Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: 五足の兎, Five-Legged Rabbit, Moon Rabbit
Category: Rabbit
The Myth
Gosoku Usagi is a supernatural rabbit with five legs that appears in the old Japanese puppet play Atago no Honji. The creature first appears as Katsura Otoko, a mysterious being connected to the Moon who takes the form of a white demon. Its strange appearance and unusual number of legs reveal its supernatural nature.
During the reign of Emperor Bidatsu, two moons mysteriously appeared in the sky, moving in opposite directions. The warrior Nichira recognized one as an evil moon and had a towering wooden structure built so he could shoot it down with a bow and arrow. When the fallen moon struck the imperial palace grounds, it transformed into a great tree. Nichira cut the tree open, releasing a white demon who called himself Katsura Otoko and attacked the warrior. Nichira defeated him and declared that he must be a rabbit, reminding him of the legend of the rabbit that sacrificed itself to feed a hungry holy man. Katsura Otoko then transformed into a five-legged rabbit and fled.
Nichira pursued the creature and caught it again near western Nishiyama in Yamashiro Province. After Nichira cut off its head, the head flew into the sky while the body was torn apart and thrown into a river. The head returned and breathed fire from above, but Nichira struck it down and destroyed it. The story explains the names of Katsura Village and the Katsura River. The rabbit’s unusual number of legs connects it to traditions of the Moon Rabbit, whose extra legs distinguish it from an ordinary hare.
Sources
“Gosoku-usagi.” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1084159775.html