What Are The Everyday Symbols Of Easter?

Easter is a complex holiday with a wide variety of Easter symbols associated with it. Other holidays and seasons are connected with Easter and thus have common symbols or lend their symbols to Easter these include Passover and spring.

It's interesting to see how Easter symbols relate or are influenced by other things. Passover, for example, is a Jewish feast that typically falls the week before Easter, and for a long time was the date on which Christians based the placement of Easter each year. The Last Supper was either just before or on Passover. Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus entry into Jerusalem just before the events surrounding his death and rebirth. Lent is 40 days prior to Easter, during which Christians fast in preparation for Easter.

With this in mind, we can take a look at Easter symbols.

Some symbols of new life associated with Easter symbols are chicks and eggs. Eggs have been strongly connected to spring for thousands of years. As chicks rise from eggs so to did Jesus rise from his tomb. Chicks break out of eggs to begin their new life on Earth.

For thousands of years rabbits and hares have stood for new life, so it's natural for them to be included in the list of Easter symbols.
Jesus was pure just as Lilies are pure white, so they became Easter symbols. And lilies relate to Jesus resurrection in that, like him, they emerge from the Earth.

Easter symbols associated with Jesus, the Lamb of God, are lambs.

Other powerful Easter symbols are crosses which remind people how Christ overcame death.

Palm branches are associated with Palm Sunday, and are thus Easter symbols, as they remind people of Jesus' return to Jerusalem with people waving palms to greet him.

Like Jesus' resurrection, new hats and outfits are about new life, and are thus Easter symbols

Even holiday baking has Easter symbols, for example the crosses on hot cross buns that denote the cross and thus the triumph over death.

Candles are Easter symbols that remind people Jesus was called the light of the world.

Pretzels, shaped like praying hands, are Easter symbols in that they are eaten at Lent leading up to Easter.

Butterflies as Easter symbols remind people of every stage of Jesus' life. (They begin as caterpillars, symbolizing Jesus' time on Earth|As caterpillars they stand for Christ's earthly life|They crawl around as caterpillars just as Jesus walked the Earth}}}. Then they enter cocoons, the tomb, and emerge as butterflies just as Jesus emerged to new life.

For more on the interesting subject of Easter symbols, try a Google search.