The Whale Rider

An overall story arc in The Whale Rider is the restoration of oneness between man and beast. At the beginning of time, God, man, and animals lived in communion together on Hawaiki. Once whales were granted dominion over the ocean, they served as guides to men lost at sea. Likewise, certain blessed individuals possessed the necessary skills to communicate with whales. Rawiri tells this tale,

From the very beginning the whale was grateful for this release and this was why the whale family, the Wehenga-kauiki, became known as the helpers of men lost at sea. Whenever asked, the whale would attend the call, as long as the mariner possessed the necessary authority and knew the way of talking to whales (25).

Kahutia Te Rangi is one of the blessed men who could speak with whales. He initially does this by mirroring the emotions of the ancient bull whale in his flute playing. The Maori ancestor is tasked with making the barren land of a nearby island fruitful. On his voyage to the new island, he brings with him “life-giving forces which would enable us to live in close communion with the world” (20). These forces came in the form of