Not one of the fishes here in the Matariki calendar has fins. The fishes probably are different ascendances of Matariki. No, the fishes are going down, that means descendances (of Matariki).

 

What do these ascendings and descendings mean? Are we looking at the horizon (in the east respectively in the west)? Or is it upwards / downwards movements irrespective of location?

 

Presumably this calendar covers 360^o and we have passed the point where Matariki no longer is visible at the western horizon at the time when the sun rises.

 

The point of 'bending' (4c) probably represents the midpoint at the opposite side of the earth (nadir) - at the time of sunrise on our side of the planet.

 

And the downwards going fishes are there in all periods except in 1c, perhaps because Matariki is just disappearing at the western horizon (when the sun rises at the eastern horizon).

 

So downwards means the general motion, not the motion close to a horizon.