Author(s): Patricia Grace

Children & Young Adult

This is the story of the great Ngati Toa chief Te Rauparaha and how he came to compose the haka 'Ka Mate, Ka Mate'. Te Rauparaha is pursued across the island by his enemies and he fears for his life. At Lake Rotoaira, he is hidden in a kumara pit, and Te Rangikoaea, a woman of great power, sits in front of its entrance. As he hears his enemies approach, Te Rauparaha whispers in the dark 'Will I die? Will I live?'. His enemies cannot find him, and he climbs back to the sunlight.