Today marks the winter solstice - in the Rapa Nui language Ta'u Ho'ou - celebrated on Ahu Huri a Ureŋa on Rapa Nui, Easter Island. This celebration is also known as Aringa Ora o Koro the New Year celebration of the Rapa Nui.
The cosmos has been observed and often revered by all ancient civilizations since the beginning of time. Rapa Nui is no exception, because here the sun, the moon, the planets, the stars, the constellations and their position in the firmament were observed throughout the year.
In the past, it was the Maori u'i hetu'u or star experts who recognized that the appearance of this or that star in the sky or its change in position coincided with certain natural phenomena on land and in the sea.
The position of the stars in the sky determined the right time for sowing or harvesting, the arrival of migratory birds, turtles, the spawning of certain fish and other aspects of nature and were also particularly important for seafaring. On each special occasion, there were ceremonies at sacred places, the ahu (altars), where the ancestors were honored and, according to tradition, prayers were made for fertility and productivity for the families and the natural resources.
One of the most important constellations is that of the Pleiades, known as Matariki on Rapa Nui. The Pleiades appear with the first light of dawn at the end of May and June and indicate the beginning of the winter solstice and the new year.
The celebration of the appearance of the Pleiades took place at Ahu Huri a Ureŋa, an altar with astronomical alignment erected perpendicular to the azimuthal line, the imaginary line that connects the rising and setting of the sun on this date and marks the longest night of the year.
The ancient Rapa Nui learned to distinguish the solstices and equinoxes based on the stars and thus recognize the different seasons. There were special ceremonies and rituals for each season to give thanks and attract positive forces.
In recent years, the Rapa Nui community has revived this ancient tradition and is once again organizing commemorative ceremonies to mark this significant date. The return of these astronomical traditions represents a beautiful reunion with ancestral knowledge and keeps alive the spiritual connection between the Rapa Nui people and the cosmos that has guided their existence on this remote Pacific island for millennia.
