Name: Pūrākau, Narrative Sovereignty, and the Whare Tapa Whā Coherence Engine
Start: 2026-07-06T14:00:00+1200
End: 2026-07-06T14:55:00+1200

Pūrākau, Narrative Sovereignty, and the Whare Tapa Whā Coherence Engine

Monday July 6, 2026 2:00pm - 2:55pm NZST

MSB1.21

This paper develops a philosophical account of narrative sovereignty by examining how people draw on layered pūrākau as the architecture through which they re‑author their stories within a contextual coherence narrative engine. Te Whare Tapa Whā provides the structural ontology for this engine: taha wairua, hinengaro, whānau, and tinana operate as interdependent narrative layers through which meaning is interpreted and balanced. Within this framework, healing is not an externally imposed intervention, but a sovereign act undertaken within a held relational space, supported by a Kaitiaki who witnesses, grounds, and protects the perimeter while the individual chooses how to weave, unweave, and reweave the stories that shape their life.
The paper shows how pūrākau function as philosophical technologies that encode whakapapa, relational ethics, and cosmological orientation. These forms challenge Western assumptions that narrative coherence is internal or psychological, instead positioning coherence as relational, embodied, and ancestrally situated. As tauiwi, I approach pūrākau as methodological guides rather than symbolic resources. The paper proposes that contextual coherence grounded in Te Whare Tapa Whā offers a culturally respectful model of narrative healing that protects individual sovereignty while honouring relational, spiritual, and ancestral dimensions of coherent self‑stories.

Speakers

David McCurdy

Academic Lead & Chair Programme Committee, Te Whare Takiura o Manukau | Manukau Institute of Technology

I’m Programme Chair & Academic Lead at Manukau Institute of Technology, specialising in software engineering, data analytics, AI, and interdisciplinary programme design. I’ve led the development of multiple NZQA-accredited programmes and supervise capstone and work-based learning... Read More →

Monday July 6, 2026 2:00pm - 2:55pm NZST
MSB1.21

Indigenous Philosophy, In Person

AAP 2026 CONFERENCE

David McCurdy

Attendees (12)

Get help with the event

AAP 2026 CONFERENCE

David McCurdy

Attendees (12)

Log in to save this to your schedule, view media, leave feedback and see who's attending!

Get help with the event