Tu-tz 兔子
This year the Lunar New Year among Asian Americans is celebrated between Sunday, January 22 and February 5th. Many will start the celebration on Saturday night.
If you look at the full moon, the dark areas outline a hare’s ears, body, and paws. In Chinese stories, this hare is a resident on the moon so that all on earth can see her at work. The Chinese word can mean either hare or rabbit.
Two thousand years ago, Chinese art (see below) portrayed a rabbit in the moon holding a pestle with which to grind cassia-tree twigs, cinnamon or immortal herbs to give to Chang-e, the beautiful moon goddess or to other gods and goddesses. Sometimes, the scene depicts a hare, which is bigger and has longer ears, hind legs, and whiskers than an ordinary rabbit (but the Chinese translation is the same). Often, the hare faces Change-e, the moon goddess. Usually, the rabbit is said to be the color white, but In medieval Chinese literature the rabbit is also called the Jade Rabbit and sometimes the Gold Rabbit.
The zodiac year is like three wheels going around to coincide animals, the elements, and the colors. This year, the Rabbit coincides with Water in the cycle of elements, which is also associated with Black; so, fortune-tellers will forecast the future according to the qualities of the Water or Black Rabbit.
The rabbit is often seen as a symbol for longevity, upward mobility, and peaceful life.
There are many tales about the rabbit, some fairytale-like and romantic, others not so repeatable. Most East and Southeast Asian nations have their own stories and ways of celebrating the Year of the Rabbit, though we are focusing on the Chinese background here. (Very unusually, this year, the Vietnamese zodiac celebrates the Year of the Cat instead of the Rabbit. One theory is because the word for rabbit in Old Chinese, 卯, is pronounced “mao,” similar to the sound “mèo” in Vietnamese. Japan doesn’t really celebrate the Lunar New Year.)
Chang-e was guarding the elixir of immortality for her husband Hou Yi. An evil man with a sword tries to steal it, so she quickly drank it down. Chang-e became immortal and floated up to the moon with her pet Jade Rabbit. She went to the moon because it was the closest to her husband.
The Chinese government press release for the Chang-e space mission tells the finish of the story this way: “Hou Yi hastily asked his maids to put an incense table in the back garden and put fresh fruits and moon cakes which were the favorite food of Chang’e on the table, holding a memorable ceremony for Chang’e who lived on the distant moon. When the local people heard that Chang’e flew to the sky and became an immortal on the moon, they all arranged incense tables below the moon for the worship of the goodness Chang’e, praying for happiness and safeness. Since then, worshipping and appreciating the moon during the Mid-autumn festival has become popular until now.”
This is the romantic version, but there are others.
According to many Chinese classical texts, the hares are only females who become pregnant by licking newly sprouted plant shoots. She spits out (tu-tz has a homophone meaning “to spit out”) her children from the mouth. This not-so-pleasant-sounding tale has a happy ending with at least three or more children as the result. So, the Year of the Hare is the year of many children!
On the other hand, a white hare was often associated with the god of the planet Venus (the White Planet). Venus became a white hare to help a hero to find his mother. The Year of the Rabbit is a year for heroic acts!
Just like the conjurer trick of bringing a rabbit out of the hat, a medieval Chinese story mentions a popular trick was to fold and lay a cloth down on the ground out of which a hare jumps out! Symbolically, it can mean a wish will be granted that the audience’s children will rise up in society and enjoy a peaceful life.
During the Apollo 11 voyage in 1969 to the moon, Chang-e and the hare were mentioned:
Chang’e came up in a conversation between a Houston-based astronaut and the Apollo 11 crew just before the first Moon landing in 1969:
Ronald Evans said, “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 the girl named 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, Apollo 11 astronaut: “Okay. We’ll keep a close eye out for the bunny girl.”
In 2007, China launched its first lunar probe, a robotic spacecraft named Chang’e 1 in the Goddess’ honor. A second robotic probe, named Chang’e 2, was launched in 2010. A third Chang’e spacecraft, called Chang’e 3, landed on the Moon on December 14, 2013. The lander also delivered the robotic rover Yutu (“Jade Rabbit”) to the lunar surface. On January 3, 2019, Chang’e 4 touched down on the far side of the Moon and deployed the Jade Rabbit 2. In 2020, Chang’e 5 landed on the moon and sent back samples from the moon’s surface.
So, the Year of the Hare also stands for the exploration of frontiers never seen before. In other words, what we do here at A Journey through NYC religions. Explore!
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