Rabbit Tattoo

Rabbit Tattoo Designs - From ancient times, the rabbit and the hare have symbolized abundance, sexuality, lust and fertility. To 'breed like a rabbit' suggests rampant and unrestrained growth. In African and American oral tradition, the rabbit is an archetypal trickster, sometimes hero, almost always lovable, but often amoral. Likewise in Japanese lore, the white rabbit proves too clever and arrogant for its own good, meeting disastrous ends. In the Chinese zodiac, the rabbit is the happiest of the twelve symbols, being kind, popular, affectionate and obliging. In China, the hare is also a symbol of long life. In parts of Asia and the Americas, the 'man in the moon' is perceived as 'the rabbit in the moon'.

Native American totem medicine heralds the rabbit as the symbol of fertility. As an animal spirit guide, the rabbit reminds those who are physically vulnerable to seek safety in numbers, and to 'leap over obstacles in your path.' It also counsels one to remain calm in times of danger, much as the rabbit or hare 'freezes' when a predator approaches, relying first on its camouflage to hide in plain sight before fleeing only when absolutely necessary.

Many myths -- Cherokee and Sioux in particular - involve the tricky rabbit who often falls prey to his own boastfulness. For some native peoples in Eastern Canada, the Great Hare attained supreme deity status, while the ancient Aztecs worshipped a group of deities known as 'the 400 rabbits'.

Due in no small part to its representation of a "liberated" lifestyle, and symbolizing sexual freedom, the Playboy Bunny is a popular tattoo design with both men and women.

Building upon the rabbit's mythical history of lust, sex, and playing tricks, some of the most memorable cartoon characters have become stars of the Silver Screen. In "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" we have the super-seductive Jessica Rabbit (who saddly was not a rabbit!). If the all-time favourite cartoon rabbit is Bugs Bunny, turning the rabbit character on its head is the Wallace and Gromit franchise, which produced the Academy Award winning "Curse of the Were-Rabbit", an oxymoron if ever there was one.