One day, the god Quetzalcoatl descended from the 12th heaven to observe the Western Hemisphere. To gain the human experience, he toured the land now known as Mexico transformed as a human, spending the day walking around the rich land. Enamored by everything he saw in this land, he kept walking to discover more till his human legs could no longer carry him. He came upon the meadows of central Mexico, found a tree and rested under its shade. He fell into a deep sleep, woken up in the middle of the night by the growling of his hungry stomach.
“I must find something to eat,” He said to himself. Walking under the light of the moon, he stumbled upon a rabbit. “Nom nom nom,” the rabbit was eating. “Greetings little rabbit, I’ve been touring this land and have found myself hungry and without food. If I do not eat soon, I will perish.” The rabbit stopped chewing looked up at Quetzalcoatl and said “Here, have some of my grass, it’s very tasty.” Quetzalcoatl chuckled, “I cannot eat that, it will poison me and I’ll surely die.”
The rabbit dropped its grass and hopped closer to Quetzalcoatl. “Then eat me. I may not satiate your hunger, but I’ll buy you some time so you may find something that will.” Quetzalcoatl was astonished. “Little rabbit, you have made me very happy. You chose to sacrifice yourself so that I may live. Your gesture shall forever be known.” Quetzalcoatl reached toward the frightened rabbit, picked it up and held it in the air. “You may be a little rabbit, but your heart is much greater. I shall place you where humanity can be reminded of your great gesture for eternity.”
Quetzalcoatl turned toward the moon, lifted the rabbit toward the sky, eclipsing the moon’s light with the rabbit’s silhouette. The rabbit vanished, leaving behind a shadow on the moon’s surface. The distinctive mark, shaped like the rabbit who sacrificed its life for the feathered serpent god can still be seen today.
As the year of the rabbit approaches, I honor this brave rabbit, the Moon Rabbit, in my Lunar New Year t-shirt design. The imagery in this design is inspired by Eastern and Meso-American styles merging together aesthetics of two cultures who believe in the rabbit on the moon.
The t-shirt is available in 6 colorways, four of which are exclusive to the crowd funding period. The design will require a minimum backing of 25 supporters in order to go to production. Backers will enjoy a discounted price as a token of appreciation for supporting my work early on. The backing period ends on December 15. Following the backing period, only Red and Navy colorways will be available and t-shirts will be sold at regular price. Head to my shop tab to help fund the design and may the light of the moon rabbit guide you toward a prosperous new year.