The Hare and the Message of the Moon

The Moon wanted to send a message of eternal life to the people on Earth. The Moon called the Hare and said, "Go down to the people and tell them this: 'As I die and, dying, live, so you shall also die and, dying, live again'." The Hare, being a scatterbrained and impatient creature, ran off but got the message muddled. He arrived at the village of men and announced, "The Moon has sent me to tell you that as she dies and, dying, perishes, so you shall also die and, dying, perish forever." When the Hare returned to the sky, the Moon was furious at his mistake. "How could you change my message of life into one of doom?" the Moon cried. In his anger, he hit the Hare across the face with a piece of firewood, splitting his lip. The Hare, in turn, scratched the Moon's face with his sharp claws. This is why the Hare has a split lip to this day, and why the face of the Moon is covered in dark scratches. And because of the Hare's mistake, death became permanent for humankind.