Ko te marae te tūrangawaewae o te iwi Māori. Ko te karapinepine pūtōtoto tēnei a te tangata i ōna wā hari, pōuri hoki. He wharenui, he wharekai (he wāhi kai, he kīhini hoki), he poraka hīrere, wharepaku anō tōna. I ngā rā ō mua he wehe ēnei whare. Nō ēnei rā kua hou ake ngā marae, ā, ka tāpirihia te wharepaku ki te wharenui.
Ko ngā whare matua ka tapaina ki ngā tīpuna o te whānau, o te hapū rānei o te marae. Ko te wharenui te whare whakairi kōrero a ngā uri o te marae kia hui, kia whakanui, kia wānanga hoki. Ko tēnei hoki tētahi o ngā wāhi e takoto kau iho te tūpāpaku i te wā o te tangihanga.
Ka whai hanga te marae ki ngā whenua o te iwi. Nā te tipuna kotahi, nui atu rānei i takoha te whenua - hei marae, he mea wāhi mai rānei i tētahi whenua i raro kē i te taitara Māori. Ka huaina tēnei whenua he whenua rāhui Māori, ā, ka taka tēnei ki raro i te tekihana 338 o te Ture Whenua Māori 1993.
Ka taea i runga whenua Māori (kore here) me ngā whenua whānui te whakatū papakāinga, marae hei wāhi hui mō te hapori. Me whai rā anō te tono a ngā kaipupuri o te whenua, me te whakaaetanga a te Kōti Whenua Māori.
He hunga kaitiaki tō ngā marae katoa, he mea kōwhiri i te hunga nōna te marae. Kei te marae tonu te whakatau e hia rawa ngā kaitiaki. Heoi, kei te wāhanga 338A o te ture ngā whakaritenga mō tērā tūranga. Kei roto i ēnei whakaritenga:
He tūtohinga, he kawenata rānei tō te marae hei whakatakoto ture ārahi e pā ana ki ngā whakahaeretanga o te marae. Ko ētahi ihirangi ēnei o te tūtohinga:
I te tau 2012 ka whakauru te Tohu Pōkairua Pakihi Māori i te ine taumata mō te whakahaere marae i ēnei rā, tae atu ki ngā tūranga kaitiaki me ētahi atu tāngata whai pānga.
Ahakoa ka whakatau ngā uri ko wai hei kaitiaki mō te marae, me whakaae ōkawa rā anō e te Kōti Whenua Māori. Ka tūtohu pea te kōti kia haere te kaitiaki hōu ki tētahi akomanga e pā ana ki ngā mahi me ngā kawenga o te kaitiaki.
He mahi nui tonu te kaitiaki marae. He hua nui te marae nō te hapori. Kō atu pea i te kotahi heketea te whenua o te marae, āpiti atu ki ngā whare maha. Ākuanei te marae iti i te taiwhenua kei ngā miriona tāra tōna wāriu e haere ana. Engari ana ngā kaitiaki te hunga pīkau i ngā kawenga nui e pā ai ki te marae. Hāunga tērā, ko te iwi tonu te pakihiwi kaha o te marae, otirā rātou e whai whakapapa ai ngā reanga whakatupu.
Tērā he rau, he mano tāngata ngā uri o tētahi marae, ko te ahi kā tonu kei te pupuri tonu i te mauri o te marae.
He wā tōna ka tukua atu ngā whakahaere ki te komiti o te marae. Hei reira ka whakapā kē ki te komiti o te marae, kāpā ki te hunga kaitiaki. Tērā ētahi marae he ōrite te hunga o te komiti me te hunga kaitiaki. Hei reira māmā iho ai kia kotahi tonu te rōpū whakahaere.
Ko te mahi a te heamana he karanga i ngā hui, he tuku i ngā pānui whai pānga me te whakahaere tika i ngā hui. Kei ia tangata tonu te mana ki te whakaputa i ōna whakaaro engari mā te hui e whakatau ngā take katoa. I ētahi wā mā te pōti rā anō e whakatau te take (mēnā ka tono ētahi uri mō tētahi mahi i runga i te marae, ā, e wehe ana te iwi mō te take ki a wai te kirimana).
He nui tonu te mahi a te hēkeretari. Ko ētahi o ana kawenga he tuhi pānui ki rō niupepa, ki runga rānei i te pae ipurangi o te marae. Māna anō ngā meneti, te pupuri i te hautaka o te marae, koia ka whiwhi i ngā reta, me te tuku hoki i ngā whakautu. Māna anō e whakahou te tūtohinga o te marae me te tirotiro mēnā kei te whāia ngā tohutohu a te Kōti Whenua Māori i te wā ka whiria he kaitiaki hou. Koia tonu te kaipupuri i ngā puka katoa a te marae.
Kei te kaitiaki pūtea te kawenga kia tika ngā mahi pūtea a te marae. He wā ka waha te hēkeretari i ēnei kawenga. I ngā wā ka āhei te marae, kua utua he kaikaute moni hei tohutohu i te marae ki ngā mahi tika mō ngā moni ka uru, ka puta atu i ngā pūtea o te marae tae atu ki ngā kaupapa whai hua me ngā kawenga a te komiti. Me whakatika anō ia i te pānuitanga o ngā kaute mō ngā hui ā-tau.
