Description of Māori Cultural Death System

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Death is a worldwide event, it will happen to all of us and how we respond to the thought of death is specific and influenced by our cultural worlds (Nikora, L. W., Masters-Awatere, B., & Te Awekotuku, N, 2012). Māori often act as if the Tangihanga is one of the only things that they possess that has not transformed over time and have a tendency to argue that it is one of the customs that absolutely remains as theirs and only theirs. Many aspects of the ceremony has changed. The religious aspects have been replaced by Christian ceremonies, but the basic elements of the gathering still remains (Oppenheim, 1973). This essay will look into the Māori cultural death system, which is also identified as Tangihanga, and how the meaning of death has changed over time due the influence of social, economic and spiritual factors. Tangihanga also known as a Tangi or funeral ceremony is a continuous institution for the Māori people who are mourning the passing of someone who has passed on. There are a number of traditions, customs and crucial concepts that are involved when it comes to the Tangihanga relating to both the physical world and the theoretical world (Barlow, 1991). When it comes to the tangihanga, it is supposed to provide a culturally safe environment with a free, open and shared expression of grief and sorrow that is seen as helping to heal the individuals involved, we also have to remember that not only is tangi a time of sadness, it is also a time of rediscovering family ties, re-establishing tribal roots and seeking strength from one another (Ngata, 1987; Tangaroa, 1988). The dead play a big part when it comes to the Māori world and they are recognised at every Māori gathering (Salmond,1975). Traditional death rituals and pr... ... middle of paper ... ...td. Ngata, P. (1987). Death, Dying and Grief, A Maori Perspective. In N. Z. Health, The Undiscover'd Country: Customs of the cultural and ethnic groups of New Zealand concerning death and dying (pp. 5-15). Wellington, New Zealand: Government Printing Office. Nikora, L. W., Masters-Awatere, B., & Te Awekotuku, N. (2012). Final Arrangements Following Death: Maori Indigenous Decision Making and Tangi. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 22(5), 400-413. doi: 10.1002/casp.2112 Oppenheim, R. S. (1973). Maori Death Customs. Wellington, NZ: A.H. And A.W.Reed LTD. Salmond, A. (1975). Hui: A Study of Maori Ceremonial Gatherings. Auckland, New Zealand Tangaroa, N. (1988). Tangihanga. Wellington, New Zealand: New Zealand Amalgamated Engineers Union Voyković, A. A. (1981). Ngā Roimata o Hine-nui-te-Pō: Death in Māori life. University of Otago, New Zealand

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