Rongoā māori

Traditionally, rongoā was taught within Māori whānau and hapū orally and through observation alongside a tohunga. Although few people today have had a chance to learn in this way, the growing interest in rongoā māori has allowed for the development of workshops and more formal qualifications.

There are 2 main forms of rongoā māori — rongoā rākau (plant remedies) and te oo mai reia (spiritual healing).

Rongoā rākau

Rongoā rākau are medicinal remedies based on plants and trees.

The Best Practice Advocacy Centre has examples of plants used in rongoā māori.

Demystifying rongoā Māori: traditional Māori healing — Best Practice Advocacy Centre NZexternal link

Te oo mai reia

Te oo mai reia uses physical techniques alongside spiritual ones. Te oo mai reia can be seen as Māori healing through:

• prayer
• cleansing work
• bodywork, such as mirimiri (massage) and kōmiri (deep massage).

The name of this type of healing and the variations may change from iwi to iwi, but the principles remain the same.

The most fundamental part of rongoā Māori is the traditional spiritual teachings, which can be seen as the basis of all traditional medicine.

For Māori, rongoā is a part of the Māori culture from Tāne (God of the forest), who retrieved the 3 baskets of knowledge from Io (the supreme being) with the knowledge and teachings to guide us in this world.

Māori believe they are part of the children of Tāne, along with all creatures of the forest, such as the birds, trees and plants. So, Māori have a strong connection to rongoā rākau.

To learn rongoā, you must become a part of the world of Tāne. You must become connected and immersed in the forest, building a relationship far beyond the physical elements of the trees and plants.

To use te oo mai reia, you must become immersed in ancient spiritual teachings, while becoming a vessel to achieve the healing through Io. Combined with the use of physical touch, this creates balance and shifts energies.

The journey to become a rongoā practitioner varies from person to person.

As with all healing practices, rongoā must be approached with care, integrity and deep respect. It is a taonga (gift) passed down through generations, rooted in whakapapa, tikanga, and mātauranga Māori.

Sharing this knowledge is not taken lightly, as it must be learned and practised in the right way, guided by the correct protocols, values, and intentions. It requires commitment, humility, and a willingness to honour the wisdom of those who came before.

People have been using rongoā for thousands of years as a holistic system of healing. It can be used with western medicine or as an alternative.

With guidance from a rongoā practitioner, rongoā māori can help you to manage your pain by changing the balance and negative energies within your body.

Māori traditional medicine is more widely known for the medicinal properties of native trees and plants, which are often used to address acute pain. But the most fundamental part of all rongoā is the spiritual component. The spiritual healing focuses more on the cause of pain, using techniques such as massage and prayer to help release negative energies.

Whānau may use rongoā rākau as a first line before seeking western medicine for a variety of conditions, such as:

• stomach aches — chewing the shoot of koromiko (hebes)
• eye pain — soaking the bark of houhere (lacebark) in cold water to form a jelly that is applied to the eyes
• sore eyes — boiling the leaves of the makomako (wineberry) and applying them directly over the eyes
• aches and pains — applying a bundle of the leaves of karamū (coprosma) to the painful area
• joint aches — bathing in an infusion of the leaves of the māhoe (whiteywood) or the bark of makomako
• muscle aches, sprains, swollen joints — boiling the leaves or all parts of the tutu (Coriaria arborea) and mushing them together and applying them to wounds. You can also soak wounds in the liquid, or apply a towel soaked in the hot infusion to the wounds
• bladder and kidney pain — boiling the shoot of the karamū (coprosma) in water or drinking an infusion of the leaves of the mānuka or kānuka trees
• toothache — chewing kawakawa leaves to relieve toothaches and the associated swelling. Drinking the liquid from boiled leaves of the matipo (māpau) is also effective.

Someone with acute or chronic pain may seek rongoā rākau to treat the illness or area causing pain. They may then seek te oo mai reia to help understand the root cause of the pain. This allows the process of healing through a combination of the practices above.

For rongoā rākau to be used, the rongoā practitioner must know about the medicinal properties of the plants and trees and the safe practices. Their awareness of how to care for themselves when healing their patient is also important.

For rongoā rākau to be used safely, the practitioner must be open to te ao Māori. Rongoā can be harvested differently by different iwi, and healers will generally have their own special place where they will harvest.

Principles of harvesting for rongoā

Harvest when the light first touches the forest

This is when it is believed that plants and trees reveal themselves for selection. You must take time selecting which tree you will harvest.

Karakia (prayer or blessing)

Everyone says karakia in their own way. Some believe that the karakia tawhito (traditional karakia) handed down by ancestors before colonisation is the only karakia that is appropriate.

But the most important thing is to remove yourself from all the stresses of the living world and to focus on the person or reason you are collecting rongoā. The karakia must come from your heart, to allow the mauri to heal, to become a vessel — a pathway to Io. It is the words that matter and the mauri that gives power to the words.

Harvest what the tree is prepared to give

Harvest with a person in mind, or a specific reason, using all your senses — sight, touch, smell, taste and hearing. Never pick from where someone else has just harvested.

Return what we have used back to the forest

You must give the nutrients that remain in the plants or trees back to the forest so it can reabsorb them and maintain its own wellbeing. Say a karakia while giving thanks for the use of the forest's healing. This is a responsibility of all practitioners.

The practice around rongoā must be upheld and maintained. The process not only makes sure that the practitioner is safe to choose the right tree or plant, but it also provides the best possible healing.

You may not want to tell your healthcare provider that you are using traditional rongoā. But it is best to tell them, so they are aware of any potential conflicts.

There is no evidence of any significant interactions with western medicine and rongoā rākau. But some plants have toxic properties. So, it is important that people who collect rongoā have the correct knowledge.