Matariki tāpuapua.
The Pools of Matariki.

I am the star Waipunarangi and I link the Matariki star cluster to the coming of rain. The proverb Matariki tāpuapua refers to the rainy winter season, coinciding with the appearance of Matariki in the sky.

He Roimata o Rangi / The Tears of Rangi

The word for rain is ua and a drop of rain is kōpata. Whakataritari ua was the name for weather leading up to rain, while taru whakaru was damp, cloudy weather.

Maomao was the moment when rain stopped. Māwake rangitahi referred to a sudden short squall, and māwake pā roa to a continuing rainstorm. A day of rain was called koripo marama.

The natural world offers the keen observer insight into the coming weather:

• At Arowhenua a thin collar like cloud surrounding Tarahaoa (Mt Peel) was known as the “three day cloud” foretelling that rain was imminent within three days.
• For Kāti Kuri at Kaikoura, rain with no wind is a precursor to a southerly forming which will stick around for two to three days.

Swarming namunamu (the NZ sandfly) on Te Tai-Poutini (West Coast) are indicators that rain will shortly be on its way.