Knowra Setsubun Setsubun Setsubun is a Japanese observance traditionally held on the day before the beginning of spring. Its best-known custom, mamemaki, scatters roasted soybeans to drive away misfortune and welcome good fortune.
Mamemaki : A Japanese Setsubun custom in which roasted soybeans are thrown to drive away misfortune. This is Setsubun’s defining household ritual, often accompanied by cries of “Oni wa soto, fuku wa uchi.”
Risshun : The first day of spring in the traditional Japanese and East Asian lunisolar calendar. Setsubun is defined by its position on the eve of this seasonal marker.
Japanese New Year : The annual celebration of the new year in Japan, now observed on January 1. Setsubun preserves New Year-like purification themes from the older calendar.
Spring equinox : The moment when the Sun crosses the celestial equator, making day and night nearly equal in length. Setsubun precedes Risshun, not the later astronomical start of spring.
Oni : A supernatural being in Japanese folklore, often depicted with horns, fangs, and a club. Mamemaki casts oni as the misfortune-bringing figures expelled during Setsubun.
Nian : A Chinese New Year’s Eve ritual tradition involving noise and fire to drive away harmful forces. Chinese seasonal customs helped shape Japanese rites for expelling evil at the turn of the year.
Hinamatsuri : A Japanese festival on March 3 celebrating girls and displaying ornamental dolls. Like Setsubun, it marks the seasonal calendar through household customs and auspicious wishes.
Gregorian calendar : The internationally used solar calendar introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582. Its fixed dates contrast with Setsubun’s variable date under the lunisolar calendar.
Ehomaki : A thick sushi roll eaten whole, traditionally while facing the year’s auspicious direction. This modern Setsubun food custom adds a wish for good fortune to the bean-throwing ritual.
Tsuina : A ritual expulsion of evil spirits performed at the Japanese imperial court, especially at year’s end. Court purification rites are among the historical precedents associated with Setsubun.
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