This done, Ihenga took up another kohukohu, and held it aloft in his hand, while Kahu chanted thus:—
Close up Night, close up Day,
Close up Night as the soft south wind.
The tapu of the food
And the mana of the food,
The food with which you are fed,
The food of Kutikuti,
The food of Pekapeka,
The food of Haua-te-rangi.
I eat, Uenuku eats.
I eat, Kahukura eats.
I eat, Rongomai eats.
I eat, Ihungaro eats.
I eat, Itupaoa eats.
I eat, Hangaroa eats.
I eat, Ngatoro-irangi eats.
I eat, Tama eats.
[pg 62]
This ended, Kahu proceeded thus:
If I fall from the precipice,
Let me not be harmed.
If I fall on the taramoa,
Let me not be scratched.
If I eat of the maihi[45] of tohunga’s house,
Let me not be harmed.
Be thou undermost,
While I am uppermost.
Give me your mana to strike down.
Close tight your spirit-devouring teeth.
Close tight your man-devouring teeth.
Then Kahu spat on the kohukohu, breathed on it, and offered it to Tama, that is to say, to the image of Tama-te-kapua. Kahu and Ihenga then ate the food cooked for them in the sacred oven. Ihenga ate with a fork, while at the same time he fed Kahu with his left hand.
The same ceremonies were observed at the evening meal.
Eight days after the ceremony of Pure, the heart of Ihenga conceived a desire. He was taken with the fair face of Hinetekakara; so he asked Kahu, “When shall we two be free from tapu?” Kahu replied “We two will not soon be free.” “Oh! be quick,” said Ihenga, “that I may return to my elder brothers, to my mother, and to my sisters.” Kahu said, “You will not be dismissed soon—not until the tapu is completely removed from you.” “How many nights, then, after this?”
[pg 63]
Kahu answered, “Twenty nights.”