Special Edition - Lunar New Year
Yesterday was graced with a magnificent full moon, the Berry Moon in the southern hemisphere. If you’re in the northern hemisphere, you will have seen the Snow Moon, Hunger Moon, or Lenten Moon (according to the Farmer’s Almanac). This full moon is important for many people across Asia as it marks the end of the Chinese or Lunar New Year.
I missed the window to post this article at the start of the Lunar New Year celebrations. Now that we are at the end, I hope you had the chance to enjoy some Lunar New Year festivities. In the spirit of the Year of the Snake, let’s take a quick look at the history, traditions, customs and of course, food that mark this widely celebrated time of year.
The History of Lunar New Year
The Lunar New Year is also known as Chinese New Year or Spring Festival. In Korea, it is called Seollal and Tết in Vietnam. As with the European seasonal celebrations we explore in Wheel & Cross, the southern hemisphere’s seasons are out-of-sync and opposite to the northern hemisphere’s seasons. Although the Lunar New Year at its roots is an early spring festival in China, Japan and Korea, in Thailand and much of South Asia, the Lunar New Year is celebrated during the hot dry season. In countries further south such as Malaysia, Indonesia and the north of Australia, celebrations occur in the monsoon season (usually December - February).
The Lunar New Year begins with the first new moon of the lunar calendar and concludes on the first full moon, spanning approximately 15 days. The exact dates vary each year, falling between January 21 and February 20 according to Western calendars.
Its origins date back over 3,500 years in Ancient China. One legend tells of a fearsome and hideous beast named Nian (meaning “Year”) that ate livestock, crops and even human flesh. Nian was afraid of the colour red, loud noises, and fire. To ward off Nian, people pasted red paper decorations on doors, burned lanterns all night, and lit firecrackers. The video (3:57 mins) below explains the story of Nian in more depth.
Lunar New Year Customs
In many regions, a common custom to prepare for New Year celebrations involves a practice known as “sweeping of the grounds.” About 10 days before the new lunar year, houses undergo thorough cleaning to remove lingering bad luck.
New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day are celebrated at the new moon and are reserved for family celebrations and religious ceremonies honouring ancestors. Rituals involve offering food and paper icons to ancestors. Family reunions are celebrated with traditional foods and feasts. Red paper and banners inscribed with calligraphy messages of good health and fortune adorn homes. Elders give out lai see, red envelopes containing money to children, as a symbol of prosperity.
Community celebrations include lion, dragon and other traditional dances, as well as fireworks and firecrackers. Dragon boat races are also popular. Traditional foods like yuanxiao (sticky rice balls), fagao (prosperity cake), and yusheng (raw fish and vegetable salad) are enjoyed for their taste and symbolic meanings.
The celebrations usually culminate in the Lantern Festival, called Yuan Xiao, held on the last day of the New Year, at the full moon. Colourful lanterns symbolising peace, forgiveness and reconciliation illuminate homes, while streets and parks are filled with night-time parades of creative and symbolically made lanterns. The video (2:11 mins) below features images of the 2025 Lantern Festival across China.
The next video (3:52 mins) explains the Lantern Festival’s history and traditions.
Zodiac Animals and Elements
Each year of the Lunar calendar corresponds to one of 12 zodiac animals. These animals include the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig. Additionally, five elements—earth, water, fire, wood, and metal—are designated to each animal, and each year is associated with an animal corresponding to one of the elements. This creates a 60-year cycle.
The video (5:10 mins) below provides an excellent summary of the history and customs of the Lunar New Year.
2025 is the Year of the Wood Snake, which last appeared 60 years ago in 1965.
People born in the year of the Snake are said to be wise, charming, and mysterious. They have a keen intuition and a deep understanding of themselves and others. Snakes are also ambitious and determined, but they can be secretive and jealous at times. Snakes enjoy learning new things and exploring different cultures and philosophies.
The Snake is the animal that comes after the Dragon in the Chinese zodiac, and it has a very different personality and vibe. The Dragon is flashy and energetic, but the Snake is mysterious and subtle. The Snake brings a new influence that is more refined and elegant.
The Snake years are: 1917, 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013 and 2025.
It is said that the animals earned their place in the Chinese zodiac when the mythological Jade Emperor, Yu Huang, arranged a race to determine which 12 animals would be selected for the Chinese zodiac, and their order.
