Here is a collection of Whakatauki, or proverbs.
Whakatauki have a translation and a meaning. The meaning is usually based on Tikanga or history. This page only gives the translation of the whakatauki.
Nau te rourou naku te rourou
Your basket and my basket
He toa taumata rau
Bravery has many resting places
Te toka tu moana
The rock standing in the ocean
Toitu he whenua, whatungarongaro he tangata
The land is permanent, man disappears
Toku reo toku ohooho
My Language, my awakening
Aroha mai, aroha atu
Love towards us, love going out from us
Kia mau koe ki nga kupu o ou tupuna
Hold fast to the words of your ancestors
Whaia e koe ki te iti kahurangi; ki te tuohu koe, me maunga teitei
Seek the treasure you value most dearly: if you bow your head, let it be to a lofty mountain
Nau te rourou naku te rourou
Your basket and my basket
Ahakoa iti, he pounamu
Although it is small, it is of greenstone
Me te koteo mau kupenga
Like the post which the net is attached
He reo kihikihi
The cicada language
E iti noa ana, na te aroha
Though my present be small, my love goes with it
Waiho ma te tangata e mihi
Let someone else acknowledge your virtues
He kakano ahau, ruia mai i Rangiatea
I am a seed, scattered from Rangiatea
Waiho i te toipoto, kaua i te toiroa
Let us keep close together, not wide apart
Me he manu motu i te mahanga
Like a bird escaped from a snare
Toku toa, he toa rangatira
My bravery is inherited from the chief who were my forebears
Noku te whenua, o oku tupuna
The land is mine, inherited from my ancestors
He iti te toki e rite ana ki te tangata
A little adze can do as much work as a man
Kia mau ki to Maoritanga
Hold fast to your culture
