Happy new Chinese year
of the Yin Wood Snake
Welcome to the new Chinese year! It begins with the new moon rising at 8.15 am in London and lasts until the new moon of February 16th, 2026. This resonates with me more as we can feel the days lengthening, increasing light and we are closer to the spring equinox (20th March). It isn’t only the ancient Chinese who celebrate new year today, the second new moon after the winter solstice. Both the Celts (Imbolc) and the Christians (Candlemas) celebrate this mid-point between the darkest day of the year and roughly equal light. Yet while the days grow longer, in many countries in the northern hemisphere January and February tend to be the coldest months of the year rather than November and December.
If you want to spend some time with me welcoming in the energies of the Yin Wood snake I have a free online class. Just use this link:
Time: Friday 31st January, 7.15 pm-8.15pm UK (GMT) or 8.15pm CET
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86404039442
Meeting ID: 864 0403 9442
Passcode: 964521
Do you celebrate this time?
You might want to:
Take time to be with the new moon
Spend more time outside during these longer days
Notice how the increasing light affects you
I don’t want to make any “predictions” of what this new year will bring, but know that it offers you the gifts of the Yin Wood Snake.
Yin offers more inward, reflective qualities
Wood offers Yang, expansive qualities
The Snake offers transformation, duality, sacredness, healing and access to deep wisdom and our kundalini energy.
Cycles in our lives
I love being aware of our annual cycles of light and dark, and I also love the ancient Chinese idea of longer cycles of 12 years each marked with a different animal. Each year also alternates between being a Yin (more inner) year and a Yang (more outer) and every two years there is a change of element. The Chinese have 5 elements, as opposed to 4 in other traditions. These are water (winter) wood (spring) fire (summer) metal (autumn ) with earth at the centre. The 12 year cycles move into longer cycles of 60 years because every 12 years the animal is in a different element. This means that the last Yin Wood Snake was 60 years ago: 1965.
1965 brought the world:
Bob Dylan’s iconic album "Highway 61 Revisited", featuring "Like a Rolling Stone."
The Rolling Stones hit single "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction."
"The Sound of Music," starring Julie Andrews, one of the highest-grossing films of all time and a film my children loved watching repeatedly
The miniskirt, popularized by Mary Quant
Here are some prompts you might like to reflect on:
Were you alive in 1965? And if so what was that year like for you?
What does a yin wood snake mean to you?
What were you doing 12 years ago?
How have the last 12 years shaped you ?
The last year of the snake was 12 years ago in 2013. It’s a cycle for me because that was my first blog on the Chinese new year. That snake was a Yin Water Snake. I have written one every year since then apart from the Rooster in 2017 (when my dog died) and the Rat of 2020 which was a challenging year for everyone. You can find them all in my blog on my website! Each year I reflect on the animal and add in something about Traditional Chinese Medicine.
What can a Yin Wood Snake bring?
Last year was the Yang Wood Dragon. We are moving from the Yang aspect of wood to the Yin aspect. A dragon is more fiery and airborne than the more earthy snake. Since 2025 is also a year of completion, this may be a calmer, more consolidating year. Snakes may embody the following qualities.
Transformation and Renewal
Shedding Skin: Snake’s capacity to shed their skin can symbolise rebirth, renewal, and transformation. It represents letting go of the old to embrace the new - a powerful metaphor for personal growth and change.
Cyclic Nature: Associated with life cycles and regeneration, the snake reflects the ongoing process of death and rebirth.
Duality
Creation and Destruction: Snakes are often seen as both life-giving and life-taking, embodying the dual forces of creation and destruction.
Good and Evil: Different traditions portray the snake in opposite ways. In some, snake represents wisdom and healing, while in others, it’s seen as dangerous or deceptive.
Sacred Knowledge: healing, medicine, sexuality and fertility
In many cultures, the snake symbolizes esoteric wisdom and spiritual knowledge. They may be guardians of sacred places and treasures.
Ancient Greece: In Greek mythology, the snake was associated with the god Asclepius, the deity of healing, whose staff (caduceus) features entwined serpents.
Hinduism: In Indian traditions, snakes (Nagas) are semi-divine beings, often guarding treasure or sacred knowledge.
The Bible: In the Garden of Eden, the serpent is a tempter and a bringer of knowledge. .
Kundalini Energy: In Hindu and yogic philosophy, the coiled serpent represents dormant spiritual energy lying at the base of the spine, which can be awakened for enlightenment.
In February cold winds blow, yet daylight lingers
Though days extend, yin's embrace over yang still reigns.
Until the equinox brings balance, rest and reflect
Support your yin, find stillness
Allow the Yang to grow
Let Yin and Yang dance together
Preparing to blossom in the spring
And continue the never ending cycle
Of Yin and Yang
Enjoy your year of the Yin Wood Snake.
Happy New Lunar Year to you :)