The 2025 Lunar New Year festivities have officially kicked off, marking the start of the Year of the Snake.
Just as a snake sheds its skin revealing a new set of scales, the Year of the Snake symbolizes renewal and regeneration. January 29th marks the beginning of a fortnight of celebration for the Chinese New Year, Seollal in Korea, Tet in Vietnam, and many other New Year festivities throughout Asia. These two-week festivities consist of of parties, traditional observances, and many, many, feasts.
The Lunar New Year 2025: Year of the Snake
China celebrates its Lunar New Year with stunning jellyfish fireworks.
pic.twitter.com/WO2HzeRvt6— Tansu Yegen (@TansuYegen) January 29, 2025
Also referred to as the Spring Festival, the Lunar New Year celebrates the arrival of spring after the harsh winter season. The arrival of the fertile season also indicates a New Year based on the Chinese Lunisolar Calendar.
The Year of the Snake is one of transformation and is a celebrated time for those in the Eastern Hemisphere. Despite snakes’ bad reputation in the Western side of the world, this year is meant to be a positive one. The only catch? You must be willing to let go of the old and move on to new things. One must shed their skin like a snake to reap the benefits of its year.
“It’s shedding the ego, letting go of the past, letting go of anger, letting go of love lost,” said Jonathan H. X. Lee, an Asian and Asian American studies professor at San Francisco State University whose research focuses on Chinese folklore. “This is the year where that kind of growth — personal and macro, internal and external — is very much possible.
1,800 drones in Dubai performed flying dragons in the sky at Dubai Sailing Hotel to celebrate the China Lunar New Year #Dubai
pic.twitter.com/t4HgVtqSgZ
— 孙松.SunSong (@sunsong0909) February 13, 2024
Shedding the Old Year
Snakes symbolize self-improvement, urging the release of detrimental habits, people, and ideas that may hinder progress.
The snake, which corresponds to individuals born in the years 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013, and 2025, is most commonly associated with intelligence and the pursuit of love and happiness. It is also considered the most tenacious Chinese Zodiac member, meaning that people born in the Year of the Snake will achieve their goals by any means necessary.
“They are known to have this innate potential to be really successful because they can think outside the box, and they will endure and they will persevere,” Lee said.
In 2025, it is the year of the wood snake. The wood element in Chinese religions holds significant meanings that complement the snake zodiac’s symbolism. The Wood Snake represents shedding the superfluous and returning to one’s core self in Daoism. It symbolizes becoming a more accomplished person in Confucianism. And finally, it signifies letting go of the old for new growth in Buddhist belief.
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