Philosophy
House Rabbit Society...
Easter is not really a solar festival, but rather one of the moon. The name Easter comes to us from the Saxon Eostre (synonymous with the phoenician Astarte), goddess of the moon. From the most ancient times, this goddess was the measurer of time. Her name as we know it (moon) comes from the Sanskrit mas—from ma, to measure— and was masculine (as it was in all the Teutonic languages).
Although this seems to suggest some confusion of sex, we can assume from the earliest mythologies that the deities were androgynous and sex depended upon the relationship to causes, whether active or passive. Since the measurement of time was an active process, the full moon was considered masculine.
According to an ancient document the moon as measurer of our days was chosen over the sun, since it seemed most natural to adopt a system that harmonized both the cosmos and humanity. The most likely choice was manifest in the cycle of the moon and the physiological phenomenon of mother and child. The lunar month of 28 days (four weeks of seven days each) gave 13 periods in 364 days, equivalent to the solar year of 52 weeks; thus the method of measuring by lunar terms. (And here we can make a connection between the female estrus and the goddesses Eostre and Astarte.)
How, though, do these revelations about our lunar measurer relate to the Easter Bunny or, more appropriately, the Easter Hare?
A clue to the answer is found within the paintings and fables of artists and storytellers of the Far East. These artists often painted the moon with rabbits racing across its face. The Chinese, in particular, have represented the moon as a rabbit pounding rice in a mortar.
The rabbit's association with the moon is partly explained by two stories. In one Buddha places him there as payment for a favor in which Rabbit voluntarily gave himself as food for one of Buddha's hungry friends. In another, a rabbit, with nothing else to offer a hungry, weary Indra, jumps into a fire, cooking himself for the deity (a timeless example of humankind's self-serving fables). Out of gratitude, Indra placed the rabbit in the moon.
If we consider the phases of the moon in its waxing (masculine) and waning (feminine), and accept the notion that the moon at full intensity is the Destroyer of Darkness or, as Hillard says, "sign of new life and the messenger of immortality," we can appreciate the honored position to which the rabbit has ascended.
A number of explanations account for this hare/moon symbiosis. One is that the hare is nocturnal and feeds by night; another is that the hare's gestation period is one month long. And, it was believed that a rabbit could change its sex—like the moon. Other stories in Sanskrit and Hindu connect the rabbit to the spots on the moon (related to the story above); to stories of hares dwelling upon the shores of the moon; and as mortal enemy of the lion (sun).
Moon Rabbit
- Premature Death Notice...jade Rabbit Lives
"China's Jade Rabbit rover comes 'back to life': Xinhua" February 13th, 2014 SPACE DAILY China's troubled Jade Rabbit lunar rover has survived a bitterly cold 14-day lunar night, officials said Thursday, prompting hopes...
- Jade Rabbit Has Landed On The Moon
"China's Jade Rabbit Moon rover sends back first photos" December 15th, 2013 BBC NEWS The first robot to land on the Moon in nearly 40 years, China's Jade Rabbit rover, has begun sending back photos, with shots of its lunar lander. Jade Rabbit...
- Moondogs
An interesting Moon phenomena. Wikipedia... A moon dog or moondog [scientific name paraselene, plural paraselenae, i.e. "beside the moon"] is a relatively rare bright circular spot on a lunar halo caused by the refraction of moonlight by hexagonal-plate-shaped...
- Moon Gets 2.5 Minutes Of Fame On Youtube
"Video: Year of Moon Motion in 2.5 Minutes" by Alice Vincent June 15th, 2011 Wired UK Many claim to see a man in the moon, but now an animation has been made that showcases a year’s worth of moon movements in less than three minutes. Topographical...
- A "blue Moon" On December 31st...literally
This is truly a rare occasion for on December 31st there will really be a "blue moon". "A Blue Moon For New Year's Eve" by Dave Reneke December 22nd, 2009 Moon Daily When you hear someone say "Once in a Blue Moon " you know what they mean. They're...
