Swami Ratnamurti Saraswati

18/07/2026

01/04/2026

Great news. Titirangi Healers are open Easter Monday

22/02/2026

I have seen people who were short limbed and lived many thousands of years ago. The ones that I saw, several times, taking people through past lives, were not primitive peoples. They lived in sync with nature, could read the weather, the air, communicated with faeries, were guardians of crystal caves.

Just a few weeks ago, a groundbreaking new study confirmed what had long been an unsettling suspicion among archaeologists: the Lapedo Child, whose remains were discovered in a Portuguese cave in 1998, is far more than just an ancient child's fossil. Using cutting-edge molecular dating techniques, scientists have determined that the child lived between 27,800 and 28,500 years ago. But the most astonishing revelation is that this child was not a pure Homo sapiens, nor a full Neanderthal—he was a hybrid. The offspring of two distinct human species. And that changes everything.

Until recently, it was widely believed that Neanderthals had gone extinct around 40,000 years ago without leaving direct descendants. However, this new analysis not only reveals that Neanderthals were still around thousands of years later, but that they were also interbreeding with modern Homo sapiens. The Lapedo Child had a robust jaw and short limbs, traits typical of Neanderthals, along with a rounded skull and defined chin like those of modern humans. These features aren’t random; they are the unmistakable markers of interspecies hybridization—physical proof that human evolution is not a straight line, but a braided stream of shared blood and heritage.

Even more intriguing is the context of the burial itself. The child had been carefully laid to rest, covered in red ochre, surrounded by animal bones and feathers—elements that suggest a symbolic funeral ritual. Such practices were rare among southern European Homo sapiens of that era but were common among Neanderthals. Could it be that we also inherited their beliefs, their rituals, their view of life and death? This discovery, confirmed in March 2025 by multiple European research teams, strongly implies that modern humans are not the product of a single lineage, but of a deep, ancient fusion. The legacy of the Neanderthals lives on—not only in our DNA but perhaps in our emotions, our fears, our memories, and our ways of honoring the dead. The Lapedo Child is not just a fossil—he is a reminder that our humanity is, and always has been, shared.

22/02/2026

Pūrākau of Tāne Mahuta and the origins of rongoā

Within Māori cosmology, the natural world is understood through whakapapa. Plants, forests, and healing practices do not exist independently of atua but emerge through relationships that establish order, balance, and purpose within Te Ao Māori.

Following the separation of Ranginui and Papatūānuku, Tāne Mahuta assumed responsibility for the flourishing of the world of light. This responsibility extended beyond the formation of the forest itself to the generation of life capable of sustaining, healing, and supporting humankind. In pūrākau, this process is expressed through Tāne’s unions with atua wāhine, each embodying distinct domains of the taiao.

Hine te iwaiwa carries authority over women’s wellbeing, fertility, childbirth, and weaving. From her whakapapa came harakeke, a plant central to healing, protection, clothing, and social continuity. Harakeke embodies principles of care, regeneration, and collective responsibility, and its use is governed by tikanga that reflects its wāhine lineage.

Hine tū a huru is associated with trees, bark, and the structural strength of the forest. From this domain emerged trees whose bark, sap, and resins were used for pain relief, wound treatment, and protection. In this whakapapa, trees are recognised as healers, reinforcing their role as living taonga rather than inert materials.

Hine wai and Hine korako are connected to moisture, water margins, and leafy growth. Plants descending from these atua wāhine are commonly used in leaf based rongoā for cooling, cleansing, soothing inflammation, and restoring balance to the wairua. Their effects are gradual and gentle, reflecting the environments from which they arise.

Hine ahua is understood as the atua wāhine associated with form and physical expression. Through her influence, plants assumed distinct structures and functions. Leaves that draw and release, roots that ground and stabilise, bark that protects, and flowers that signal vitality. This understanding underpins rongoā practice, where observation of form, growth pattern, texture, and habitat informs both diagnosis and treatment.

Taken together, these pūrākau articulate a worldview in which rongoā is inseparable from whakapapa. Plants are not resources to be extracted but kin with genealogical relationships to atua wāhine and Tāne Mahuta. Harvesting therefore constitutes an engagement with living lineages and requires karakia, respect, and ethical responsibility.

Ko te rongoā he taonga tuku iho. He uri nō ngā atua wāhine.
Healing is sustained through relationship, and relationship carries obligation.

22/02/2026

Whakapapa is all-important

22/02/2026

These gems fill my heart

22/02/2026