The moon rabbit in folklore is a rabbit that lives on the Moon, based on pareidolia that identifies the markings of the Moon as a rabbit. The folklore originated in China. Then the story spread to other cultures, prominently in Asian folklore and Aztec mythology. In East Asia, it is seen pounding with a mortar and pestle, but the contents of the mortar differ among Chinese, Japanese, and Korean folklore. In Chinese folklore, it is often portrayed as a companion of the Moon goddess Chang'e, constantly pounding the elixir of life for her; but in Japanese and Korean versions, it is pounding the ingredients for rice cake. In some Chinese versions the rabbit pounds medicine for the mortals.
Video Moon rabbit
History
An early mention that there is a rabbit on the moon appears in the Chu Ci, a Western Han anthology of Chinese poems from the Warring States period, which notes that along with a toad, there is a rabbit on the Moon who constantly pounds herbs for the immortals. This notion is supported by later texts, including the Song-era Taiping Imperial Reader. Han Dynasty poets call the rabbit on the Moon the "Jade Rabbit" (??) or the "Gold Rabbit" (??), and these phrases were often used in place of the word for the Moon. A famous poet of Tang China, Li Bai, relates how "[t]he rabbit in the Moon pounds the medicine in vain" in his poem "The Old Dust."
Maps Moon rabbit
Folklore
Asian folklore
In the Buddhist Jataka tales (Tale 316), a monkey, an otter, a jackal, and a rabbit resolved to practice charity on the day of the full moon (Uposatha), believing a demonstration of great virtue would earn a great reward. When an old man begged for food, the monkey gathered fruits from the trees and the otter collected fish, while the jackal wrongfully pilfered a lizard and a pot of milk-curd. The rabbit, who knew only how to gather grass, instead offered its own body, throwing itself into a fire the man had built. The rabbit, however, was not burnt. The old man revealed himself to be ?akra and, touched by the rabbit's virtue, drew the likeness of the rabbit on the Moon for all to see. It is said the lunar image is still draped in the smoke that rose when the rabbit cast itself into the fire. A version of this story can be found in the Japanese anthology Konjaku Monogatarish?, where the rabbit's companions are a fox, instead of a jackal, and a monkey. The legend is popular and part of local folklore throughout Asia in China, Japan, Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar. The legend also gave rise to the Mid-Autumn Festival of China and Vietnam, Tsukimi of Japan and Chuseok of Korea which all celebrate the legend of the moon rabbit.
The reason why there's a rabbit on the Moon is explained in the buddhist fable ?a?ajâtaka, whose name also remember one of the Sanskrit words for the Moon: ?????? (?a?a?ka-), that literally means "(the one) whose mark (????-, a?ka-) is a hare (??-, ?a?a-)".
Indigenous American folklore
Similar legends occur in Mexican folklore, where people also identified the markings on the Moon as a rabbit. According to an Aztec legend, the god Quetzalcoatl, then living on Earth as a man, started on a journey and, after walking for a long time, became hungry and tired. With no food or water around, he thought he would die. Then a rabbit grazing nearby offered herself as food to save his life. Quetzalcoatl, moved by the rabbit's noble offering, elevated her to the Moon, then lowered her back to Earth and told her, "You may be just a rabbit, but everyone will remember you; there is your image in light, for all people and for all times."
Another Mesoamerican legend tells of the brave and noble sacrifice of Nanahuatzin during the creation of the fifth sun. Humble Nanahuatzin sacrificed himself in fire to become the new sun, but the wealthy god Tecciztecatl hesitated four times before he finally set himself alight to become the Moon. Due to Tecciztecatl's cowardice, the gods felt that the Moon should not be as bright as the sun, so one of the gods threw a rabbit at his face to diminish his light. It is also said that Tecciztecatl was in the form of a rabbit when he sacrificed himself to become the Moon, casting his shadow there.
A Native American (Cree) legend tells a different variation, about a young rabbit who wished to ride the Moon. Only the crane was willing to take him. The trip stretched the crane's legs as the heavy rabbit held them tightly, leaving them elongated as cranes' legs are now. When they reached the Moon, the rabbit touched the crane's head with a bleeding paw, leaving the red mark cranes wear to this day. According to the legend, on clear nights, Rabbit can still be seen riding the Moon.
Modern references
Spaceflight
- The Chinese lunar rover Yutu, which landed on the Moon on December 14, 2013, was named after the Jade Rabbit as a result of an online poll.
