In spite of his small stature, nothing frightened Maui. The twenty or so tales about his exploits revel a determined, cunning hero, forever pitting himself against those who opposed his will.

When Maui was born, his mother Taranga wrapped him in a tuft of her hair and cast him into the sea, possibly because he was born prematurely. Saved by an observant ancestor, Maui was returned to the land and rejoined his family. As a result, his mother called him Maui-tiki-tiki-a-Taranga (Maui formed in the top knot of Taranga).

Maui's best-known exploit was his creation of the Pacific islands. With a magical hook, the hero fished up from the bottom of the sea the innumerable islands on which the Polynesians now live.

According to the Maoris of New Zealand, Maui caught the sun in a noose and beat it with his invincible weapon, the jawbone of an ancestress. The sun was so weak after the beating that it could only creep along it course, thus lengthening each day.

The Tongans say that the sky is sometimes dark because Maui used a poker to force the sky upward. When the hero was preparing an earth oven, his poker became stuck in the sky, then much lower than it is today, and so, to give himself more room to work comfortably, he simply pushed up the sky farther. The Hawaiians believe that this feat was intended to impress a woman.

. . .

Two of the most popular tales about Maui focus entirely on his deceit. In one, he stole a hen from heaven in order to obtainfire since, according to the Polynesians, the secret of fire was guarded by a celestial chicken.

In the other popular adventure, the hero actually attempted to conquer death. Apparently, Maui found Hine-nui-te-po, the goddess of death, sleeping. He almost managed to pass through her body, but, at the last moment, the goddess was awakened by the twittering of birds and squeezed him to death. The Hawaiians say that Maui's blood made shrimps red and gave therainbow its colours.

Myths and Legends, p 127-128.