A heartfelt haka by students at Palmerston North Boys' High honouring a former teacher has gone viral again.
The resurfaced clip, posted by Instagram page @100newzealand, shows a school hall full of students launching into a hearty haka.
The video initially went viral in 2016, gaining over 5.2 million views on the original performance.
Hundreds of boys gathered to celebrate the former school Guidance Counsellor, Mr John Adams, for his thirty years of teaching and retirement that same year.
All the boys who performed that day put every bit of mana and heart into honouring Mr Adams.
“It’s very powerful and the fact that it is all of the students, regardless of their ethnicity, are joining in completely makes [it] even more powerful,” one commenter wrote. “It’s a wonderful way of expressing feeling.”
The full-body chills that take over as the students’ voices boom around that hall really are something else.
“The passion is immense, I absolutely love the haka - it is beautiful. Seeing young people perform it, magnificent,” another commented.
A third added: “So respectful, emotional and a fine tribute to their teacher who served their community and no doubt had a huge influence on the children to deserve such an accolade 🙌❤️ well done!”
“Now that's what I call paying RESPECT!!! ✊,” someone else praised the school boys.
They’re not the only school that went viral for their fierce haka. Just years later, Auckland Grammar and King's College performed a strong haka before a tough rugby match.
This energy and spirit are what it’s all about for our rangatahi.
