When I started my Working Holiday year here in Japan, I was confronted with plenty of new impressions as well as interesting cultural customs I had never heard of before. One morning, my host mother put a small package of roasted beans and an origami crane next to my soup bowl. Only then did I learn that a Japanese traditional festival called “Setsubun”, which marks the beginning of spring according to an ancient lunar calendar, was to be held on February 3 or February 4. On that day, the Japanese actually throw roasted beans (in front of their house doors, at people dressed up in demon costumes in front of shrines) shouting “Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!” (“Devils out, fortune in”). They then pick up the fortune beans and eat the number that equals their age. With this, they mean to drive out evil creatures and pray for their family’s well-being. This strange ritual is called Mamemaki. I was surprised that this old tradition is still that popular especially among children, who enjoy making oni-masks by themselves. Anyway, it’s definitely worth a visit to a local shrine if you happen to be here around the beginning of February!
http://www.japanese-school-asahi.com/
