RabbitOrigin

The character “兔” (Rabbit) is one of the oldest pictographs in Chinese writing. Judging from oracle-bone inscriptions, “兔” is essentially a pictographic representation of a rabbit. Xu Shen of the Eastern Han explained it in the *Shuowen Jiezi*: “兽名，像踞，后其尾形”—meaning that the form vividly depicts a rabbit crouching, with its tail visible behind it.

In oracle-bone inscriptions, the Rabbit’s hind legs are strongly developed, vividly expressing the animal’s biological ability to leap and run. This characteristic remained relatively visible throughout the evolution of the character “兔”. From Shang-dynasty oracle-bone inscriptions to Qin small-seal script, Han clerical script, and later regular script, although “兔” evolved from a concrete image toward abstraction, it consistently retained the Rabbit’s basic crouching form and short tail. In the traditional classification of Chinese character formation, “兔” is an independent pictographic character—its written form directly depicts the Rabbit’s physical appearance.

In traditional Chinese culture, the correspondence between “Mao” and “Rabbit” extends beyond the twelve zodiac animals into literature. The great Tang-dynasty writer Han Yu wrote an essay titled *Mao Ying Zhuan* (《毛颖传》). Its opening paragraph states: “毛颖者，中山人也。其先佐禹治东方土，养万物有功，因封于卯地，死为十二神”. Through personification, Han Yu connects the ancestor of the Rabbit—because brush tips were made from rabbit hair and thus called “Mao Ying”—with the “land of Mao,” granting it the mythic background of having “assisted Yu in governing the eastern lands” and “rendered meritorious service in nurturing the myriad things,” before stating that “after death, it became one of the Twelve Gods.” This is precisely a literary reflection of the cultural position of “Mao-Rabbit” within the twelve zodiac animals.

Mao hour runs from 5:00 to 7:00 in the morning. At this time, the sun has not yet shown its face, while the light of the moon has not completely faded. The ancients associated the Rabbit with the moon and regarded the Jade Rabbit as another name for the moon; Mao hour was therefore paired with the Rabbit. From another perspective, by Mao hour dawn has broken, the moon is gradually retreating, and white rabbits on the ground emerge from their burrows and begin nibbling dew-covered grass. The Rabbit’s habit of leaving its burrow to forage during Mao hour corresponds perfectly in time with the natural rhythm of “daybreak at dawn and the awakening of all things.” “Mao” symbolizes opening and revival, while the Rabbit becomes active at daybreak—the two therefore correspond naturally in temporal logic.

Among the Five Phases attributes of the earthly branches, “Mao” belongs to Yin Wood. Within ancient Chinese classifications of animals, the Rabbit was regarded as a Yin animal—the vertical cleft in its upper lip, commonly called a “harelip,” was viewed as a Yin characteristic. The Rabbit has four toes, an even number, and therefore belongs to Yin, corresponding to the Yin earthly branch “Mao.” The Rabbit’s docility, gentleness, and agility echo the nature of Yin Wood represented by “Mao”—flexibility, growth, and sprouting.

In the directional correspondences of the twelve earthly branches, “Mao” corresponds to the due East. The East is the direction from which the sun rises, the symbol of spring, and the point from which all things begin to grow. As the zodiac animal representing “Mao,” the Rabbit naturally also carries the vitality, hope, and renewal symbolized by the East.

In 1975, the *Daozhe* section of the bamboo-slip *Rishu* (《日书·盗者》), unearthed from Qin Tomb No. 11 at Shuihudi in Yunmeng County, Hubei, recorded pairings associated with the twelve zodiac animals. The *Rishu* explicitly states: “卯，兔也”. Although this list differs in certain respects from the modern standard zodiac, for example with Chen represented by an insect rather than the Dragon, the pairing of “Mao” with the Rabbit is already unequivocally established.

