What do you look for in a paddle? You want it to be strong yet light. Beautiful, yet not dainty. Do you choose the ultra high-tech, or the natural and hand-made?

For many North Americans, a paddle is nothing more than a tool, but to the Maori of New Zealand, the paddle, or hoe, is a living spirit to be respected and partnered with. This past spring, I lived with Maori canoe builders, Hector Busby and Opo Harrison, and learned to carve traditional paddles. It utterly changed my outlook on the importance of the paddle.

Maori paddles, like all Maori carvings, have a life force, or mauri, which give it a spirit. Chiseled from the towering and sacred Kauri trees, the woodworker brings the paddle to life by putting his or her own life force into it. When I made paddles for my friends and family under watchful instruction, I felt that care seep into the work, giving each paddle a unique personality. So much more so once the eyes—made from local shellfish shells—were set. Then the paddle really came to life.

This life force radiates from carvings that the Maori have mastered. Many ceremonial paddles have faces carved into them, the blade representing a tongue. Carvers from various tribes across the islands have different symbols they use that are meaningful to them. A strict code of conduct reserved for sacred objects, tapu, is applied to Maori paddles.

Rule number one: never place the paddle tip on the ground (you wouldn’t put your tongue on the ground). Rule number two: never step over the paddle. Rule number three: treat it in the same manner you would treat an elder, or any other person for that matter. Plenty of young paddlers can be found doing push ups, atoning for accidental bumps and clinks of their paddles.

The do’s are more subtle than the don’ts. When it comes to carving a paddle, the do’s focus on learning discipline and carefully choosing the symbols that are meaningful to you. 

Next time you’re shopping for a new paddle, or perhaps getting ready to hand make your own, think of the Maori. Does your paddle feel right and have a character that you connect with? Does it have symbols that represent you? It’s your paddle that takes you to those special waters, one lick at a time. Make it count.

Will Meadows is a Watson Fellow traveling the world building traditional canoes with native masters. Follow his journey at www.humanitysvessel.com

This article first appeared in the June issue of Paddling Magazine, download it to your Apple or Android device or read online here. 

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