The Moon in Japanese Mythology and Culture

At once a god, a home for rabbits or a secret love poem, the moon is much more than a glowing rock in the sky in Japan. From ancient chronicles to modern pop culture, the moon’s soft light has always drawn inspiration and admiration from the citizens of the Land of the Rising Sun.

Here are some of the most beautiful, strange and enduring Japanese stories tied to the moon.

Rare depiction of the Shinto moon god Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, artist unknown | Wikimedia

Tsukuyomi: The Lonely Moon God

According to the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, the moon itself is a deity: Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, born from the primordial god Izanagi’s purification ritual. In ancient texts, Tsukuyomi is often depicted as cold and solitary, as well as the sibling and sometimes spouse of Amaterasu, the sun goddess. After witnessing the food goddess Ukemochi create meals by spitting and excreting them, Tsukuyomi killed her in disgust. Amaterasu was horrified and turned her face away forever — leaving the sun and moon doomed never to meet again.

It’s a story of divine estrangement, and sets the tone for the moon being imagined as cool and mysterious in Japanese mythology.

“Received Back into the Moon Palace” from Tsukioka Yoshitoshi’s 100 Aspects of the Moon Series, 1888

Princess Kaguya: The Moon Maiden Born From Bamboo

Japan’s most famous moon tale comes from the 10th-century folk tale Taketori Monogatari (The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter). An old bamboo cutter finds a glowing stalk, inside which lies a tiny girl who grows into the beautiful Kaguya-hime. Though courted by nobles and even the Emperor himself, she rejects them all. When her celestial kin descend from the heavens, she must return with them to the moon, leaving the Earth and the people who love her behind.

A story of beauty, impermanence and longing, the tale of Princess Kaguya suggests that earthly happiness is always fleeting.

“Rabbit Pounding the Elixir of Life Under the Moon” (c. 1867) by Mori Ippo | Noma Collections

The Rabbit on the Moon

While Western stargazers see a “man in the moon,” Japanese children grew up seeing a rabbit. This comes from a Buddhist folktale: a rabbit, otter, jackal and monkey vowed to help a hungry beggar. The monkey gathered fruit, the otter caught fish, the jackal brought a lizard and some milk curds, but the rabbit had nothing to offer. In devotion, he threw himself into the fire. The beggar revealed himself as the deity Shakra, who placed the rabbit’s selfless form forever on the moon.

In Japan, the rabbit is not idle — he’s pounding rice cakes (mochi) with a mortar and pestle. The image ties the moon to abundance, autumn harvests and sweet treats shared under a full moon.

The Moon as a Bridge to the Spirit World

Japanese folklore often treats the moon as a liminal space, a gateway between worlds. During Obon, when ancestors’ spirits are said to return home, the moonlit sky mirrors lanterns floating on rivers, guiding the departed. It also explains why Obon is celebrated mid-August, which roughly aligns with the full moon in the pre-Gregorian lunar calendar.

Though the moon generally has ethereal, positive connotations in Japan, for ancient villagers, a red blood moon was a frightening omen that something bad was about to happen. The moon has always been both beautiful and a power of its own: a light that belongs partly to this world, partly to another.

Portrait of Natsume Soseki, taken in 1912 | Wikimedia

Natsume Soseki’s Famous Line

The novelist Natsume Soseki (1867–1916) is credited with one of Japan’s most famous moon quotes. When a student translated “I love you” literally into Japanese, Soseki suggested a more nuanced phrasing to suit the sensibilities of the era: “Tsuki ga kirei desu ne” (The moon is beautiful, isn’t it?).

Whether the tale is fabricated or not, the phrase has become shorthand in Japan for understated, deep affection. It’s a reminder of the beauty in subtlety, and that the moon often carries the words we can’t quite say.

Courtesy of Netflix Media Center

The Moon Today: From Tsukimi to Sailor Moon

The moon still shines brightly in modern Japan. Every autumn, families celebrate tsukimi (moon-viewing), gathering to eat dango rice dumplings and admire the harvest moon. Convenience stores and fast food shops line their shelves with “tsukimi burgers” topped with fried eggs, golden and full like the moon above.

And of course, pop culture keeps lunar lore alive, the most obvious example being Sailor Moon “fighting evil by moonlight.” The moon has never stopped being a canvas for Japan’s stories, old and new.

Whether as a lonely god or a maiden returning home, the moon in Japan is an ever-present metaphor for life’s nuanced tales. It’s a mirror of longing, sacrifice, beauty and wonder, a tale that glows every night without fail.