Maori and Vegan

Tena Koutou

Yes. This blog entry is about kai, about kai-maanga (eating plants) and about Maori.

I pay tribute to journalist Amy Josianne Whiting who allowed me to articulate all these whakaaro.

They are my own and personal. All these whakaaro relate to hauora, to kai and to being Maori. People who love Papatuanuku will also enjoy reading this.

How close are you to your Maori heritage? Are you and/or your family heavily involved in the traditions and marae?

I am Ngapuhi, Ngati Maru, Ngati Whatua and Ngai Tai. I am connected to both my parent's Marae and the many marae of my Grandparents. For my whanau, I speak on our Marae and guide my whanau and hapu through our Maori Culture. I am involved in tangihanga and other hui at my own marae. Equally, as a Maori teacher, I share my language and culture as part of my profession on a daily basis.

What motivated you to become vegan? 

I have been vegetarian for nearly a year. In early January I realised that I actually have a low tolerance for dairy milk, and so decided to give up Dairy. I also don't buy eggs anyway... so the recent transition to a vegan diet was OK for me.

The primary motivations are the bigger picture, in terms of 1. My concern for Papatuanuku (Earth Mother) and my own environmental impact, a concern for Animal welfare and of course my own human physiology and health which is far more in line with a plant-based diet.

I feel great knowing, that simply by putting my fork in my mouth, I am helping animals, helping Papatuanuku and helping my own body by a very simple and joyful act of having kai. Quite simply I feel liberated from poisoning myself, and my tinana of products like meat, eggs and dairy that I just don't need.

Did you hesitate to be vegan because of your heritage, or did others advise against it? If so, how did you deal with it? Or how do you deal with it, if that sort of tension is still there? 

I am lucky. I was not discouraged. I am allowed to eat as a wish. Actually my whanau appreciate that I eat a plant-based diet and really relish and enjoy eating plant-based food with me. I love cooking for my whanau, who I live with. When visiting other whanau too, they also love when I cook for them.

I am also lucky that my partner also eats a plant-based diet too.

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I mean.... initially when I was Vegetarian I thought "Veganism would be hard.. and I'd miss Dairy and Eggs".... and while such thoughts still linger... as well as cravings... discovering the Vegan alternatives is a massive help... Also, realising the toll that Dairy puts on me physically also discourages me from consuming it.... and of course.. with eggs... I just think of their 'production' and it stops me from consuming them.

I am happy as a Vegan as I write this today.

-Do you think there are pro-vegan elements to Maori culture? (Connectivity to nature/animals?)

Quite honestly, I really think it is a lot MORE than that.

Our culture denotes Human kind as kaitiaki or sacred guardians of the earth, forests, seas, rivers and all places where we walk and swim. As virtue of who we are, who our Gods are and our place in the Cosmos, we are sacred guardians.

That is the place of humanity, or 'te ira tangata'.

By virtue of that place, when one really looks at Maori culture... we should only eat a plant based diet.

Traditionally we mainly ate plants anyway.. Proteins like birds and fish were eaten at a time when these were plentiful and their habitats and bodies werent poisoned by pollution like they are today... Birds and Fish were eaten when there were enough to eat. There is NO denying that birds and fish are an integral part of the traditional Maori diet.

THAT Being said... modern problems like Pollution, Animal population depletion and even extinction have minimised the ease of access of Maori to the bird and fish as food that they have in the past.

And to be frank... nothing can be done to reverse that... BUT we can take guidance from our culture that tells us that Maori practices like 'Rahui' (culturally imposed prohibitions) can save these bird and fish populations.... but it makes more sense in modern times to have a permanent rahui on the collection and eating of birds and fish in our traditional diet due to modern pollution, which in many cases is sadly irreversible. And such Rahui would be in line with our role as kaitiaki... or put in a authentically indigenous sense 'How can one be the guardian of fish and birds... and Slaughter them to eat????"

THEREFORE, Only a plant based diet remains for Maori in terms of a sustainable option. In terms of improvement of health.

-What would you say to someone who said you couldn't be a vegan AND Maori? 

I'd COMPLETELY disagree and say

'Actually if one wants to preserve our culture, our resources, our whenua, our Atua, our fish, our birds, our hauora (health) and our whanau (family) as Maori.. our ONLY option is to be vegan.

If we want to survive as a people... with any chance..... if we want to chuck of the shackles of colonial oppression that have forced us on to these diets which have made us diabetic and cancerous... our only option as Maori is to be vegan.

If we really love our Moana (sea) and our whenua (land) and care about it being here after we die.... the only option for Maori is to be Vegan.

If we believe in our Rangatiratanga over our health, over the lives of of us and our babies, of our longevity and continuous living as a people... our only option as Maori is to be Vegan.

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Oh... by the way... every single one of our kai like 'Fry bread' or Hangi, our boil up, our steam pudding can all be Vegan too, very easily.

And while we might miss eating kaimoana or kai from the awa (river) or ngahere)... being VEGAN ... means that all those precious animals who our ATUA charge us with looking after and caring for properly.. might just also get a chance to survive and even thrive... so it is better to NOT KILL and eat them if we really love them... I mean we love our own human kids and so we don't kill them .. and they are from the Atua...

what really is the difference with all the other creatures that Atua put on earth.

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Yes.. a long winded answer.. but thats some of the things I would say.

-What is your favorite element of veganism?

Food is tasty and fulfilling and nourishing not just for my tinana (body) but for my wairua too.

And of course, what I eat helps Papatuanuku.

-Are there any other thoughts you have about this topic? Feel free to add anything!!

Only that, through writing down and articulating these answers I see that I really am passionate about this and that what I eat, means alot to me and the planet.

Just as a final plug, if you want to see some yummy Poly-Vegan recipes, then check out Corned Buffet and Vegan Polynesian

Note: My own personal journey with Veganism is up and down and not always easy. In fact I do go between vegetarianism and veganism. BUT... I  am clear as of the date of publication that the BEST Diet for Maori is a Vegan Diet and am totally committed to working to eventually and fully align my life to Veganism