“There once was a group of rabbits. Half of them followed the gods to the Moon, and the other half stayed on Earth… but none of them realized that they’d never meet again.”

Reisen Udongein Inaba was once a moon rabbit, but now she’s an earth rabbit who lives in Gensokyo. She received the name “Udongein” from Eirin and the name “Inaba” from Kaguya.

You’d have to tell me about that girl who acts all high and mighty ‘cause I don’t know much about her.

The Horned Rabbit Union was formed by the rabbits of Gensokyo with the goal of creating a rabbit utopia. Reisen Udongein Inaba leads the many youkai rabbits and normal rabbits in the union as the president, supported by Tewi Inaba, the vice president. According to Reisen, the “Horned Rabbit” name represents their conviction as hornless rabbits to strive for what they do not have.

Their principal activities are demonstrations and protests against rabbit stew. However, while none of the rabbits want to end up in a stew, there are reports that suggest some of the rabbits aren’t all that serious about the protests and just show up because it’s fun… There also seem to be quite a few other differences of opinion among the union members, probably because Reisen, their leader, is the only rabbit from the Moon.

Apparently, there is also an organization called Horned Rabbit Union Pharmaceuticals. Judging from the name, it is probably a division of the Horned Rabbit Union centered around the rabbits who manufacture medicine. Perhaps they are the ones who mass-produce the pharmaceuticals developed by Eirin since the tools earth rabbits use to pound mochi can also be used to compound medicine, and Tewi seems to know a lot about Lord Daikoku’s divine medicine.

Miraculous medicines feature in many different mythologies the world over, usually in the form of magical substances that produce supernatural effects when ingested. This is representative of the misconceptions people of the past had about medicine and those who studied it. The idea that ingesting substances with specific properties will alter the internal properties of the body is a philosophy shared by all studies of medicine, from neidan (Chinese internal alchemy) to modern-day practices. This harkens back to the time when all doctors were also pharmacists, producing their own drugs. Now, largely due to the advent of surgery, there are many terms for medical practitioners depending on their specialty.

Is there such a thing as the ultimate medicine?

The condition of the human body can be altered in a myriad of ways by administering various substances found throughout the world in specific dosages and combinations. The properties of individual substances cannot be changed, but their effects can be nullified or strengthened by combining them with something else… This concept is the foundation of alchemy, as well as studies of internal medicine and science that evolved from it. However, with the advent of things like surgery and physics came the idea that operations could be performed on a substance’s inner structure. All objects can be divided into smaller components, allowing for greater levels of customization. If you could freely manipulate the smallest particles in the human body, you might be able to produce the same effects as medicine without administering any. This broaches the realm of eternity and the instantaneous and offers almost unlimited possibilities. If there was ever such a thing as divine medicine, I’m sure it would be something like that.

…Well, that’s my theory, anyway. Signed: Chiyuri Kitashirakawa.