Every night the Moon rises above the starry vault and gives us the most amazing views. Over the months we see it light up little by little until it reaches the full moon and then lose its brightness until it sinks into shadows. But there is one constant, its craters that make up its intricate valleys and lunar seas, seem to come together in shapes that resemble a rabbit, a figure that has permeated the collective imagination since ancient times. The legend of the rabbit that lives in the nocturnal celestial body is an ancient story that comes from our ancestors, the Aztecs.
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The legend of the rabbit on the Moon has a Nahuatl origin and tells the story of Quetzalcoatl, one of the most important deities in the entire Aztec pantheon. He tells us how he was the one who forever captured the figure of the rabbit that can be seen on the Earth’s natural satellite. The legend was told by the wisest Aztecs who passed it on by word of mouth until it reached the youngest.
The legend of Quetzalcoatl and the rabbit
According to legend, one day the god Quetzalcóatl decided to visit the earth, becoming an ordinary human and infiltrating his people to go unnoticed. The great Quetzalcoatl wanted to observe with his own eyes the world that he had helped to create with so much love. Upon his descent he found a happy and prosperous people who venerated their deities with the most faithful hearts.
After visiting different communities, the god was amazed by the untamed nature and for this reason, he went to walk through the terrestrial landscapes. He crossed fields full of green grass and grass with indescribable aromas. He climbed the mountains to admire the landscape from above in his human form and also swam alongside the most powerful creatures in the ocean.
The excitement of visiting every corner of nature and admiring the power of its creatures made the deity forget about his human needs and suddenly he felt famished. With night falling over the valley that surrounded Great Tenochtitlán, Quetzalcoatl decided to sit down to admire the panorama when suddenly next to him sat a gray rabbit that had come out of its burrow to have dinner.
The little rabbit moved his whiskers from side to side and in his big eyes the god could see the reflection of the starry night and the silver moon in the background. Suddenly Quetzalcoatl broke the silence and asked him:
– What are you eating?
– A little grass, there is also for you; if you like.
– Thanks, but I don’t eat grass. – He told him, the god turned human responded.
Quetzalcoatl’s stomach resonated like the thunder of a storm and then the rabbit said:
– Then, what are you going to do? Here I have a carrot we can share.
– I thank you, but I couldn’t deprive you of your food. I think maybe she will die of exhaustion, hunger and thirst.
The deity was aware that his human body could perish from starvation, however, his spirit would remain and return to its true form; that of the feathered serpent. But then, the rabbit interrupted her thoughts and said:
– Look, I am just a little rabbit and you are a young traveler; Eat me, regain your strength and continue your story.
His bravery touched the heart of Quetzalcoatl who decided to show him the immensity of the heavens; He took him in his arms and together they walked through the stars that the rabbit observed with so much love. But when they visited the Moon, the god brought the rabbit so close that its figure was forever stamped on its surface. When they returned to earth and the creature observed his figure captured on the Moon that he loved so much, he was greatly moved. Quetzalcoatl noticed this and said:
– You may only be a little rabbit, but now everyone will remember you forever for your kindness.
This is how the little rabbit marked the Moon with his bravery and now we can observe it every night whenever the Moon decides to shine on the starry night.