tpr2

15/10/2025

A strong whare needs solid walls — and a strong foundation. In Te Ao Māori, health is balance: body, mind, spirit, whānau, and whenua. Within whenua lies whakapapa — our origins, roots, and belonging. 🌿💪🏽✨

In 2025, train not just for strength, but for harmony. Terry Crews reminds us that patience, consistency, and listening to your body build lasting strength. Don’t forget the little things: a walk, fresh air, or Yin Yoga can calm the mind.

I also nurture my spirit through learning whakataukī and reading thinkers like Seneca: “Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for a kindness.” And remember: He kai kei aku ringa — there is food at the end of your hands.

How do you strengthen the walls and foundation of your whare? Drop your whakaaro in the comments.

check out the latest blogpost at https://tekupuotepono-niohu.wordpress.com/2025/09/20/te-whare-tapa-wha-building-strength-inside-and-out/

15/10/2025

15/10/2025

A Love That Endures
I came across a beautiful Whakataukī recently, and it immediately made me reflect on the deep, unwavering nature of true love—the kind that truly lasts forever. This wisdom from our tīpuna (ancestors) says:

"He taura whiri tō mātou aroha, e kore e taea te wewete."
(Our love is a braided cord, it cannot be undone.)

That image is so powerful. A braided cord (taura whiri) symbolizes strength because the multiple strands are intricately woven together, making the connection impossible to break or separate.

This made me look for whakaaro (thoughts/ideas) from famous poets and other wise thinkers, and I found this reflection from Honoré de Balzac:

"True love is eternal, infinite, and always like itself. It is equal and pure, without violent demonstrations: it is seen with white hairs and is always young in the heart."

It also made me think about stories of unwavering devotion, like in the movie Forrest Gump, and this quote from Roger de Bussy-Rabutin: "Absence is to love what wind is to fire; it extinguishes the small, it enkindles the great." It is proof that what we shared—and what endures—is the real thing.

This journey of reflection brought me full circle, affirming the powerful final promise from our people: that no force can truly sever a profound human connection.

"He hono tangata e kore e motu; ka pa he taura waka e motu."
(Unlike a canoe rope, a human bond cannot be severed.)

A canoe rope breaks in rough seas, but the spiritual and emotional bond (hono tangata) between people is stronger than any physical tie and can never be cut. That kind of love never fades. ❤️

15/10/2025

🌿 “Whatungarongaro te tāngata, toitū te whenua.”
People pass on, but the land remains.

This whakataukī reminds us of the impermanence of life. Our joys, our struggles, and even our very existence are fleeting — yet the whenua endures, carrying the memory of those who came before us. It is a call to humility, perspective, and legacy.

This wisdom from our tipuna I found myself reflecting on as I started looking for the origins of the quote “This too shall pass”, which I heard while listening to an interview (his last, just hours before he was shot) with Charlie Kirk. He said he liked it because in hard times it reminded him to hold on, and in good times it reminded him to stay humble.

Searching for where this saying came from (the Persians have been credited widely for this saying), I discovered that Abraham Lincoln used it in his 1859 Address before the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society:

“It is said an Eastern monarch once charged his wise men to invent him a sentence which should be true and appropriate in all times and situations. They presented him the words: 'And this, too, shall pass away.' How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of pride! How consoling in the depths of affliction!” — Abraham Lincoln

It also reminded me of the wisdom of the Stoics. Seneca wrote:

“What fortune has made yours today, may be another’s tomorrow. Nothing is ours, except time.” — Seneca

Different voices, different times, yet all pointing to the same truth: nothing lasts forever. Joy, pain, success, and hardship all move on — what remains is how we live and what we leave behind.

And so I come back to the words of our tipuna:

🌤️ “He ao te rangi ka uhia, mā te huruhuru te manu ka rere.”
Though the sky may be overcast, with feathers the bird will fly.

Even in the hardest seasons, the skies will clear, change will come, and we will rise again.

15/10/2025

🌬️ Breath of the Warrior 🌬️

In every martial arts session, there's a moment just before a strike when everything becomes still. The noise fades, the muscles loosen, and only one thing remains: the breath. This stillness is where focus, discipline, energy, and presence converge.

Through my journey in Budōkan and Taekwondo, I learned to align breath, body, and mind. These lessons mirrored the values of aroha, manaakitanga, and kaitiakitanga in Te Ao Māori, guiding my approach to leadership and business.

The word kite in both Japanese and Māori beautifully illustrates this connection. In Japanese, it means to come, to seek, to find; in Māori, it means to see, to perceive, to know. Both reflect a journey of awareness, presence, and discovery.

In Taekwondo, the kiai—a sharp, spirited exhalation—became more than a shout; it was a declaration of being: I am here. I am connected. I am alive. In Te Ao Māori, this life force is carried on the hā—the breath that connects all living things.

This shared truth across martial arts, business, and Māori wisdom reminds us that to move, to breathe, to express, is also to see, to find, to connect.

Read the full post here: https://tekupuotepono-niohu.wordpress.com/2025/10/11/breath-of-the-warrior/

07/09/2025

What do How to Win Friends, Think and Grow Rich, and The E-Myth all have in common? They're not just about business—they're about growing yourself.

This powerful idea resonates with the Māori whakataukī: "Whāia te iti kahurangi, ki te tūohu koe, me he maunga teitei." (Seek the treasure you value most, if you bow your head, let it be to a lofty mountain.)

In our new blog post, we explore how personal growth and professional success are intertwined, and how timeless wisdom from these books and from Te Ao Māori can guide your journey.

Ready to grow yourself to grow your venture? Read more here: tekupuotepono-niohu.wordpress.com