P.BaCCHeT « Te’Ā’ai a te rahuraa motu » … I te tau mātāmua roa ra, e’ia teretere ha noai te hōhonu’o te moana, te mau motu. Na ni’ai to ratou mau va’a tau’ati māere mau’ua tāpapa hia teie mau i’a na’aito rahi ma’o Māui, Tafa’i, Rū e tāna tuahine’o Hina. Arata’i hia na te mau feti’a, te mata’i e te’ōpape, turu hia na tetahi mau’ihitai faufa’a rahi,’ua haru ratou i teie mau i’a tei riro’ei motu ia āra’a ana’e. Aua’a a’e to ratou marama ta’ata, to ratou mana atua e te manamana’a to ratou mau mauhaarava’ai :’upe’a,’anave, matau ra’au, matau parau’ana’ana,’i manuia ai teie mau tautai maere rahi.’O Rū te’aito mātāmua. Nānai pi’i i te mau pū mata’i e hā na mūa reva tu ai rāua tana tuahine’o Hina e mata’ita’i te ao e huti mai te hōhonu’o te moana ia Maupiti, Tahaa, Pora Pora e ia Hava’i – Raiatea… Terā rā, hau atu i te tautai i’a, titau hia ia ha’apapū te ti’ara’a fenua,eiaha te fenua’e ho’i fa’ahou’ei i’a. I muri iho,’ua mata’ita’i’o Māui i te mau fenuai hiti’a’o te rā,’apato’erau, apato’a  : Tubua’i, Rurutu, Rimatara, Raroto’a’e’ua hī mai tetahi mau fenua. Na Tafa’i nui, tamaiti a te ho’e atua vahine’e a te ho’e ta’atai ha’apapū ia Tahiti, i’a ha’uti’uti noa tei mahuti mai ia Hava’i. Na ni’ai tana va’a Anuanua, ratou e tana mau hoa, reva atura e huti mai te hōhonu roa, ia Mo’orea, Mai’ao, Me’etia, Tuamotu ma, Ma’areva… tanai tāpiri ri’i tetahi i tetahi. Te rave tamau nei’o Air Tahiti i te’ā’ai’a teie mau’aito nui’e matau manamana to ratou no te natii te mau motu e te mau ta’ata. Air Tahiti, Te Natiraa ‘o te mau motu, le Lien entre les îles. ZOOM SUR AIR TAHITI The legend of the birth of the islands Long ago, in a far distant time, the islands were great ish, that swam the ocean’s depths. The demi-gods Māui, Tafa’i, Rū and his sister Hina pursued them in their spectacular double-hulled canoes. Guided by the stars, the winds and ocean currents, assisted by their valiant human crews, they captured the magical ish that, once broughtup from the depths, transformedinto islands. This incredible catch was made possible thanks to their human intelligence, their divine qualities and their magical ishing tackle  : nets, line and hooks made from wood or shimmering mother-of-pearl. Rū was the trailblazer. He namedthe cardinal points and then, with his sister Hina, set of to discover the world, pulling Maupiti, Tahaa, Pora Pora (Bora Bora) and Hava’i, now called Raiatea, out of the sea But it wasn’t enough just to ishup the islands, they had to be ixed in place, or they would transformback into ish and swim away. Later, Māui visited the emergent lands to the East, North and South  : Tubua’i, Rurutu, Rimatara, Rarotonga and caught many islands. Tafa’i, a giant, the son of a goddess and man, managed to stabilize Tahiti, stilla writhing ish, detached from Hava’i (Raiatea). Then on his canoe Anuanua (Rainbow), with his comrades, he raised from the depths  : Mo’orea, Mai’ao, Me’etia, the Tuamotus, Mangareva…..pulling them closer to one another. Air Tahiti continues in the tradition of these legendary heroes with their magical ishhooks, bringing both islands and men closer. Air Tahiti, Te Natiraa ‘o te mau motu, the link between the islands. 87