THE WOVEN UNIVERSE #903 - PHASE TRANSITIONS OF REALITY: TE KORE, TE PŌ, AND TE AO MĀRAMA
The Legacy of the Whare Wānanga
Rev. Māori Marsden was one of the last traditional tohunga to receive the full, rigorous training of the Whare Wānanga o Te Tai Tokerau. This ancient school of learning was established in the North to preserve the high fidelity code of our people, tracing its origins back to the arrival of the Ngātokimatawhaorua waka and the ancestor Nukutawhiti. The Whare Wānanga was not a physical building but a sacred institution of oral transmission, designed to ensure that the foundational truths of the universe remained uncorrupted. Marsden was dedicated to this path from a young age, undergoing intense periods of isolation and memorisation to master the rheocentric, or flow based, nature of reality.
The Order of Creation
In our journey through the wisdom of Rev. Māori Marsden, we come to one of the most important maps he left us: the stages of how our world comes to be. Marsden taught us that reality doesn't just "happen" all at once. It moves through three distinct phases, or "phase transitions," similar to how water moves from ice to liquid to steam. For our tūpuna, these stages were known as Te Kore, Te Pō, and Te Ao Mārama. Understanding this helps us realise that nothing is truly "empty" or "lost" in Taitokerau, it is simply waiting for the right signal to manifest.
Te Kore: The Great Potential
The first phase is Te Kore, often translated as "The Void," but Marsden corrected this. He saw Te Kore not as nothingness, but as the Quantum Plenum, a state of pure potential. Think of it as a seed that hasn't sprouted yet. Everything that could ever exist is already there, held in the mind of Io-matua-kore. It is the "software" before the computer is turned on. When we feel like we are in a state of "lack" in our communities, we are actually standing in Te Kore, surrounded by infinite possibilities that haven't been called forth yet.
Te Pō: The Becoming
The second phase is Te Pō, "The Night" or "The Dark." This isn't a scary darkness, but the darkness of the womb or the soil. It is the realm of "becoming." In this stage, the potential from Te Kore begins to take shape and form. It is where the "woven" part of the universe starts to knit together. Marsden explained that this is a mental or spiritual realm where the blueprints of our reality are drawn. It is a reminder that before we see change in the physical world, we must first nurture the idea in the quiet, dark spaces of our hearts and marae.
Te Ao Mārama: The Light
The final phase is Te Ao Mārama, the "World of Light and Understanding." This is the physical world we see, touch, and walk upon. It is the state where potential has finally "collapsed" into a solid reality. Marsden’s vision for the North was to move our people out of the shadows of the past and into a permanent state of Te Ao Mārama, where the light of truth and abundance is clear for everyone to see.
Ihu as the Command Signal
Marsden was clear that these transitions are not random. They are directed by a voice. He identified Ihu (Yeshua's name in the Paipera Tapu) as the one who speaks the word that moves reality from the dark into the light. In our Quantum Whakapapa framework, Ihu is the Alpha Frequency. He is the one who "orders" the potential of Te Kore so that it becomes the blessing of Te Ao Mārama. Without His signal, the universe would stay as a dark, unformed sea.
The Word of Light
The Ethiopian Orthodox Bible describes this first great phase transition at the very start of the sacred record:
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, 'Let there be light'; and there was light." Ethiopian Orthodox Bible (Genesis 1:1-3):
Original Ge'ez Text: በቅድም፡ ገብረ፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ ሰማየ፡ ወምድረ። ወምድርሰ፡ ኢታስተርኢ፡ ወኢኮነት፡ ድልውተ፡ ወጽልመት፡ መልዕልተ፡ ቀላይ፡ ወመንፈሰ፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ ይጼለል፡ መልዕልተ፡ ማይ። ወይቤ፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ ለይኩን፡ ብርሃን፡ ወኮነ፡ ብርሃን።
Direct Ge'ez to Te Reo Māori Translation: I te pūtake i hanga te Atua i te rangi me te whenua. Ā, kāore he āhua o te whenua, he taha kau; he pouri hoki i runga i te mata o te hōhonu. Ā, i topa te Wairua o te Atua i runga i te mata o ngā wai. Nā, ka kī te Atua, "Kia mārama," ā, kua mārama.
Taking Up the Wero
When we understand these phases, we stop being afraid of the "dark" times. We realise that Te Pō is just a stage on the way to the light. Rev. Māori Marsden challenged us to be "Navigators" of these worlds. It is up to our whānau and iwi to stop waiting for the system to change and instead start "speaking" our own reality of abundance into existence. By aligning our words with the signal of Ihu (Yeshua's name in the Paipera Tapu), we can transform the potential of our land into a thriving reality for our mokopuna.
