Māori underworld

Hawaiki (also rendered as in the Cook Islands, in Māori, in Samoan, in Tahitian, in Hawaiian) is, in Polynesian folklore, the original home of the Polynesians, before dispersal across Polynesia. It also features as the underworld in many Māori stories.

thumb|Māui attempting to enter Hine-nui-te-pō. Carving by Tene Waitere in the meeting house Rauru (opened in 1900). thumb|Hinenuitepo meeting house at Te Whaiti in 1930