Polynesian mythology in the context of "Marae"

Upolu is an island in Samoa, formed by a massive basaltic shield volcano which rises from the seafloor of the western Pacific Ocean. The island is 75 kilometres (47 miles) long and 1,125 square kilometres (434 square miles) in area, making it the second largest of the Samoan Islands by area. With approximately 145,000 inhabitants, it is by far the most populous of the Samoan Islands. Upolu is situated to the southeast of Savai'i, the "big island". Apia, the capital, is in the middle of the north coast, and Faleolo International Airport at the western end of the island. The island has not had any historically recorded eruptions, although there is evidence of three lava flows, dating back only to between a few hundred and a few thousand years ago.

In the Samoan branch of Polynesian mythology, Upolu was the first woman on the island.

The Māori people have a Polynesian religion that, prior to the introduction of Christianity to New Zealand was the main religious belief for Māori. By 1845, more than half of the Māori population attended church and Christianity remains the largest religion for Māori. Very few Māori still follow traditional Māori religion, although many elements of it are still observed. Several Māori religious movements have been born out of Christianity, such as the Rātana movement.

Māui or Maui is the great culture hero and trickster in Polynesian mythology. Very rarely was Māui actually worshipped, being less of a deity (demigod) and more of a folk hero. His origins vary from culture to culture, but many of his main exploits remain relatively similar. Comparative scholarship notes that Māui’s origins differ widely across Polynesia, with variation in his parentage, divine status, and the specific form of several major myths. Bucková’s survey of Eastern Polynesian traditions documents that core motifs, such as acquiring fire or manipulating the sun, appear throughout the region but are adapted differently in Mangarevan, Tuamotuan, and New Hebridean versions.

Tales of Māui's exploits and adventures are told throughout most of Polynesia; they can be traced back as far west as islands off New Guinea. Some exploits common to most Polynesian traditions are stealing fire for humans from the underworld, fishing up islands with his magical hook, and capturing the Sun to lengthen the days. There is a great deal of variation in the representations of Māui from nation to nation, from being a handsome young man to being a wise old wandering priest. Although Māui was said to be very rascally or "kolohe", many of his deeds were to better the lives of his fellow people. Variants of the Māui cycle appear further west in the New Hebrides (modern-day Vanuatu), where fieldwork by A. Capell records stories of Maui fishing up islands, contending with spirits, and acquiring fire, but with distinctive local narrative structures unlike those in central Polynesia. Bucková also identifies these New Hebridean accounts as part of a broader constellation of regional adaptations of fire-origin and trickster traditions.