreferents. These phrases are further takepū, highlighting the language’s ability to talk, to inform andmove the cultural ngākau (heart). With their clear kaitiaki obligations they have to each other they pointto a deep connected implication for the language and cultural heart. Consciously recognizing the levelof this companionship potentially lets cultural determination activate Māori creativity and strength inany kaupapa through any time and place.When everyday examples are shared, they are sites where takepū occur and reoccur. Thereforewhile talking to my brother who lives in urban Gisborne two months ago I asked, “kai te aha?” (how areyou?). His response was, “here I am, sitting in my garden with my friend, having breakfast”. When Iasked, “ko wai tēnā?” (who is that?), his response was, “he kererū” (a native pigeon). There they were:he with his toast and cup of tea, the kererū with its miro berries. I reflected on that moment and ourconversation and thought, “who would have thought, in the middle of urban Gisborne in this day andage, that there would be a kererū feeling safe and happily eating alongside my brother.” It dawned onme that the kererū reflected the state of Māori in this time. Māori are just part of modern society, stilllargely invisible and unknown to the wider society. However, when provided with environmentswelcoming of our presence, conducive to our mauri ora, we engage, participate and bring uniquequalities and their possibilities into each new time.That was a “tomo mai” moment, where being able to think “in our own cultural referents” led “toconceptualizing in one's own world view” (Trask, 1988, p. 54). It opens up a whole range ofpossibilities of placing and interpreting what is happening in the world, languaged through Māori andwhakapapa lens. This is all part of the processes of making sense of and revitalizing te ngākau Māori atall levels.At another level I am a grandparent, a son, a grandchild. I am a father, husband, a younger andolder brother, with a sister, a cousin and a member of several hapū and iwi. At another level I am amember of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa (TWoA) with the positions that I have there. In addition I am also amember of my community and Aotearoa society. Each of these claim positions that accord me with apurpose to my life, for my being. They each give me unique purposes with distinct obligations. Theundertaking or not undertaking of the roles within these multiple positions may be considered keycontextualized measuring markers of my willingness to take part.243