Paper short abstract:

In this paper I describe the excavation of dangerous tapu remains by Christian Maori in 1850s Taranaki. I argue that this engagement with underground forces was central to the building of a political movement for independence in a context of colonial occupation.

Paper long abstract:

Tim Ingold, ever the romantic, has defined anthropology as the study of 'human becomings as they unfold in the weave of the world'. However, in my current research into Maori engagements with Christianity in Taranaki I have found only human struggles to dwell. Christian converts did not simply 'become' in a world that was woven like a basket but, instead, they struggled to dwell in a landscape that had, in parts, become lethal. Because the tapu remains of an earlier mode of habitation lay hidden beneath the ground, safe habitation in mid-19th century Taranaki required excavation. In this paper I describe the struggle of Maori Christians in Taranaki to dwell with and against tapu, focussing on the excavation of wahi tapu (sacred groves where pre-Christian rituals had been performed) and the unearthing of mauri (talismans) from abandoned pa (fortified settlements) in the 1850s. I argue that this engagement with underground forces was central to the building of a political movement for independence in a context of colonial occupation.