In April 1986, two versions, A and B, of the *Rishu* on bamboo slips were unearthed from Qin-period tombs at Fangmatan in Tianshui, Gansu, dating to roughly the same period as the Shuihudi slips. Version A likewise records: “卯，兔矣”. In its correspondence with the earthly branches, apart from certain individual differences compared with the modern system, the Rabbit already occupies the position of “Mao” securely. The same association also appears in the Han bamboo-slip *Rishu* from Kongjiapo in Suizhou, Hubei. Together, these discoveries demonstrate that by at least the Warring States and Qin periods, in the third century BCE, the pairing of “Mao” and the Rabbit had already circulated widely and become established across different regions of China.

The Rabbit already appears in classical texts from the pre-Qin period. The *Shijing · Zhounan · Tu Ju* (《诗经·周南·兔罝》) is a well-known pre-Qin poem centered on rabbits: “肃肃兔罝，椓之丁丁”, describing the setting of rabbit nets in the wild. The *Shijing · Wangfeng · Tu Yuan* (《诗经·王风·兔爰》) also contains the line “有兔爰爰，雉离于罗”, contrasting the rabbit’s carefree freedom with the hardships of worldly life.

Qu Yuan, the poet of the state of Chu during the Warring States period, asks in *Tianwen* (《天问》): “夜光何德，死则又育？厥利维何，而顾菟在腹？” Here, “菟” means Rabbit. This is the earliest written record in Chinese literature linking the Rabbit with the moon—more than two thousand years ago, Qu Yuan had already observed a “Rabbit” image on the moon.

The earliest transmitted text to record the same twelve zodiac animals as those used today is Wang Chong’s Eastern Han *Lunheng* (《论衡》). Wang Chong explicitly records in the *Lunheng · Wushi Pian* (《论衡·物势篇》): “卯兔也”. He also states: “酉鸡也，卯兔也”. Wang Chong records all twelve animals in the *Lunheng*, and the pairing between “Mao” and the Rabbit is already identical to the modern system. This shows that by the Eastern Han period, in the first century CE, the Rabbit’s place within the twelve-animal zodiac system had become completely fixed.

The twelve zodiac figurines, also known as divine figurines of the Twelve Branches, were distinctive burial objects in ancient Chinese funerary culture. Archaeological evidence shows that from the Sui to the early Tang periods, zodiac figurines were mainly popular in Hunan, Hubei, and surrounding regions, while their appearance as burial objects in northern tombs came later and became widespread only during the High Tang. The earliest examples discovered so far are zodiac figurines from the Northern Wei Cui-family tomb at Linzi, Shandong.

The Tang-dynasty *Tang Huiyao* (《唐会要》) records ritual regulations governing burial with zodiac figurines. The twelve zodiac figurines followed a fixed arrangement within the tomb and were placed at the four corners of the burial chamber, three each in the East, South, West, and North, beginning with the Rat and ending with the Pig, arranged clockwise according to the pattern of Zi in the South and Wu in the North. The Mao-Rabbit figurine was generally placed in the position representing the due East. In tombs of the Five Dynasties and Northern Song, the “twelve double-hour figurines” carried zodiac images such as Rat, Ox, Tiger, and Rabbit modeled atop the human figure’s head. After the Southern Song, they were more often modeled around the shoulders and necks of dragon-and-tiger jars.

The painted Tang-dynasty twelve zodiac pottery figurines unearthed in 1955 from a Tang tomb at Hansen Village in Xi’an, Shaanxi, and now held by the National Museum of China, are representative examples of Tang zodiac figurines. The Rabbit figurine has an animal head and human body, wears an open-collared robe with wide sleeves, and holds its hands clasped before the chest. Only through long-term careful observation of the forms of different animals, combined with highly accomplished sculptural technique, could Tang artisans render the Rabbit’s characteristics so vividly.

The Rabbit-head bronze of the Old Summer Palace formed part of the hydraulic clock system at Haiyantang, designed during the Qianlong reign of the Qing dynasty under the direction of the Italian missionary Giuseppe Castiglione and supervised by the French missionary Michel Benoist. Twelve statues with animal heads and human bodies were arranged in two diverging rows beside the fountain pool before Haiyantang. At each traditional double-hour period, the corresponding animal head spouted water from its mouth to mark the time. During Mao hour, from 5:00 to 7:00 in the morning, the Rabbit-head bronze projected a column of water from its mouth. In 1860, Anglo-French forces burned the Old Summer Palace, and the twelve zodiac bronzes were looted and dispersed overseas. In 2013, the Rabbit head and Rat head were donated back to the National Museum of China by France’s Pinault family.

