Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: 八足の兎, Eight-Legged Rabbit, Eight-Footed Hare
Category: Rabbit
The Myth
Yatsuashi no Usagi, meaning “eight-legged rabbit,” was an extraordinary rabbit reportedly discovered in Yamato Province and presented to the imperial court in the second month of Enchō 2 (924). Its unusual appearance was recorded in volume twenty of the Zenzen Taiheiki. Because such a creature was considered an unprecedented anomaly, the court ordered diviners from the Bureau of Yin and Yang to determine whether its appearance foretold good or bad fortune.
The Abe family’s diviner explained that the rabbit had originated from a male and female rabbit merging into a single creature. Their faces, considered yin in nature, had already disappeared into one, while the legs of both animals remained, producing a rabbit with eight legs. He argued that there was no need for excessive concern over the omen. When courtiers remained uneasy, he declared that eight legs were auspicious: eight represented the culmination of yin, and the character for “foot” also meant “sufficiency,” suggesting that nothing would be lacking. He further compared the rabbit to sacred bronze tripods depicted with eight legs, reinforcing the interpretation that the creature foretold good fortune.
The diviner also cited a story of a rabbit kept by the king of Chu that disappeared after being exposed to moonlight. This tale was used to explain the rabbit’s supposedly elusive yin nature and support the idea that two rabbits could merge into one. Later, when the courtier Taira no Kiyose questioned the monk Jitchibō Hōin of Mount Hiei about the creature, the monk offered a similar explanation. Although unusual animals were not generally considered auspicious, he noted that white animals, such as white phoenixes and white pheasants, were often celebrated as favorable signs. Since the eight-legged rabbit was reportedly white, he considered it potentially auspicious. He also connected the rabbit to the Moon, where the Jade Rabbit resides, arguing that two rabbits had combined into one just as the character 朋 could be formed from two instances of the character for moon. His explanation impressed the court for its apparent logic.
Sources
“Yatsuashi-usagi.” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1084178766.html