The Origin Of The Hare
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TALES ACCOUNTING FOR THE ORIGIN OF PHENOMENA.
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Aino Folktales
Suddenly there was a large house on the top of a mountain, wherein were
six people beautifully arrayed, but constantly quarrelling. Whence they
came was unknown. Thereupon Okikurumi came and said: "Oh! you bad hares!
you wicked hares! who does not know your origin? The children in the sky
were pelting each other with snowballs, and the snowballs fell into the
world of men. As it would be a pity to waste anything that falls from
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the sky, the snowballs were turned into hares, and those hares are you.
You, who dwell in this world, which belongs to me, should not quarrel.
What is it that you are making such a noise about?"
With these words, Okikurumi seized a fire-brand, and beat each of the
six with it in turn. Thereupon all the hares ran away. This is the
origin of the hare[-god]; and for this reason the body of the hare is
white because made of snow, while its ears--which are the place where it
was charred by the fire-brand,--are black.--(Translated literally. Told
by Penri, 10th July, 1886.)