Ruta, Kimberley2011-08-302011-08-3020112011-08-30http://hdl.handle.net/1828/3527This analysis uses the term mana as a lens to interrogate a regionally diverse range of Māori lore texts. It will be seen that categories of human-nature, natural-supernatural are often permeable in Māori lore because of the agency provided by mana. This permeability is transcendental unity which destabilizes the notion that humans are fully distinct from their environment. Transcendental unity is expressed in Māori lore through changes in states of being or planes of existence, biological-environmental metaphoric equivalences, and metaphysical spheres of reciprocal influence. I argue relations between humans and the non-human environment involve genealogical ties, are mediated by mana, and suggest a transcendental form of unity characterized by common essence and characteristics.enMaoriloreunitymanaenvironmentThesisAvailable to the World Wide Web