There is a beautiful story about the Goddess Ostara who brought Spring a little late one year. Ostara, feeling guilty about the late spring, saved a little bird whose wings were frozen by the cold snow. She took him great care of him and gave him lots of affection (some accounts of this story state that Ostara made this bird her per or lover). Feeling sorry for the bird, Ostara gave a him a great gift: she turned him into a snow hare with the ability to run fast at great speeds.

However, that was not the only gift Ostara gave him: she also gave him the ability to lay eggs as a remembrance of his earlier life as bird. The eggs that were laid were brightly colored in various shades. The only drawback to this gift was that the hare could only lay the eggs on one day each year.

Sadly, there came a time when the hare angered Ostara and she punished him by sending him into the skies where he became the constellation Lepus (The Hare), positioned right under the constellation Orion (the Hunter). The hare was permitted to return to the earth only once a year, but his time was spent giving away all his colorful eggs to all of the children who attended the Ostara festival that was held each spring.

And so the Pagan origin of the Easter Bunny had begun.

The Hare was, and still is, quite sacred in many pagan traditions and was also associated with the moon goddesses and other hunting deities. The hare, or rabbit, was also believed to represent fertility, and in some ancient cultures rabbits and hares were eaten to cure infertility. This was partly due to their ability to produce up to 42 offspring every year around springtime. These creatures came to represent lust, sexuality, and overindulgence.

However, once again the Christian’s adopted this pagan belief and recreated to match the religious needs of their teachings. They depicted the Hare at the Virgin Mary's feet, and placed upon him the representation of triumph of the flesh (or lust). His speed was said to symbolize the inherent need to flee from sin and temptation; as well as in remembrance of the swift passage of life.

The story of the Easter bunny bringing eggs to children was first recorded in a German publication in the 1600s. German immigrants settling into what is now known as the Pennsylvania Dutch country in the 1700s, introduced the Easter bunny to America.

To see hares, rabbits and bunnies in Salt Lake City this Easter weekend, pay a visit to the Hogle Zoo. They have a great child-friendly petting zoo as well. The Hogle Zoo is located at 2600 Sunnyside Avenue (840 South), Salt Lake City, UT 84108. Their phone number is (801) 582-1631.

Don't forget to read the other related articles: Is Easter a Pagan holiday? and The history of Pagan Easter traditions.