Rabbit-shaped jade from Lingjiatan, Anhui (approximately 5,300 years ago): Rabbit-shaped jade objects unearthed at the Lingjiatan site are important Neolithic representations of the Rabbit, showing that as early as the dawn of civilization, the Rabbit had already entered the spiritual world of ancient peoples.

Shang-dynasty jade Rabbit, unearthed from the Tomb of Fu Hao in 1976: A late Shang jade Rabbit was unearthed from the Tomb of Fu Hao at Yinxu in Anyang, Henan, and is now held by the Henan Museum. Exquisitely formed, it is one of the representative works of Shang-dynasty jade craftsmanship.

Shang-dynasty green-jade Rabbit: The Palace Museum holds a green-jade Rabbit from the Shang dynasty.

Western Zhou Rabbit Zun, unearthed in 1992 from Tomb M8 of the Jin Marquis cemetery at Quwo: Now held by the Shanxi Museum. The Rabbit Zun is a Western Zhou bronze ritual vessel modeled in the form of a rabbit, showing that by the Western Zhou period the Rabbit had already been cast into ritual vessels.

Western Zhou standing Rabbit-shaped Zun: Now held by the Poly Art Museum.

Western Zhou double-Rabbit chariot-yoke ornament: Now held by the Shanghai Museum. This is a decorative component from a Western Zhou chariot, modeled as a pair of Rabbits.

During the Shang and Zhou periods, when images of the myriad things were cast into ritual tripods, Rabbit-shaped Zun vessels were already being produced. Bronze ritual vessels were ritual implements that assisted shamans in communicating between Heaven and Earth, and shamans regarded the Rabbit as a spiritual and wondrous being, imbued with metaphorical mystery and glory.

Jade Rabbit on a stone coffin painting from a late Eastern Han tomb in Pi County, Sichuan: This is the earliest known image of the Jade Rabbit in the moon discovered to date.

T-shaped silk painting from Han Tomb No. 1 at Mawangdui, Changsha, Western Han: In the celestial section of the silk painting appears a crescent moon containing a toad and the Jade Rabbit, while below the moon is Chang’e ascending toward it. This constitutes early visual evidence of the “Jade Rabbit in the moon.”

Maoling pottery Rabbit, Han dynasty: Unearthed on October 5, 1968, at Zhangli Village in the Maoling mausoleum precinct. It measures 10 centimeters long and 5.5 centimeters high. The pottery Rabbit is shown in a contracted posture, crouched low against the ground, with legs bent, neck drawn in, ears naturally laid back along the body, bright round eyes, and a slightly curled tail. The craftsman made skillful use of clay, combining fine carving and modeling to give the Rabbit an image that is both lifelike and full of vitality.

Immortal riding a Rabbit-drawn chariot in Han pictorial stones: Han pictorial stones from northern Shaanxi contain images of immortals riding chariots drawn by Rabbits. This shows that in Han-dynasty thought, the Rabbit had already acquired divine qualities.

Cui Bai’s *Shuangxi Tu* (《双喜图》), Northern Song: Held by the National Palace Museum in Taipei. The painting depicts a sudden violent wind startling two magpies into flight, causing a wild Rabbit beneath the tree to turn back in alarm.

Southern Song green-jade Rabbit paperweight: Held by the Quzhou Museum.

Ming-dynasty hanging scroll *Changong Yutu Tu* (《蟾宫玉兔图》), painted by Tao Cheng: Held by the Palace Museum.

Ming-dynasty bronze mirror stand in the form of a reclining Rabbit holding flowers in its mouth: Held by the Capital Museum.

Qing-dynasty Leng Mei hanging scroll *Wutong Shuangtu Tu* (《梧桐双兔图》): Held by the Palace Museum.

In ancient Chinese artifacts and artworks, the image of the Rabbit underwent an evolution from the sacred altar to the human world. It first appeared as a sacrificial victim and auspicious divine beast, and later became a popular subject in folk art. Rabbits possess extremely strong vitality and were regarded by ancient peoples from an early period as auspicious beasts. Their strong reproductive capacity also made them highly favored among ordinary people in folk culture.

