REFLECTIVE INSIGHT #056 - THE STRATEGIC MIND: TE RUKI KAWITI AND THE DEFENCE OF MANA
The Master Planner
As we journey deeper into the lives of our ancestors, we come to a man of quiet brilliance and incredible foresight. Te Ruki Kawiti, the great chief of Ngāi Hine, is often remembered alongside Hone Heke as a warrior. But Kawiti was much more than a fighter, he was a master planner. He possessed a strategic mind that understood how to protect the people, how to outsmart a bigger enemy, and how to preserve our mana when it was under direct attack.
A Shield for the Whānau
When the colonial government pushed its way into the North, Kawiti did not just rush into battle blindly. He looked at the heavy weapons and the massive resource of the British military, what we recognise as the Babylonian system, and he designed a way to keep his people safe. He invented a brand-new type of fortress at places like Ōhaeawai and Ruapekapeka. He built deep underground bunkers, complex trenches, and thick walls made of puriri logs and flax. He did not build these to conquer others, he built them as a shield to protect the collective well-being of his whānau and hapū.
Wisdom Over Force
Kawiti knew that when you are dealing with a system that only cares about control and extraction, you have to be incredibly smart. You cannot use the same brute force that they use. This matches the exact guidance that Ihu (Yeshua's name in the Paipera Tapu) gave to his followers. Ihu taught us that when we are sent out into a world that can be harsh and unfair, we must use our minds and stay grounded in the truth.
A Direct Teaching of Ihu
The scriptures tell us how to carry ourselves when we are surrounded by difficult systems. Here is what Ihu said:
"Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves." Ethiopian Orthodox Bible (Matthew 10:16)
Ge'ez text: ነዋ፡ አነ፡ እፌንወክሙ፡ ከመ፡ አባግዕ፡ ማእከለ፡ ተኩላት፤ ኩኑ፡ እንከ፡ ጠቢባነ፡ ከመ፡ አራዊት፡ ወየዋሃነ፡ ከመ፡ ርግግብ።
Te Reo Māori, translated directly from Ge'ez: "Nana, e tono ana ahau i a koutou ano he hipi ki waenga i nga wuruhi; na, kia tupato koutou ano he nakahi, kia ngawari hoki ano he kukupa."
Fixing Our Own Defences
Kawiti used his wisdom to create safety. By designing the anti-artillery pā, he neutralised the enemy's big guns. This is a massive lesson for us today in Taitokerau as we work on fixing the soil of our communities. We are still dealing with external systems that drain our resources and try to manage our lives from afar. The wero for us is to use our minds to build our own modern defences. This means creating our own local networks, backing our own businesses, and making sure we are sharing the pie fairly among our own people.
The Shining Light
Kawiti showed us what local action really looks like. He did not wait for the system to give him permission to protect his people, he used the resources of the land and the intelligence of his mind to do it himself. The North is a shining light because we have always had leaders who could out-think the problems in front of them. My prayer is that we reclaim this ancestral mind today. Guided by Wairua Tapu, let us use our local agency to build a safe, peaceful, and thriving home for our tamariki.
Our Path Forward
We are the current navigators of this land. Kawiti’s peace was not a surrender, it was a strategic choice made from a position of strength. Let us stand firmly in our own mana, look after one another at the grassroots level, and prove that the North can lead the way to a better, more equitable society.
