Ko te tangihanga te tikanga a te Māori mō te hunga kua mate. Ko te kupu e whakamahi whānuitia ana ko te tangi, arā, he maringi roimata, he apakura anō (he waiata ki ngā mate).
He nui ngā kōrero a te Māori mō te hunga mate. Ki ngā huihuinga katoa ka whakamihia ngā mate, ahakoa te kaupapa, ka haere te karanga, ngā whaikōrero, ngā waiata, me te roimata riringi. Nā roto i ngā hokinga mahara atu ki a rātou kua pahure ka whakamaharatia te Māori ki ōna tātai whakapapa me ngā tikanga tuku iho – te ora, te mate, te tangata me tēnei mea te whakawhanaungatanga.
Tangihanga
Ka whakarite te tohunga tūpāpaku i te tūpāpaku mō te tangihanga. E toru rangi te roa mō te nuinga o ngā tangi ki runga marae, heoi nā te piki o te hunga noho taone ka heria ki ngā hōro, ki ngā kāinga rānei.
Ka pōwhiritia te tūpāpaku me te whānau pani ki runga i te marae. I te roanga o te tangihanga ka pōwhiritia ngā manuhiri ki runga i te marae, ā, kua tukuna ngā whaikōrero, ngā waiata me ngā haka ā tēnā, ā tēnā.
Te tōtara kua hinga
He maha tonu ngā whakataukī e huaina ana i te rongohia o tētahi mate. Hei tauira, ‘Kua hinga te tōtara i Te Wao-nui-a-Tāne.’ He rākau teitei, he rākau pakari te tōtara. Ko te rākau tonu, me tōna kiri ka pūkenga nuitia ki roto i ngā waka nunui, ngā whare me ngā taonga aha noa. Kei roto i tēnei kōrero te huatau kua mate tētahi tangata whai mana, rangatira hoki o te iwi.
I te uhunga ka tuku te minita, te pirihi, te tohunga rānei i te karakia nehu, ā, ka amohia te tūpāpaku ki te urupā mō te nehu. He ipu wai kei te kēti i te nuinga o ngā urupā, ā, ka horoi ngā tāngata i ō rātou ringa hei wete i te tapu.
I muri ko te tikanga o te takahi whare. Nō konei kua whakawāteangia ngā tapu o te whare o te tūpāpaku e te minita, te tohunga rānei mā te hīkoi mā roto i te whare me te taki haere i ngā karakia.
I ēnei wā kua whakakapia ngā mahi hahunga kōiwi ki te mahi hura kōhatu, kotahi tau i muri i te tangihanga.
I roto i te tikanga o te kawe mate ka kawea te āhua o te tangata mate ki ērā kīhai i tae ki tōna tangihanga. Ka noho ko tētahi whakaahua hei tohu i a ia.