Rabbits are skilled runners, hence the expression “静如处子动如脱兔”. The Chinese character “逸” itself derives its meaning through association with the Rabbit. In *Sanguo Yanyi* (《三国演义》), Lü Bu’s mount is named “赤兔马”—the use of “Red Rabbit” to name a fine horse was very likely connected with the Rabbit’s speed.

Myths and legends surrounding the Rabbit are among the richest and most influential of all the twelve zodiac animals. From the Jade Rabbit pounding medicine in the story of Chang’e flying to the moon to the “Rabbit and Ox race” in zodiac ranking legends, the Rabbit’s mythological image spans the celestial and human worlds, the sacred and the secular.

This is the most famous and influential legend associated with the Rabbit.

In the Chinese household myth of Chang’e flying to the moon, the Jade Rabbit is the spiritual animal that accompanies Chang’e day and night in the Guanghan Palace. According to legend, after Chang’e secretly consumed the elixir of immortality that her husband Hou Yi had obtained from the Queen Mother of the West, she flew to the Moon Palace. In the Guanghan Palace, Chang’e was not alone—a Jade Rabbit beneath the osmanthus tree pounded medicine without pause, day and night, keeping her company.

What kind of “medicine” does the Jade Rabbit pound in the moon? According to legend, it is the elixir of immortality. The image of the Jade Rabbit pounding medicine reflects humanity’s longing for longevity and eternal life. The “Jade Rabbit” thus became one of the most classic cultural symbols of the moon. People associated the moon with the Rabbit from very early times. Lu Dian, a prominent Song official, wrote: “兔，吐也。明月之精，视月而生。故曰明视”. Lu Dian’s meaning is that the Rabbit possesses a mysterious correspondence with the moon and is “the essence of the bright moon”—a being generated from the moon’s own essence.

For thousands of years, the Jade Rabbit has pounded medicine beneath the osmanthus tree, bringing blessings to the human world. When people think of the Guanghan Palace and the osmanthus tree, they often also think of the lovable Jade Rabbit. On clear nights, Chinese grandmothers have long liked to point toward the moon and tell children the stories of Chang’e flying to the moon, Wu Gang cutting the osmanthus tree, and the Jade Rabbit pounding medicine. The indistinct shadows upon the moon, resembling at once a person, a Rabbit, and a tree, seem almost to confirm the grandmothers’ tales.

In ancient Chinese mythology, the Rabbit is often associated with immortals. Images of the Queen Mother of the West, a goddess in ancient Chinese mythology who governs the elixir of immortality, frequently include a spiritual Rabbit pounding medicine. The Queen Mother of the West is the western goddess recorded in the *Shanhaijing* (《山海经》) and is the keeper of the “medicine of immortality.” Hou Yi obtained the elixir of immortality from her. After Chang’e secretly consumed the immortal medicine and flew to the Moon Palace, the Jade Rabbit pounding medicine came to dwell there. This mythological chain links together the Queen Mother of the West, Hou Yi, Chang’e, and the Jade Rabbit, forming one of the most splendid narratives of immortality in Chinese mythology.

Han pictorial stones from northern Shaanxi also depict immortals riding Rabbit-drawn chariots. The fact that Rabbits could pull the chariots of immortals shows that in Han-dynasty thought, the Rabbit was no longer merely an earthly animal, but a spiritual beast possessing divine qualities.

Within ancient Chinese auspicious-omen culture, the Rabbit was regarded as an auspicious beast. The *Ruiying Tu* (《瑞应图》) records: “赤兔大瑞，白兔中瑞”. The so-called “Red Rabbit”, a Rabbit with reddish fur, was regarded as an auspicious omen of the highest rank, while the “White Rabbit” was regarded as an auspicious omen of intermediate rank. In ancient times, when people discovered a white Rabbit, they would often respectfully present it to the imperial court as a sign of national prosperity and strength. The historical work *Hou Hanshu · Guangwu Di Ji Xia* (《后汉书·光武帝纪下》) records that “日南徼外蛮夷献白雉、白兔”.

