Setsubun is a fun Japanese festival celebrated the day before the first day of spring (on February 3rd). Families celebrate by throwing roasted soybeans outside the door of their house to chase out the oni (naughty ogres or spirits) or, even more fun, throwing roasted soybeans at dad dressed up like an oni! Parents throughout Japan will then put on an Oni mask and try to scare their kids.
In return, these kids have to throw roasted soybeans to scare the demons away. It’s a chance to get rid of evil spirits that bring sickness and prevent good fortune. And what are all evil spirits most afraid of?
Beans, of course! Not just any beans. Roasted soybeans known as fuku mame (fortune beans) are thrown out the door in the direction of unsuspecting evil spirits—and sometimes a senior male member of the family designated to don a demon mask and play the antagonist for the occasion.
When the beans are thrown, the children (and adults) shout, “Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!” which means Oni out! Happiness in!
The beans are sold in stores at the time (for those who don’t want to roast their own). The beans are sold in little packages (about the size of a single serving potato chip bag and are called Fuku Mame or Happiness Beans.
The beans are thrown to chase the bad spirits (oni) out of the home and bring happiness or good luck for the following year. Everyone then eats some of the roasted soybeans as a treat, one for each year of their life plus one extra for the coming year, so a 10-year-old would get 11 beans to eat. They taste a little like roasted pumpkin seeds.
What are Onis’? Onis are naughty ogre-like creatures that bring bad luck to a household. Originally oni was depicted as quite scary and evil but they’ve been a bit toned down over the years since so many daddies dress up as them for the big bean throwing event and parades so I think of them as more “naughty” or unlucky.
Oni is either blue or red. They have two horns, carry a large iron club, and wear a tiger-skin loincloth. When Japanese children play tag, the person who is “it” is called the oni. Oni is also featured in a number of children’s stories.
Although Japan’s bean-throwing festival is celebrated in many variations throughout the country, it is technically not recognized as an official public holiday. Setsubun is celebrated publicly with fervor, but individual families may still carry out the tradition of mame maki (bean throwing) at home.
If any male members of the family share the same zodiac animal as the new year, they get to play the ogre who wants to come in and cause trouble. If nobody’s animal sign matches, the senior male of the household defaults to the role.
The person chosen to play the part of an ogre or evil spirit wears a menacing mask and tries to come into the room or home. Everyone else throws beans at them and shouts, “Out with evil! In with fortune!” with both seriousness, and in the case of children, some giggles.
Once the “demon” is driven out, the door to the house is slammed in a sort of symbolic, “get out and stay out!” gesture. After the official ousting of the ogre, children scramble to get in on the fun and wear the mask.
Some families opt to go to local shrines to observe setsubun in a less commercialized fashion. If traveling during Setsubun without an opportunity to visit a family home, go to a neighborhood shrine to enjoy a quieter version of the holiday. As usual, have fun but don’t interfere with worshipers who are there for more than just photo opportunities.
