A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
After escaping the clam, Rata’s canoe is encircled by the tentacles of an exceptionally large octopus in Gill’s Aitutaki telling. Their embrace threatens to destroy the vessel.
Nganaoa drives his spear through its head. Its tentacles relax and its dead body floats away, allowing the voyagers to continue. The brief episode gives a distinct lethal outcome, unlike the clam’s sinking and the whale’s later stranding.
Origins & earliest records
William Wyatt Gill, Myths and Songs from the South Pacific (London: Henry S. King, 1876). Introduction names Tereavai and Sadaraka among major contributors, but the selected tale has no individually named narrator.
Records & interpretation
Complete selected narrative and relevant collector notes read from digitized 1876 OCR. Original-language spelling on scan remains a further visual-collation queue.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Myths and Songs from the South Pacific, VII: Rata’s Canoe, pp. 147
Title-page imprint verified in digitized OCR; colonial religious judgments not adopted.
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Primary collected textMyths and Songs from the South Pacific, VII: Rata’s Canoe, pp. 147Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.