Harakeke was prominent in the Maori augury.

If a leaf made a screeching sound as it was pulled from the base of a plant during an appropriate ceremony, a tohunga's (priest) patient would recover.

If the screeching sound was produced during a ceremony before a fishing trip, a big catch was certain.

A flax leaf was suspended directly over the mouth of a dying person as a path for their last breaths. If the ends of the flax leaves of a flax clump were found knotted together, it was a sign that the spirits of the departed had passed by.