TRANSLATIONS

TRANSLATIONS

I would like to begin this investigation with a special case of ariki, viz. the one who is looking straight ahead at us (en face). There are not many such ariki glyphs, and I think the en face position indicates a position of equilibrium - one eye looking back and one in front (like Janus).

In the G text there is only one example of this variant:


Ga1-5	Ga1-13	Ga1-24	Ga2-21	Ga5-24	Ga6-3	Ga7-6

Gb3-7	Gb7-11

There are 9 ariki glyphs in all, and only 2 of them on side b, which may indicate that ariki glyphs are connected with the sun.

Counting feathers, we find 3 in a forward position on the pair Ga1-5 and Ga1-13. These two ariki belong together also by cause of being close in the text. Then there is a triplet (Ga5-24, Ga6-3, and Ga7-6) which has another feather pattern, viz. 2 (at the back) + 3 (in front). (Ga7-6, though, possibly has one more feather at the forward point of his headgear.) Together this triplet carries 3 * 5 = 15 feathers.

Gb7-11 is a special case, with 3 + 4 feathers, which presumably indicates the moon. Its ordinal number is 58 + 422 = 480 = 8 * 60 = 20 * 24, and its location is in Tama.

We can count to see if we will understand what those 2 + 3 feathers might indicate:

	8		31
Ga5-24 (135)		Ga6-3 (144)		Ga7-6 (176)
193		202		234
198		207		239
42

135 etc are ordinal numbers from Gb8-30, 193 etc from tamaiti (Gb7-3), and 198 etc beyond winter solstice (Gb6-26).

42 is equal to 10 + 32. Sun is involved. 5 * 24 = 120, 6 * 3 = 18, and 7 * 6 = 42.

207 is half 414, which together with 6 * 3 = 18 and 144 = 12 * 12 indicates a central location:

21
21	Ga5-30	Ga6-1	Ga6-2	Ga6-3	Ga6-4

135 = 9 * 15, and 176 = 2 * 88 - the significance of which will become more clear in a moment. Ga7-6 (where 7 * 6 = 42) stands close to 6 * 29.5 = 177, and it is in the last henua period:

31
31	Ga7-5	Ga7-6	Ga7-7	Ga7-8	Ga7-9	Ga7-10

42 glyphs corresponds to 6 weeks. With Ga7-7 (177) a new moon season is beginning, and henua ora 'enveloped in flames' is day number 240 beyond winter solstice.

Day number 120 beyond winter solstice is Ga2-26. But possibly we should count from winter solstice rather than beyond it, the bottom half of Ga2-25 resembles that in Gb6-26:


Ga2-20	Ga2-21 (52)	Ga2-22	Ga2-23	Ga2-24	Ga2-25	Ga2-26 (57)

In Ga2-21 is an ariki without feathers. He stands 52 + 64 = 116 = 4 * 29 dark nights counted from winter solstice:

	114		123
Gb6-26 (409)		Ga2-21 (52)		Ga7-6 (176)
*116 = 4 29**			*124 = 4 31**
*240 = 8 30**

Also, 2 * 21 = 42 appears to be quite significant (together with 52 = 4 * 13).

We can now present a better map:

	114		3		87		31
Gb6-26		Ga2-21 (52)		Ga2-25		Ga6-3 (144)		Ga7-6
1		*116 = 4 29**		120		*208 = 8 26**		240
*240 = 8 30**

A quarter (7 * 13 = 91 days) between Ga2-21 and Ga6-3 is enough to complete the sun square (144). Ariki in Ga6-3 stands 8 * 26 days from winter solstice, ariki in Ga7-6 is 8 * 30 days from winter solstice. They obviously constitute a pair.

Ariki in Ga5-24 does not seem to fit, though. 135 - 52 = 83, and 116 + 83 = 199, but the fat honu in Ga5-25 will then be number 200, 64 + 136 = 200:

20
	Ga5-22	Ga5-23	Ga5-24	Ga5-25 (136)

	Ga5-26	Ga5-27	Ga5-28	Ga5-29

Darkness is increasing it says in Ga5-27. When waning is beginning there should be a fat person, and here he stands at position 136 (or 200).

Ga2-21 has ordinal number 52 counted from Gb8-30, and 52 = 2 * 26. Winter solstice is at Gb6-26 and 208 = 8 * 26. Henua beyond the fat honu is Ga5-26.

4 * 29.5 = 118 days from winter solstice we find a haú glyph which has been explained earlier (noting its spooky character as probably indicating the old year, now only in our memory):


Ga2-20	Ga2-21	Ga2-22	Ga2-23 (54)	Ga2-24	Ga2-25	Ga2-26	Ga2-27
115	116	117	118	119	120	*121 = 11 11**	122

With Ga2-26 the square of the son of the sun is completed, and with next glyph comes the Rei which 'kicks into action' the henua calendar.

The feature 2 + 3 feathers presumably indicates the 2nd phase of 3, each 120 days long:

	118			118			118
Gb6-26		Ga2-25 (56)	Ga2-26		Ga7-6 (176)	Ga7-7		Gb3-5 (296)
1		120	121		240	241		360

118 = 4 * 29.5, and 360 = 12 * 29.5 + 6.

The henua calendar is close to coincide with the 2nd 120 day season of the sun:

	117
Ga2-27 (58)		Ga7-6	Ga7-7	Ga7-8	Ga7-9	Ga7-10 (180)
122		240	241	242	243	*244 = 2 122**

A difference with 2 days (122 - 120) at the beginning has grown to 4 days (244 - 240) at the end. The difference has increased with 2 days during 4 * 30 days. It indicates 4 times the difference between 30 and 29.5 - but such a difference should work in the other direction, decreasing the difference with 2 days to nil after 4 months.

In other words, the henua calendar seems to be based on a month with 30.5 days.