SETSUBUN
— typically celebrated around February 3
— marks the end of winter; the day after
the festival is when spring 'officially'
begins. The tradition came to Japan via
the Chinese sometime in the 8th century,
along with Buddhism. Now, even though
Japan observes the New Year on January 1
according to the Gregorian calendar,
Setsubun retains shades of its previous
significance as the Lunar new year. The
traditions associated with are
therefore, very much in the "out with
the old, in with the new" mould.
It is believed
that the time when winter changes to
spring, or when the old year gives way
to a new one, the worlds of living
beings and the spirits are very close to
each other. Thus, spirits — especially
evil ones — and oni (demons)
could easily cross over into the realm
of humans, plaguing them for the rest of
the year. To avoid such misfortune, a
tradition known as "mamemaki" is
observed.
For
mamemaki, a family gathers
fistfuls of roasted soybeans. The main
door of the house is flung open and they
pelt the soybeans out of it, to drive
away any oni that are lingering
by the threshold. At the same time, the
family loudly chants: "Oni wa soto!
Fuku wa uchi! (Devils out! Good
fortune in!)". Sometimes, the head of
the family or another male member of the
household will wear an oni mask
and pretend to be the demon at the door,
disappearing when the soybean is
thrown.
(If you're
wondering why the soybean is the legume
chosen, it is due to its stature as one
of the five "most important crops" in
Chinese lore. Soybean is believed to
contain the spirits of all the cereals
combined.)
Once the
devils have been driven away, the family
closes the door and settles down to a
snack of roasted soybeans. Each person
eats the number of beans that
corresponds with their age, and an extra
bean for luck. The main meal consists of
"ehomaki" — an uncut makizushi
roll that is made with seven fillings to
represent the seven deities of good
fortune. Strips of "gourd and cucumber,
shiitake mushrooms, an omelette made
with soup stock, eel, and denbu (mashed
and seasoned fish; i.e. whitefish and
shrimp that has been boiled, shredded,
parched, seasoned, and coloured red)"
form the customary ehomaki
filling. Each member of the family must
face the lucky direction for the year as
decreed by the Chinese zodiac (2023's is
reportedly the southeast) and eat the
entire ehomaki in silence,
while pondering over one's wishes for
the new year. Lastly, the adults share a
cup of sake and toast the advent of
spring.
Some Setsubun
traditions have changed over the years.
For instance, there was initially a
practice of burning dried sardine heads,
whose strong smell was considered an
anathema to evil spirits. Now, only a
vestige of that custom remains, as some
families cook/grill sardine for their
Setsubun meal, while setting the head
aside to make "hiiragi iwashi" — a
talisman that is fixed to the outside of
the front door. The sardine head is
impaled on a twig along with some holly
leaves for the hiiragi iwashi,
which again, is said to repulse any
inquisitive oni.
Setsubun
celebrations have changed in another
way. While it was previously celebrated
at the household level, now it is far
more common for people of one locality
or neighbourhood to gather at a shrine
or temple in the vicinity, where priests
— and often celebrities, public figures
and even sumo wrestlers — perform the
mamemaki.
***
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