Ko te whakatere waka he huarahi whakatō i te wairua Māori, i te whakaaro Māori ki roto i ā tātou rangatahi.
He huihuinga kōrero tēnei nā te tohunga whakatere waka nā Hekenukumai Busby, mō tōna waka mō Te Aurere. He whakatauira hoki i te nui me te hāngai o te mahi whakatere waka ki te hunga rangatahi, mā roto i te waiata ‘Te Aurere’ nā te kapa haka o Ngā Puna o Waiōrea nō Tāmaki Makaurau.
Tuatahi me noho ki ngā rekereke o te hunga mōhio. Me toro atu ki ngā tāngata mōhio ki ēnei tikanga tuku iho. Me haere ki te toro i ngā kaiwhakatere, me haere ki te toro i ngā kaumoana, me haere ki te toro i ngā kaihoe kei tō hapori ki te ako, ki te whai mātauranga, ki te whai wheakotanga i roto i ēnei mahi. Mehemea kāore he tāngata pēnei i tō hapori, haere ki te kimi i wāhi kē, haere ki te ako i ēnei tikanga me ēnei mahi i runga i te mōhio ka whakahokia ake ēnei mātauranga ki tō hapori.
Inā mutu te ako i ēnei tikanga, me hoki ki te whakatū wāhi hei whakaū i ēnei akoranga kia hōrapa ai ēnei mātauranga ki tō hapori; he wānanga, he kura, he karapu rānei, he wāhi whakaopeope i te hunga hiakai ki te ako. Kia tīmata tuatahi pea ki ngā mahi waka ama kia waia haere te hapori ki te hoe me te urungi waka. Kia waia hoki rātou ki ngā momo wāhanga o te waka; te hiwi, te ama me ngā kiato. Katoa ēnei pūkenga ka noho hei tūāpapa mō ngā mahi whakatere waka hourua. Ā tōna wā ka whanake ki te hanga waka hourua me te ako i ngā āhuatanga katoa mō tēnei mahi. Ko te akomanga pai mō te whakarauora, me te rongo i ngā āhuatanga o te whakatere waka, ko te moana.
Mutu ana te āta whakatau i ēnei mahi me te āta ako i ēnei tikanga, me tīmata te tārai i tō waka, ka tīmata pea tō whakahaere hōtaka whakatere waka. Ko ngā momo hōtaka ka hāngai katoa ki ngā mahi kaumoana me ngā mahi whakatere. Ka tīmata tō whakarite ki te tere i ngā moana.
