Demon Days

Setsubun, also known a Bean Throwing Day, is celebrated on the 3rd of February.

This day is famously celebrated by throwing beans at a demon, oni, to drive him away. This is called mame maki, mame being the beans ( hence eda-mame); however the beans being thrown on this day are roasted soybeans, called fuku-mame (fuku meaning fortune). Typically one poor soul gets to be the oni and people will throw beans at him. This is often the man of the house or occasionally if there is anyone present who is representative of the coming years zodiac sign. The oni gets to wear a special oni mask that can be pricked up for free at the local grocery store, or nicer ones can be purchased elsewhere. Mame-maki is done while saying "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" which means to drive the oni out and welcome in happiness. After driving out the demon, you can eat your fortune ( the beans) on the ground...or happily step on  them, but eating them is considered luckier.

This whole ritual is done just before Risshun, or the beginning of spring. Thus Setsubun is the separation between winter, and spring. Ideally this day would be considered New Years eve in accordance with the lunar calendar; however as with most holidays in today's Japan, this is now a fixed day of the year and does not always coincide with the lunar New Year ( which was January 23rd this year).

Other ways that this holiday is celebrated is through their food culture. Common dishes on this day are a grilled sardine, of which everything is to be eaten, and a large type of sushi roll called, ehomaki, and of course the roasted soy beans. Ehomaki is a funny little tradition. It contains 7 lucky ingredients ( these tend to vary or be eaters choice) and then is eaten in a particular direction. This direction changes every year. This year it was North NorthWest. You then eat this entire engorged sushi roll without chatter or distraction. You are not really supposed to pause, but that does not mean that you are supposed to choke the whole thing down either. Once accomplished, your luck is now certified. Edo-maki, by most accounts, has originated in Osaka. This being the case, it is largely a kansai tradition. The accounts by which edo-maki seems to have originated tend to vary, some involving geishas or farmers and others stills involve samurai, nevertheless the point remains the same at the end of all these tales. They all obtained their luck from eating this roll.

After your meal opener, the main course is served.
Next the sardine is eaten from head to tail, bones and all. Personally, I could not quite achieve this. This is eaten because it is said that the oni cannot stand the smell of it and will forgo devouring you.

Lastly, after eating all this fun food and chasing my demons away, I went to a huge bonfire.

There are many festivities on this day, most located at large temples. Such festivities could include huge bean throwing events, and concerts, and at Yasaka-jinja, near the Gion district in Kyoto, you will have the fabulous opportunity to see geishas and maikos perform a dance for the gods.
Also in Kyoto, Yoshi-da Temple (吉田神社) is a shrine that hold a massive Setsubun event. They compile a huge sacrifice, arrows, wood plates, bamboo, or anything thing that you wish to sacrifice to bring you luck. These items are then strapped to this massive barrel shaped bamboo structure. At exactly eleven, the pile is set fire ( with many fire fighters on guard). It will continue to burn for quite a while and smolder for longer after. This year the flames got so high the firemen had to chase them down a bit. If you wish to see this make sure you are there half an hour in advance, as the security guards stopped entry just after I arrived. Apparently those beans gave me better fortune than I warranted!

Happy New Year - Again!!

Japanese people no longer celebrate the Chinese New Year.

Once before the World War, Japanese people celebrated this custom along with the Chinese and Koreans. Enter American traditions and the holiday was set on the back burner, with more importance shown upon the new year that is set by the Georgian calendar. Japan officially stopped using the Chinese calendar in 1873; long before they stopped celebrating this as as a holiday. I believe this is because Japanese just love their holidays. There are still many holidays in Japan that began in the Edo period and are thus celebrated with the moon phases, or Tsuki-okure, but many more are now being celebrated with the Georgian calendar. Others still, are in the spirit of the lunar calendar but celebrated with the Georgian calendar, like Tanabata which is held on the 7th day of the 7th month according to the lunar calendar, but is now held on July 7th.
Interestingly is that Japanese people still very much follow the Chinese zodiac. These too are vibrantly celebrated and displayed on January first. In the smaller villages and towns in Japan, you might still find some celebrators of the Chinese New Year which hold their customs to the lunar new year day. But you will find more revelers if you look in the local China Towns. There are some decent sized districts in Yokohama as well as Kobe that spritz their area up and put on a show. I had the pleasure of going to the Kobe lunar new year festival.
There you can see speeches, performances, try wonderful Chinese New Year delicacies, and most importantly, the dances. There are two specific dances involving tigers and a Dragon. These elaborate dances utilize the force of many people who are used to support the dragon. The tiger costume is a much smaller operation with just a few people (2-3). The tiger costume is not propped up as the Dragon is and it has full functionality of its facial movements.

 In addition to the dances, I would always recommend a taste of the street food. These vendors sell anything from croquets to pork buns and dumplings, which is a must have as per Chinese New Year tradition. It is said to bring you wealth and prosperity in the new year, but then what doesn't?

 A video of the Kobe Dragon Dance: