page_title: Ghosts and spirits in Māori culture
hierarchical_section_title: Ghosts and spirits in Māori culture
caption_attribution_description: English: Picture of Lake Tarewera and Mt. Tarawera behind it.
context_page_description: The topic of ghosts and spirits in Māori culture is often considered a tapu subject, yet many Māori legends contain mentions of apparitions and paranormal occurrences. It is claimed that long deceased family members may appear to warn of upcoming danger, such as with the famous phantom canoe in 1886 that many reportedly saw on Lake Tarawera, that is believed to have been an omen for the volcanic eruption that occurred eleven days later.
  Kikokiko are known in Māori belief as malevolent ghosts that take possession of living people, making them lose sanity. Taniwha are guardian monsters that reside in bodies of water such as rivers or lakes and can appear as sharks, whales, dragons or even floating logs.
context_section_description: The topic of ghosts and spirits (kehua) in Māori culture is often considered a tapu subject, yet many Māori legends contain mentions of apparitions and paranormal occurrences. It is claimed that long deceased family members may appear to warn of upcoming danger, such as with the famous phantom canoe in 1886 that many reportedly saw on Lake Tarawera, that is believed to have been an omen for the volcanic eruption that occurred eleven days later.
  Kikokiko are known in Māori belief as malevolent ghosts that take possession of living people, making them lose sanity. Taniwha are guardian monsters that reside in bodies of water such as rivers or lakes and can appear as sharks, whales, dragons or even floating logs.
caption: A phantom canoe was believed to have been seen by tourists at Lake Tarawera eleven days before Mount Tarawera erupted in 1886.
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