The Two Sorcerers (Polynesian myth)
"The Two Sorcerers" is a Polynesian myth centered around two powerful sorcerers, Kiki and Tamure. Kiki, who resides along the Waikato River, possesses immense magical abilities that are feared throughout New Zealand; his shadow alone can wither plants, and he can cause harm to those who approach him. Tamure, a chief from Kawhia, becomes intrigued by Kiki's reputation and seeks to determine who is the more powerful sorcerer. Accompanied by his daughter and two tribesmen, Tamure embarks on a cautious journey to Kiki's village, employing protective incantations to shield himself and his party from Kiki's magic.
Upon arrival, Tamure cleverly navigates the situation by casting his own spells against Kiki while ensuring his daughter consumes the enchanted food. Ultimately, Tamure's cunning allows him to leave Kiki's village unharmed, leading to Kiki's illness and eventual death. This myth highlights the cultural significance of sorcery in Māori traditions, where sorcerers were respected figures capable of wielding powerful magic, often serving as priests and community leaders. The story reflects the complex interplay of power, fear, and respect associated with sorcery in ancient Polynesian society.
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Subject Terms
The Two Sorcerers (Polynesian myth)
Author: Traditional
Time Period: 1001 CE–1500 CE
Country or Culture: Polynesia
Genre: Myth
PLOT SUMMARY
Upon the river Waikato there lives a revered and powerful sorcerer named Kiki. He is such a powerful sorcerer that he is not able to leave his house while the sun is out—if his shadow touches any plants, they wither and die. When strangers travel the river to call at his village, Kiki remains in his home and does not trouble himself to leave, but when he draws back the sliding door of his house, the strangers stiffen up and die. His magic is so strong that even as canoes paddle in from the upper parts of the river, Kiki just has to slide back his window shutter and the people onboard die.
Kiki’s notoriety spreads throughout the tribes and all of New Zealand, including in Kawhia, where the chief Tamure becomes particularly interested in Kiki’s magical powers. Tamure decides to go to Kiki’s village and see who the more powerful sorcerer is. When the season is right to travel to Kiki’s village, Tamure chooses two of his tribesmen to go with him as well as his young daughter. Together, Tamure’s party travels in a canoe on the river Waikato to Kiki’s village. Tamure is a cautious man, so as they paddle toward the village, he repeats an incantation called “Mata-tawhito” in order to protect himself and his party from Kiki’s sorcery and to ward off evil spirits. Without being seen, the party makes it to the landing place, where they drag their canoe onto the beach.
Kiki welcomes the party to his village and invites them into the square in the center. Tamure and his party seat themselves on the ground as Kiki’s people cook food for them. Kiki remains in his house, so Tamure takes the opportunity to repeat incantations over the house’s entrance in order to cast a spell over the sorcerer when he exits. Kiki appears out of the house when the food is ready to be served. Tamure knows that the food is enchanted and that he will die if he eats it, so he has his young daughter eat while he repeats incantations to protect her. Seeing that no one else is eating the food, Kiki returns to his home. When he does, Tamure casts a spell on the threshold of the house so that Kiki will not be able to leave it.
Tamure and his party then leave Kiki’s village, and when they depart, the sorcerer becomes sick. On their way home, the party passes a village where many good people are gathered on the riverbank. Tamure asks them to tell any canoe that pursues the party that they saw the canoe pass by a long time ago. Then Tamure and the party continue home in haste. Kiki quickly becomes very ill, and his people know that Tamure is to blame. A group of them chases after him in a canoe, and when they come to the good people on the riverbank, they are told that Tamure and his party passed by long ago. Hearing this, Kiki’s people return to their village and the sorcerer dies shortly after.
It is said that both sorcerers have descendants. Both men passed down their incantations to the descendants, who are also skilled in magic.
SIGNIFICANCE
Sorcery is an integral part of traditional Māori culture, and during ancient times, rituals and rites were performed throughout all of the islands that make up Polynesia. Sorcerers were typically members of the priestly class and were highly revered (and often feared) by the community. In some Polynesian cultures, they were referred to as priests. With the assistance of spirits, sorcerers would tell the future, cause harm to others for revenge or other reasons, or influence the course of events. Some sorcerers harnessed their powers through small, humanlike statues called “fetchers.” A sorcerer’s fetcher would contain a spirit or a ghost. Many sorcerers owned several of these statues and cared for them like children.
Early Polynesians lived in fear of black magic, so they were careful not to let their personal belongings fall into the hands of an enemy, for personal items could be used in black magic rituals to cause their owner harm. If a member of a tribe thought he or she was a victim of black magic, he would consult a sorcerer, who could make a diagnosis. If the sorcerer determined the person was under a spell, he would require the person to offer up certain prayers and sacrifices to a specific god in the effort to stop the one who cast the black magic. For their services, sorcerers were highly paid. Highly successful sorcerers—the ones seen as the most powerful—garnered great reputations among the islands and were oftentimes hired by the various high chiefs.
It was not uncommon for Māori people to believe that these sorcerers possessed great supernatural powers. For instance, they believed that Kiki’s shadow could wither plants. It was said that another Māori sorcerer named Papahurihia had the ability to transport himself from place to place. There were some recordings of this tradition of sorcery in modern times as well. One of the last Māori sorcerers was named Chief Te Heuheu. In the late nineteenth century, an Anglican bishop tried to convert the chief to Christianity, but Te Heuheu allegedly revived a dead leaf before the bishop’s eyes and the bishop then left the chief alone.
The Waikato region where Kiki resided was densely populated with Māori people. Sir George Grey compiled this version of “The Two Sorcerers” in the 1840s and 1850s while he was serving as the British Governor of New Zealand. To communicate properly with the Māori chiefs, Grey had their myths translated and he compiled them in his work Polynesian Mythology & Ancient Traditional History of the New Zealanders, which was first published in 1855. It has since become an invaluable source for Polynesian mythological studies.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Craig, Robert D. Handbook of Polynesian Mythology. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2004. Print.
Eason, Cassandra. “Maori Magick: Cassandra Eason on the History of Maori Magic.” Cassandra Eason. Cassandra Eason, 2009. Web. 8 June 2013.
Edward, Tregear. The Maori Race. New York: Hard Press, 2013. Print.
Grey, George. “The Two Sorcerers.” Polynesian Mythology & Ancient Traditional History of the New Zealanders. London: Murray, 1855. 273–79. Print.
Shortland, Edward. Maori Religion and Mythology: Illustrated by Translations of Traditions, Karakia, etc. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2011. Print.