Winter is here in Japan and very soon we will be celebrating a fun winter tradition, especially meant to be enjoyed with children, but also for “children at heart”, to “cast away darkness of winter and welcome spring”!

Although not a public holiday, “Setsubun” is a well known Japanese festival day celebrated all across Japan on the 2nd and 3rd of February, just before the start of spring on the Japanese lunar calendar.

“Setsubun” literally means “seasonal division”, and the excitement it brings has been celebrated at temples and shrines, as well as in individual households since the 8th century!

It is also known as the “Beans-Throwing Festival”, as the most commonly performed ritual associated with Setsubun is mamemaki, or “bean-scattering”.

In the ritual, roasted soybeans, known as fuku-mame “fortune beans” are either thrown out from the front door, or, at a family member wearing a demon or ogre mask while shouting “Demons out! Fortune In!”, “Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!”, before slamming the door closed!

In this tradition, “darkness” takes the form of a scary being; and the beans are thought to purify the home by driving out evil spirits which bring misfortune and bad health with them.

This year’s 2022 Setsubun, how about we give it a try!!