Waitomo Caves, New Zealand

The Waitomo Caves on New Zealand’s North Island have been known for ages—the limestone is more than 30 million years old—but their fame comes from more than geology. In Polynesian lore they’re among the most mystical places in the region. Waitomo means “water that disappears into a hole,” and local Māori have always seen the caves as gateways to the underworld and sacred burial grounds of their greatest ancestors.

To grasp the curse tied to this place you need to understand Tapu, the Māori code of sacred prohibitions. Breaking Tapu brings terrifying consequences. People believed that any uninvited entry into these burial caverns triggered an instant curse: enraged spirits would send a demon, appearing as an infant, into the offender’s body to devour the victim from within, causing wasting sickness or sudden madness.

Fear of the depths is strengthened by belief in their guardians—the powerful spirits known as taniwha. Legend says these giant, eel-like beings carved the maze of tunnels with their own bodies and stayed behind to guard the ancestors’ rest.

The most famous—and frightening—story is that of the sorcerer-eel Paewaru. Once an apprentice to an ancient taniwha, Paewaru absorbed his master’s secret knowledge, then dragged him to the depths, where a swarm of eels tore the spirit apart. Drinking his master’s blood, Paewaru gained a crown of bone and vast magical power. Free at last, he grew to hate humankind and even tried to steal Māui’s sacred fishhook, the artifact that once hauled islands from the sea, so he could raise an island of his own. Folklore claims giant eels still lurk in the caves’ black waters, awaiting their lord’s return.

From 100 Cursed Places · Fern Flower Press