We should return to Heke. This mythical beast held down the sky roof with his powerful arms stretching them out in 4 cardinal ('heart') directions. ... The sun was held down close above the slowly evolving earth by the Great Octopus, Tumu-rai-fenua, Foundation of Heaven and Earth, who lived in the primeval waters on which the earth floated. One of his arms was to the north, one to the south, one to the east and another to the west. With these vast arms he held the sky, the shell Rumia, close down against the earth ... In the meeting houses of the Maori there were rafters in the roof with names which could refer to the Great Octopus above - picture copied from D. C. Starzecka, Maori Art and Culture:
In other words, Heke should be at the opposite side of high summer. The Octopus should be where there was a mimimum of light, like inside the Easter Island's hare paega:
... The most vivid description of hut interiors is given by Eyraud ... who slept in them several nights: Imagine a half open mussel, resting on the edge of its valves and you will have an idea of the form of that cabin. Some sticks covered with straw form its frame and roof. An oven-like opening allows its inhabitants to go inside as well as the visitors who have to creep not only on all fours but on their stomachs. This indicates the center of the building and lets enter enough light to see when you have been inside for a while. You have no idea how many Kanacs may find shelter under that thatch roof. It is rather hot inside, if you make abstraction of the little disagreements caused by the deficient cleanliness of the natives and the community of goods which inevitably introduces itself ... But by night time, when you do not find other refuge, you are forced to do as others do. Then everybody takes his place, the position being indicated to each by the nature of the spot. The door, being in the center, determines an axis which divides the hut into two equal parts. The heads, facing each other on each side of that axis, allow enough room between them to let pass those who enter or go out. So they lie breadthwise, as commodiously as possible, and try to sleep. With 8 arms and 4 directions there ought to have been a pair of arms in each direction, and to my mind comes the picture of Sleipner, the one-eyed Odin's 8-legged horse:
... Possibly Sleipner has here been forced to accommodate to a rule which says there should be only 4 'limbs', only a 4 quartet of 'longitudes' in a web of time ... Indeed a pair of stars were used for instance at Al Sharatain.
And the close by Polaris formed another pair together with Baten Kaitos. Possibly a pair of star lines, one at the back and one in front, could indicate a doubled 'Octopus arm'. An eye is mata, a word which also meant face. The Roman god Janus (as in January) had one face looking into the shadows of the past and one looking ahead into the season of light:
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