Tagata Tangata 1 - Ngaa Tapuwae / Sacred Footsteps (First Episode)

The newly finished tattoos, still very painful, are soothed with tumeric and coconut oil. But as the song says, when the pain is gone, the pride will take over. The pride of completion will be shared by their families...

– Narrator Ramona Papali’i on tattooing in Samoa

The tattoo, whether it be for women or for men, establishes the wearer as truly Samoan.

– Narrator Ramona Papali’i

Pele erupts often enough here for us to be reminded that she exists, and she is still building our island here ... whenever she erupts it jars our mind and says 'okay pay attention here [laughter], I'm still here' ... she gives us that reminder, like a cranky old grandmother who still reminds us who's boss in the house.

– Pualani Kanaka'ole on Pele, the goddess of volcanoes and fire activity, and creator of the Hawaiian islands

There is often a fine line between our ancestors and our gods, and in many cases they are one and the same. So it's common for our ancestors to be present in all things of value created by our tufunga or tohunga, the masters of craft.

– Narrator Ramona Papali’i

...many outsiders have told our story, but for this series, we wanted to tell our own.

– Writer and presenter Ramona Papali’i, in the show's opening minutes

Each stage of our journey through the cycle of life, death and beyond is marked by ceremony, and the journey through life begins with a burial. The whenua burial is an ancient custom which the Māori brought with them from Hawaiki, the home of their ancestors.

– Narrator Ramona Papali’i