Karakia are an important part of te ao Māori/the Māori world, for many different contexts and situations. You may like to read our blog post about karakia in general to further your understanding.
We are grateful to Scotty Te Manahau Morrison for sharing karakia for our kaupapa.
When it comes to clearing tapu related to death with karakia and other rituals, it is important to keep everybody safe. We strongly recommend that you reach out to a tohunga, priest or someone else who is skilled in this kind of mahi/work from within your whānau/family or hapori/community to support you. Be ready to compensate them for their mahi. If you don't have somebody with this skillset in your whānau or hapori, ask around for someone who might know of such a person in your region.
If you have exhausted other avenues and do not have experienced people to support you, we do have some karakia available here for different contexts around death and dying.
They should not be offered outside of the contexts they have been composed for, and we would like to reiterate the importance of keeping safe while doing this kind of mahi - there are a range of wānanga available to grow your knowledge of tikanga/protocols relating to te ao wairua/the spirit realm.
NOTE: These karakia are for whānau to use in a personal capacity only. If you are wishing to utilise these in a professional space, you need to engage with mana whenua in your area and take their advice.
Disclaimer
How To Tangi resources are intended as a starting point for further research and discussion with your whānau and community about death, dying, and tangihanga/funerals - not as a complete guide. The information in these resources is current as at April 2025 and accurate to the best of our knowledge. Reo Māori Mai assumes no responsibility or liability for actions taken based on any of our How To Tangi content or of any other sources linked in this content.
