Today is a SETSUBON in Japan.
SETSUBON (Bean-Throwing Ceremony) is the day before the beginning o fspring in Japan. The name literally means "seasonal division", but usually the term refers to the spring Setsubun, properly called Risshun celebrated yearly on February 3 as part of the Spring Festival. In its association with the Lunar New Year, Spring Setsubun can be and was previously thought of as a sort ofNew Year's Eve, and so was accompanied by a special ritual to cleanse away all the evil of the former year and drive away disease-bringing evil spirits for the year to come. This special ritual is called MAMEMAKI (literally "bean throwing"). Setsubun has its origins in tsuina, a Chinese custom introduced to Japan in the eighth century.
MAMEMAKI
The custom of MAMEMAKI first appeared in the
Muromachi period.
It is usually performed by the
toshiotoko of the household (i.e., the male who was born on the corresponding animal year on the
Chinese zodiac), or else the male head of the household. Roasted
soybeans (called "fortune beans" are thrown either out the door or at a member of the family wearing an
Oni (
demon) mask, while the throwers chant "Demons out! Luck in!" (
Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!) and slam the door, although this is not common practice in households anymore and most people will attend a shrine or temple's spring festival where this is done. The beans are thought to symbolically
purify the home by driving away the evil spirits that bring misfortune and bad
health with them. Then, as part of bringing
luck in, it is customary to eat roasted
soybeans, one for each year of one's life, and in some areas, one for each year of one's life plus one more for bringing good luck for the year to come.
The gestures of MAMEMAKI look similar to the Western custom of throwing
rice at newly married couples after a
wedding.
From wikipedia
