Ngutu Kura

This pattern indicates the passing on of "the Word" or the teachings that are handed down from generation to generation. The three seeds, or growth pods, contained in each basic element of the design symbolize this. At one level of meaning these can be related back to the three baskets of knowledge in traditional Maori philosophy. On another level they represent the three main forms of knowledge, physical, intellectual, and spiritual, represented by the yellow growth pod. Yellow is used here to symbolize gold, the traditional Christian colour for innocence of soul, purity, and holiness of life.