It is an exciting time for me.
Hours of research and writing, of interviews and survey analysis, revisions, revisions and more revisions, has finally culminated in a report. published as part of an international research study commissioned by UNESCO International Centre for Martial Arts (ICM) in South Korea. This has felt like a master’s thesis, and it has had the rigour of several international university professors reviewing it, so it may as well have been one! But there is something much more important than a personal achievement, this has instead been a truly humbling experience to be selected to write about Māori martial arts in collaboration with Māori experts in their field so that these practices can be recognised alongside other martial arts of the world. There was so little research written about mau rākau (Māori weapon wielding) and even less about mamau (Māori wrestling) so my sincere gratitude goes to those who have been willing to share their insights for this overview.
It’s free to download here. I’ve also sent one of very few physical copies to the National Library for safekeeping (I figure that’s more accessible than my bookshelf at home gathering dust!)
Enjoy reading 🙂
Chapter 2 (page 146 – [p73 of the pdf] )