Maui Steals Fire

The Loss of Fire

In the early times, humans had fire, but they did not know how to make it. The secret of fire belonged to Mahuika, Maui's grandmother (or great-grandmother), who lived at the edge of the world. She kept fire in her fingernails and toenails, which blazed eternally.

One night, Maui extinguished all the fires in his village. When morning came and the people woke to cold hearths, they were distraught.

"The fires are out! How will we cook? How will we stay warm?"

Maui's mother turned to him. "You must go to your grandmother Mahuika in the underworld. She is the keeper of fire. Ask her for some so we can rekindle our hearths."

Maui agreed, though he had his own plans.

The Journey to Mahuika

Maui traveled to the place where Mahuika dwelt, following the path his mother described. He found an old woman sitting by a fire that seemed to burn without fuel. Her hands and feet glowed with inner flame.

"Grandmother," Maui said politely, "I have come from the world above. Our fires have gone out. Will you give me fire so my people can cook and stay warm?"

Mahuika was pleased to see her great-grandson. "Of course, child." She pulled off one of her flaming fingernails and gave it to him. "Take this and guard it well."

The Trickster's Game

Maui took the burning nail, but as soon as he was out of sight, he extinguished it in a stream. Then he returned to Mahuika.

"Grandmother, I stumbled and dropped the fire in water. May I have another?"

Mahuika frowned but gave him a second fingernail. Again Maui extinguished it. Again he returned. This continued until Mahuika had given away all her fingernails. Then she began on her toenails.

Maui was not merely foolish - he was testing how much fire Mahuika possessed, learning the full extent of her power.

Mahuika's Rage

When Mahuika had only one toenail left, she finally understood that Maui was tricking her. Enraged at his deception, she pulled off her last nail and threw it at him.

"You think you're clever? I'll show you fire!"

The world erupted in flames. Fire raced across the land, consuming everything in its path. Maui ran, but the fire pursued him. In desperation, he called upon his power to change shape, transforming into a hawk (or in some versions, he called upon the god of rain).

The Salvation of Fire

Maui called down rain to quench the fire. Great storms swept across the land, extinguishing the blaze. Mahuika screamed as her fire died, but at the last moment, she threw her final sparks into certain trees: the kaikomako, the mahoe, the totara, and the pukatea.

The rain stopped. The fire seemed gone entirely. But Maui, wise in the ways of the world, examined the trees where Mahuika's last sparks had hidden. He found that when he rubbed the wood together rapidly, fire emerged.

This is how humans learned to make fire. The secret is hidden in the wood of these trees, placed there by Mahuika's dying flames, discovered by Maui's cleverness.

The Gift and the Price

Maui returned to his village and taught the people how to create fire from wood. Never again would they be helpless when their fires went out. This was Maui's gift to humanity.

But Mahuika was not destroyed - she retreated to the volcanoes, where her fire still burns. When volcanoes erupt, it is Mahuika's rage still smoldering. The alliance between Maui's descendants and Mahuika's fire remains uneasy to this day.