During this great race, the snake wrapped itself around the horse’s hoof, enabling it to cross a river but just as the horse was about to finish the race, the snake slithered over the line. The snake is admired for its intelligence and resourcefulness in securing sixth place in the Chinese zodiac, ahead of the horse.
A revered symbol in Chinese mythology, the snake is considered a creature of wisdom, mystery and transformation, and is associated with strategic thinking. The goddess Nüwa and her consort Fuxi, credited with the creation of mankind are most frequently depicted as humans with snake bodies, tails entwined.
‘The Legend of the White Snake’ is one of China’s ‘Four Great Folktales.’ The story is centred around a romance between Xu Xian and Bai Suzhen, a female snake spirit. Bai Suzhen’s female companion, Xiaoqing (‘Green Snake’) also plays an important role in the story. In the more ancient texts, Bai Suzhen is depicted as an evil demon who sickens and kills her lover. She is then either killed by Xu Xian’s parents or trapped under a tower or pagoda by a wise man or monk. By the time of the Qing dynasty, Bai Suzhen’s character had become more endearing. The following story is from Wikipedia and summarizes a famous Chinese opera:
A white snake and a blue-green snake from Mount Emei transform themselves into two young women called Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing, respectively. They become best friends and travel to Lin'an Prefecture (or Hangzhou), where they meet a young man named Xu Xian on a ferry-boat in West Lake. Xu Xian lends them his umbrella because it is raining. Xu Xian and Bai Suzhen fall in love instantly and are eventually married. They open a medicine shop.
Fahai, the abbot of Jinshan Temple in Zhenjiang, approaches Xu Xian and tells him that his wife is a snake. Xu Xian brushes him off, so Fahai tells him that he should have her drink realgar wine during the Dragon Boat Festival. Bai Suzhen unsuspectingly drinks the wine and reveals her true form as a large white snake. Xu Xian dies of shock after seeing that his wife is not human.
Bai Suzhen travels to Kunlun, where she braves danger to steal a magical herb guarded by disciples of the Old Man of the South Pole. The herb restores Xu Xian to life.
After coming back to life, Xu Xian is still fearful of his wife. He travels alone to Jinshan Temple, where Fahai imprisons him, telling him that he must live in the temple in order to save himself from the snake demons. Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing fight with Fahai to rescue Xu Xian. During the battle, Fahai calls on guardian deities like Skanda and Sangharama to help him. Bai Suzhen uses her powers to flood the temple, causing collateral damage in the process. However, her powers are limited because she is already pregnant with Xu Xian's child, so she fails to save her husband. Xiaoqing helps her escape back to Hangzhou.
Meanwhile, Xu Xian realizes that his wife's love for him is genuine and that he no longer cares if she is a snake. He manages to escape after persuading a sympathetic young monk to release him. When he reunites with his battered wife on Broken Bridge, where they first met, Xiaoqing is so furious at him that she intends to kill him, but Bai Suzhen stops her. Xu Xian expresses his regret, and both Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing forgive him, Xiaoqing more reluctantly.
Bai Suzhen gives birth to their son, Xu Mengjiao (in some versions Xu Shilin). Fahai tracks them down, defeats Bai Suzhen and imprisons her under Leifeng Pagoda, despite pleadings from Xu Xian. Xiaoqing flees, vowing vengeance.
This story has many prequels, sequels and spin-offs, adapted into operas, stage plays and films, including the drama series, The Legend of the White Snake. The videos below feature a trailer for the drama series (1:22 mins) and a music video (4:05 mins).
A computer-animated film was released in 2019, titled White Snake. The video (1:03) features the White Snake trailer.
A popular orchestral piece, Dance of the Golden Snake, is frequently played during Lunar New Year celebrations. It was composed in 1934 by Nie Er who also composed the national anthem for the People’s Republic of China. The first video (3:34 mins) below features the Dance of the Golden Snake performed by the Hsinchu City Youth Chinese Orchestra and the second video features a performance by the China Philharmonic Orchestra.
Finally, a good explanation of the Chinese New Year and the Year of the Snake is provided by ABC News in the video below (4:12 mins).
I hope you enjoyed this short exploration of the Asian Lunar New Year. We will be back on the 27th of February, exploring all things honey and honey bee-related as the last honey is harvested for the season. In the meantime, a belated… Xīnnián hǎo (新年好) or Xīnnián kuàilè (新年快乐), meaning Good or Happy Lunar New Year in Mandarin and San nin hou or Sun nin fai lok, meaning the same in Cantonese.