Philosophy
"Moon Rabbit"--"Jade Rabbit"...it is Easter
House Rabbit Society...
Easter is not really a solar festival, but rather one of the moon. The name Easter comes to us from the Saxon Eostre (synonymous with the phoenician Astarte), goddess of the moon. From the most ancient times, this goddess was the measurer of time. Her name as we know it (moon) comes from the Sanskrit mas—from ma, to measure— and was masculine (as it was in all the Teutonic languages).
Although this seems to suggest some confusion of sex, we can assume from the earliest mythologies that the deities were androgynous and sex depended upon the relationship to causes, whether active or passive. Since the measurement of time was an active process, the full moon was considered masculine.
According to an ancient document the moon as measurer of our days was chosen over the sun, since it seemed most natural to adopt a system that harmonized both the cosmos and humanity. The most likely choice was manifest in the cycle of the moon and the physiological phenomenon of mother and child. The lunar month of 28 days (four weeks of seven days each) gave 13 periods in 364 days, equivalent to the solar year of 52 weeks; thus the method of measuring by lunar terms. (And here we can make a connection between the female estrus and the goddesses Eostre and Astarte.)
How, though, do these revelations about our lunar measurer relate to the Easter Bunny or, more appropriately, the Easter Hare?
A clue to the answer is found within the paintings and fables of artists and storytellers of the Far East. These artists often painted the moon with rabbits racing across its face. The Chinese, in particular, have represented the moon as a rabbit pounding rice in a mortar.
The rabbit's association with the moon is partly explained by two stories. In one Buddha places him there as payment for a favor in which Rabbit voluntarily gave himself as food for one of Buddha's hungry friends. In another, a rabbit, with nothing else to offer a hungry, weary Indra, jumps into a fire, cooking himself for the deity (a timeless example of humankind's self-serving fables). Out of gratitude, Indra placed the rabbit in the moon.
If we consider the phases of the moon in its waxing (masculine) and waning (feminine), and accept the notion that the moon at full intensity is the Destroyer of Darkness or, as Hillard says, "sign of new life and the messenger of immortality," we can appreciate the honored position to which the rabbit has ascended.
A number of explanations account for this hare/moon symbiosis. One is that the hare is nocturnal and feeds by night; another is that the hare's gestation period is one month long. And, it was believed that a rabbit could change its sex—like the moon. Other stories in Sanskrit and Hindu connect the rabbit to the spots on the moon (related to the story above); to stories of hares dwelling upon the shores of the moon; and as mortal enemy of the lion (sun).
Moon Rabbit
- Premature Death Notice...jade Rabbit Lives
"China's Jade Rabbit rover comes 'back to life': Xinhua" February 13th, 2014 SPACE DAILY China's troubled Jade Rabbit lunar rover has survived a bitterly cold 14-day lunar night, officials said Thursday, prompting hopes...
- Jade Rabbit Has Landed On The Moon
"China's Jade Rabbit Moon rover sends back first photos" December 15th, 2013 BBC NEWS The first robot to land on the Moon in nearly 40 years, China's Jade Rabbit rover, has begun sending back photos, with shots of its lunar lander. Jade Rabbit...
- Moondogs
An interesting Moon phenomena. Wikipedia... A moon dog or moondog [scientific name paraselene, plural paraselenae, i.e. "beside the moon"] is a relatively rare bright circular spot on a lunar halo caused by the refraction of moonlight by hexagonal-plate-shaped...
- Moon Gets 2.5 Minutes Of Fame On Youtube
"Video: Year of Moon Motion in 2.5 Minutes" by Alice Vincent June 15th, 2011 Wired UK Many claim to see a man in the moon, but now an animation has been made that showcases a year’s worth of moon movements in less than three minutes. Topographical...
- A "blue Moon" On December 31st...literally
This is truly a rare occasion for on December 31st there will really be a "blue moon". "A Blue Moon For New Year's Eve" by Dave Reneke December 22nd, 2009 Moon Daily When you hear someone say "Once in a Blue Moon " you know what they mean. They're...