The ancients held the belief that “a Rabbit lives for a thousand years and becomes white upon reaching five hundred years of age.” The White Rabbit was therefore regarded as the result of a Rabbit cultivating itself for a thousand years and turning white only after reaching five hundred years of age, and its appearance was taken as a sign of peace throughout the realm and flourishing national fortune. The expression “玉兔呈祥”, “the Jade Rabbit brings auspiciousness,” has long been deeply rooted in popular consciousness. “玉兔呈祥” originated from “遇兔呈祥”—to encounter a Rabbit was to encounter good fortune. Precisely because the Rabbit was an auspicious beast, people linked “encountering a Rabbit” with “the arrival of auspiciousness.”

The *Huainanzi* (《淮南子》) records: “月中有桂树，果实每年四五月后飘落人间”. Because the Jade Rabbit is an immortal child of the moon, people often concealed Rabbits among clusters of osmanthus trees. Whoever first finds the Jade Rabbit beneath the osmanthus tree in the moon will receive the auspicious sign of “蟾宫折桂”—a beautiful symbol of achieving distinction in the imperial examinations and having one’s name inscribed among the successful candidates.

A lively folk legend known as the “Rabbit and Ox race” explains why the Rabbit occupies fourth place among the twelve zodiac animals.

According to legend, the Rabbit and the Yellow Ox were neighbors and got along extremely well. One day, the Rabbit, proud of its talent for long-distance running, boasted before the Yellow Ox: “I am the long-distance champion of the animal world. No one can outrun me!” The Yellow Ox humbly asked the Rabbit to teach it the secrets of long-distance running, but the Rabbit proudly shook its head and replied: “A long-distance champion depends on innate qualities. It cannot be learned. Besides, long-distance running requires a light and nimble body. With your thick, sturdy build, I’m afraid you’ll never be able to run fast.” The Yellow Ox was deeply unconvinced by these words. From that day onward, it began training for long-distance running, and through its unyielding bovine determination, eventually developed a pair of “iron feet.”

When the day arrived for the Jade Emperor to rank the zodiac animals, the rule was that whichever animal reached the Celestial Palace first would be admitted to the zodiac. The Yellow Ox and the Rabbit agreed that they would get up as soon as the rooster crowed for the first time and head directly to Heaven to compete for a zodiac position. Yet when the first rooster crow sounded and the Yellow Ox rose, the Rabbit had already set off alone. After running for a long while, the Rabbit looked back and saw no trace of any other animal. It thought: “I got up earliest today and I run the fastest. Even if I sleep for a while, first place in the zodiac will still unquestionably be mine.” So the Rabbit lay down on the grass and fell fast asleep.

Although the Yellow Ox started later, it relied on its endurance and the iron feet it had trained over time, running forward in a single determined burst. While the Rabbit was still sleeping soundly, the Yellow Ox reached the Celestial Palace first.

While the Rabbit slept, a burst of hurried footsteps awakened it. Opening its eyes, it saw a Tiger rushing past like a gust of wind. The Rabbit panicked and immediately gave chase, but it was still one step too late and fell behind the Tiger. Because the crafty little Rat had crouched between the Ox’s two horns and seized first place, the Ox had to settle for second, the Tiger took third, and the Rabbit came fourth. Although the Rabbit had successfully entered the zodiac, it felt humiliated at losing to the old Yellow Ox, which was not naturally as fast as itself. After returning home, it moved into an earthen burrow and no longer associated with the old Yellow Ox.

In the version in which the Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan selects his guards, the Rabbit refuses to accept that the Dragon should rank ahead of it and insists on racing the Dragon. The Rabbit wins and ranks before the Dragon. This version explains the relative positions of Rabbit and Dragon—Rabbit fourth and Dragon fifth—as the result of a race between the two.