He tūao ngā wātene Māori ka whai mana ki raro i te ture Whanake Hapori Māori 1962. I te Haratua i te tau 2012 ka kī te perehitini o Ngā Wātene Māori a Gloria Hughes he tawhito rawa ēnei ture. I kī a Hughes kāore te ture i whai whakaaro ki ngā mahi e mahia ana i roto i ngā hapori i ēnei rā, pērā i te tiaki i ngā tamariki karore, te matapopore ki te hunga tūmatanui, te mahi whakahaumaru, te mahi kōti taiohi, tae atu ki te hīkoi i ngā marae. Ka kī atu ngā wātene ka whiua atu ā rātou raihana ki te kore e panonitia te ture.
Ka mate ana te tangata kua whakahokia ia ki tōna marae. I te wā o te tangihanga e tau ana te marae. Ahakoa te iti o te wā, ka whakatika te hau kāinga ki te kawe i ngā mahi katoa ki te whakarite mō te taenga atu o te whānau pani. Ko ēnei ētahi o ngā mahi:
Ōrua mai ko ngā mahi hoko kai, mīti, ika, me ētahi anō kai. He mea tunu ēnei kai e ngā ringawera mō te mātinitini ka upa ake ki te tangihanga.
Me whakaaraara anō ngā kaikaranga me ngā kaikōrero a te marae. He wātene Māori tā ētahi marae mō te tangihanga. He maha ngā tautoko a ngā wātene, pērā i te whakaatu i ngā tūnga waka, i te ārahi i te hunga kūare ki ngā tikanga o runga marae me te whakakī i te tūnga kaikaranga mō te hunga e whakaeke ana i runga i te marae.
He maha ngā utu mō te marae: he utu i te hiko; he utu mō ngā tapitapi pērā i te mahi peita; te utu paipa tūtae; te hoko penehīni; te utu waea; te utu i te kaikaute; te utu mō te tuku pānui me te hoko taputapu tari; te utu i te pēke; te utu i ngā ringawera; te hoko tinei ahi; te hoko urunga, hīti hoki; te hoko taputapu kīhini; te hoko mēterēhi hou; te tapahi i ngā otaota, te hoko penehīni; me te whakahōu i ngā tū āhua o ngā whare, pērā i ngā whakairo ngā tukutuku, ngā kōwhaiwhai tae iho ki ngā whāriki.
Heoi ki ngā marae o te tuawhenua, arā anō ngā utu pērā i te horoi i ngā taika tūtae, me te hoko wai i ngā rā o te waru.
Ko te inihua hoki tētahi o ngā utu nui. E hia mano tāra ka pau atu ki te inihua i te tau kotahi.
Otirā hei whakaea i ngā nama katoa ka whakatau te marae i te utu i ia rā mō te marae. I tōna tikanga kāore ngā marae e whakatau utu mō ngā tangihanga, engari ka tuku koha kē te whānau i te mutunga o te tangi. Waihoki ka tuku koha anō ki te hāhi whakahaere i ngā karakia.
Hei tauira o te marae aruaru pūtea, i ia tau ka whiwhi te marae o Iwitea (e pātata ana ki Wairoa) i ētahi takoha mai i ērā o te hau kāinga ka pupuhi rakiraki i ō rātou maimai ki ngā roto o te rohe. E toru ngā kaporeihana whenua ka whakatū i ō rātou hui ā-tau ki runga i te marae, ā, ka whiwhi koha te marae mai i ngā kaiwhakahaere o ērā whenua. Arā tonu anō ngā whānau ka tuku koha ki te marae, ka koha taputapu rānei mō te marae ahakoa kei tawhiti e noho ana.
Ka karanga rā mahi anō ngā kaitiaki o te marae mō ngā mahi whakapaipai i te āhua o te marae pērā i ngā mahi peita. Nō reira ka utu noa iho te marae i ngā peita, ngā parāhe, ngā utu mō ngā pū pupuhi wai me ētahi atu taputapu.
Ko te mahi pūtea hoki tētahi mahi, pērā i te hoko rāwhara, me te whakatū pō hākari. Tēnā pea ka whakahaere wānanga ki runga marae, ā, he huarahi whai moni anō tērā. Ko tōna tikanga ka whai pūtea te marae mō te whakamahi i te marae me ōna taputapu. He wā ka koha anō ngā kaiako o te wānanga i ā rātou utu mahi ki te marae.
I ēnei rā kei ngā wāhi katoa ngā marae; kei ngā hōhipera, kei ngā kura. E ono ngā kaitiaki o te marae o Te Mānukanuka a Hoturoa ki te Taunga Rererangi o Tāmaki-makaurau. E toru nā te taunga rererangi i karanga, e toru nā Tainui. Ko te rāngai whakahaere i te marae ka ahu mai i te taunga rererangi me Te Roopu Kaumātua.
He mahi kaitā tonu te tahitahi i te marae me ōna āhuatanga katoa.
I te tau 2012, 35 ngā marae o te rohe o Wairoa, tae atu ki ngā whānau ka whakapau kaha ki te whakaara ake i ngā marae i ngaro i te tirohanga kanohi i tērā rautau. I te tau 2006 e 8,400 te taupori o Wairoa, ā, 4,800 o rātou he Māori. Kīhai te katoa o ngā Māori i whai pānga ki ērā marae, kīhai rānei ētahi i piripono ki ō rātou marae. Nā whai anō i tanuku ētahi o ngā marae, māna rānei, kīhai i taea te inihua.
Arā tonu te hunga kakari mō ō rātou marae, ā, mate noa.
Ko te marae te wāhi e hoki nui ai te tangata i te wā o te kapua pouri, ahakoa kei wāhi kē ia e noho ana. Engari e kore e taea tēnei āhua ki te kore ngā whakaheke werawera a te hau kāinga ki te whakapai i ngā whare me te tahi i te marae.
Trustees’ duties: Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993. Wellington: Ministry of Justice and Te Puni Kokiri, 2002.