- The Moon rabbit was mentioned in this conversation between Houston and the Apollo 11 crew just before the first Moon landing in 1969:
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- Houston: Among the large headlines concerning Apollo this morning, is one asking that you watch for a lovely girl with a big rabbit. An ancient legend says a beautiful Chinese girl called Chang-O has been living there for 4,000 years. It seems she was banished to the Moon because she stole the pill of immortality from her husband. You might also look for her companion, a large Chinese rabbit, who is easy to spot since he is always standing on his hind feet in the shade of a cinnamon tree. The name of the rabbit is not reported.
- Michael Collins: Okay. We'll keep a close eye out for the bunny girl.
Arts
Comics and animation
- The eponymous Sailor Moon's human name is Usagi Tsukino, a pun on ????? (Rom. Tsuki no usagi) which means Moon Rabbit in Japanese. Her daughter's name, Chibiusa means little rabbit.
- The 1998-1999 Japanese-exclusive Transformers animated series Beast Wars II features Moon, a robotic rabbit who lives in the Moon with Artemis.
- The story makes an appearance in the "Legend of the Stars" section of the Kamen Rider Spirits manga, told by Sergei Koribanof to his son Masim.
- In the Dragon Ball animation, Son Goku fights against the Rabbit Gang and solves the issue presented in the episode by taking the enemy leader, an anthropomorphic rabbit, and his human companions, to the moon, where they are seen pounding rice cake mixture.
- The overarching plot in Naruto ends in a finale where the main characters fight against Kaguya ?tsutsuki, who is consumed by her powers and sealed by her children to become what would eventually be known as the moon.
Film
- Kenneth Anger's 1972 film Rabbit's Moon takes inspiration from the folklore of the Moon rabbit.
Literature
- In a scene in the 16th century Chinese novel Journey to the West, Sun Wukong fights the Moon Rabbit.
- Douglas Wood wrote Rabbit and the Moon, an adaption of the Cree legend in 1998.
Music
- The American electronic music act Rabbit in the Moon, founded in 1991, gets its name from this legend.
- The German band Tarwater released the albums Rabbit Moon and Rabbit Moon Revisited.
- The song "Moonrabbit" by Australian band Cloud Control.
- The American emo act Jets to Brazil has a song "Perfecting Loneliness" which features the Apollo recording discussing the legend.
Stage
- The rabbit in the Moon is a major theme in the 2011 musical South Street, with the rabbit appearing prominently in the Moon clock in Sammy's bar, and the main character being advised to "Look to the rabbit" for inspiration.
Video games
- The character Reisen Udongein Inaba from the video game series Touhou Project, introduced in the 2004 game Imperishable Night, is a moon rabbit who escaped from a war between the Moon and the Earth. A later game in the series called Legacy of Lunatic Kingdom introduces two new moon rabbits: Seiran and Ringo.
- Chang'e and the Jade Rabbit/Moon Rabbit are featured as playable characters in the video game Smite.
- Super Mario Odyssey features the Broodals, a villainous clan of moon rabbits that Bowser has hired as wedding planners for his scheme to marry Princess Peach.
- In the video game Destiny, there is a weapon called The Jade Rabbit, which was created using parts from a former lunar colony within in-game lore, in reference to the myth.
- One of the celestial brush gods in ?kami, Yumigami, is a rabbit who hid herself in the reflection of the moon on Agata Forest's lake's surface, which was swallowed by the legendary giant catfish Whopper. Instead of a mortar, Yumigami carries a mochi-pounding mallet, with which she makes mochi with Amaterasu.
See also
- Tsukimi
- Easter Bunny
- Lunar pareidolia
- Man in the Moon
- Mid-Autumn Festival
- Mooncalf
- Rabbits and hares in art
- Rabbits in culture and literature
- Tecciztecatl
- Three hares
- Tu'er Ye
Notes
References
External links
- Kazumaro, Kanbe. "Buddhist sayings in everyday life - Tsuki no Usagi". Otani University. 2005. Retrieved on July 25, 2007.(in Japanese)
- Varma. C.B. "The Hare on the Moon". The Illustrated Jataka & Other Stories of the Buddha. 2002. Retrieved on July 25, 2007.
- ????? ?????, Taipei Public Library. 2006. Retrieved on July 25, 2007. (in Chinese)
- Wood, Douglas - "Rabbit and the Moon"
Source of article : Wikipedia
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