What is the moon rabbit?
The moon rabbit is the tradition of seeing the dark markings on the face of the full moon as the shape of a rabbit. In Japan it is often said that “a rabbit is pounding mochi on the moon,” a familiar sight at the autumn moon-viewing festival. The dark parts of the moon’s markings are actually flat lowlands of basalt called “maria” (seas).
The Indian Buddhist tale
A well-known origin of the moon rabbit comes from the Jataka, stories of the Buddha’s previous lives from ancient India. A rabbit, a monkey and a fox (or an otter) went to look for food for a starving old man. The monkey and the fox brought back food, but the rabbit could find nothing. So the rabbit said, “Please eat me,” and leapt into the fire. The old man was really the god Indra (Taishakuten), who praised the rabbit’s deed and painted its image on the moon to preserve it forever. The tale is also included in Japan’s Konjaku Monogatarishu.
China’s Jade Rabbit and mochi pounding
In China, it has been said that a rabbit called the “Jade Rabbit” (Yutu) lives on the moon, pounding the elixir of immortality. In Japan this is said to have changed into pounding mochi. It is paired with the golden crow, the three-legged crow said to live in the sun. The moon’s markings are seen differently in different countries, as a crab, a woman’s profile or a lion, for example.