“Lord Rabbit” (兔儿爷) is a traditional folk object of Beijing, originating in the late Ming period. It is a clay toy associated with the Mid-Autumn Festival and was also used in offerings to the moon. Lord Rabbit was made from clay, plaster, and similar materials, with a Rabbit’s body and human face, wearing a robe and armor and painted in bright colors. Its vivid and humorous appearance made it deeply popular with children and allowed it to embody a wide range of auspicious hopes. In the Beijing-Tianjin region, people traditionally worshipped Lord Rabbit when making offerings to the moon, while the figure also served as a seasonal children’s toy. The emergence of Lord Rabbit represents a secularized and artistic expression of the folk myth of the “Jade Rabbit in the moon”—bringing the celestial Rabbit down from its lofty altar and transforming it into a folk object that people could approach, play with, and worship.

The great Tang-dynasty writer Han Yu wrote *Mao Ying Zhuan* (《毛颖传》), personifying the writing brush, Mao Ying, and describing its origins: “毛颖者，中山人也。其先佐禹治东方土，养万物有功，因封于卯地，死为十二神”. Han Yu personifies the rabbit-hair brush as “Mao Ying,” grants it the mythic background of “assisting Yu in governing the eastern lands,” and connects its ancestors with the “land of Mao”, the Mao-Rabbit correspondence, and the “Twelve Gods,” the twelve zodiac animals. It is a classic work of literature that transforms Rabbit zodiac culture into literary narrative.

As zodiac culture spread, it incorporated the local cultural elements of different countries, and the Rabbit developed strikingly different forms across East Asia. The most notable variation is Vietnam’s replacement of the Rabbit with the Cat.

Viewed across the origins and evolution of the Rabbit zodiac, a clear trajectory emerges: the Rabbit’s place as the fourth of the twelve zodiac animals is inseparable from the cultural imagery it carries—“opening the door to welcome blessings,” “the fullness of spring,” and “the dawn of daybreak.” Characters and texts tell us that because Rabbits emerge from their burrows to forage during Mao hour, and because the Rabbit is regarded as a “Yin animal” with four toes, it corresponds closely in spirit and temperament with the earthly branch “Mao” and its meanings of “emerging from the earth” and “the flourishing of all things.” The Qin bamboo-slip *Rishu* and the Eastern Han *Lunheng* had already fixed the “Mao-Rabbit” pairing within an institutionalized zodiac system, while Tang-dynasty zodiac figurines transformed it into a visible embodiment of belief. Zooarchaeology further reveals that from the Neolithic period onward, the Rabbit was a familiar animal in the lives of ancient Chinese peoples—from the Rabbit bones at Zengpiyan in Guilin to the Rabbit-shaped jade objects of Lingjiatan, the Rabbit’s presence has never been absent.

Yet what truly gives the Rabbit zodiac its soul is the vast world of myths and legends surrounding it. In these narratives born among the people, the Rabbit is the Jade Rabbit in the Guanghan Palace, pounding the elixir of immortality day and night; the sacred animal closely associated with the Queen Mother of the West and her medicine of immortality; the auspicious omen of the *Ruiying Tu*, where “the Red Rabbit is a great auspicious sign, the White Rabbit an intermediate auspicious sign”; and the beautiful symbolism of “蟾宫折桂” in the *Huainanzi*. At the same time, it is also the racer whose pride causes it to lose to the Yellow Ox and receive only fourth place in the zodiac. In folk belief, the Rabbit transforms again into Beijing’s Lord Rabbit—with Rabbit body and human face, clad in robe and armor—descending from the sacred altar into the human world to become both a beloved children’s toy and an object of moon worship.

When the Rabbit zodiac traveled beyond the Central Plains to Japan and the Korean Peninsula, it retained its honored fourth position and auspicious meanings; in Vietnam, however, it was replaced by the Cat—because the pronunciation of “Mao” resembled that of “Cat,” and because the jungle environment made the Cat a more familiar presence. This distinctive cultural variation precisely demonstrates that the vitality of a cultural symbol lies not in whether it is reproduced without change, but in whether it possesses sufficient inclusiveness to allow every culture that receives it to find its own voice within it. The Rabbit zodiac is precisely such a symbol. It comes from the Moon Palace, carrying the jade pestle with which it pounds medicine and the clear fragrance of osmanthus blossoms, casting the gentlest ray of moonlight across the spiritual sky of the Chinese people.

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