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Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring!

It seems that winter on the eastern seaboard couldn’t take its leave without having its last hurrah before spring came. Hopefully, the recent snow storm will be the last of this season and we can start looking forward to warmer days. According to the old Japanese calendar, sometime between February 2 to 4 is an important seasonal division, Setsubun (節分). This year, it happens to fall on the same day as Groundhog Day. While the two holidays both concern spring, one cannot be equated with the other. Meaning ‘seasonal せつ division ぶん’, setsubun technically happens four times a year but it also signified the new year in the lunar calendar. So it has popularly come to only refer to the day before the first day of spring.



“鬼は外!福は内!(Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!)
” yells a Shinto shrine’s priest to revelers awaiting snack packs of roasted soybeans to be thrown to them. Elsewhere, a nearby temple waves a fire above visitors to bless visitors their coming year with lucky sparks. At home, families gather to say, “Demons, get out! Fortune, come in!” while throwing beans out the front door and throughout the house. After the excitement, everyone who is able eats the number of beans corresponding to their age, plus one year. For those of us who have more than a handful of beans to eat, drinking them as tea works as an acceptable charm. With these, your house and body have been exorcised of evil spirits (鬼 oni) for the new year. 


In addition to roasted soybeans, the practice of eating Ehomaki, or a Lucky Direction Roll, has also grown in popularity. You can find these thick, uncut sushi rolls at supermarkets and convenience stores across Japan. In New York City, there are several Japanese grocery stores that are making them limited to today, February 2. For those of you who would like to try this tradition for yourself, follow these directions: Step 1: sport your kimono or hakama from the Kimono House to set the scene, 2. face this year’s lucky direction of South South East with your ehomaki, 3. keep silent until you finish the whole roll (or your luck will flee!), and 4. think of your wish for the year while you are silently eating. 


Happy bean throwing and silent eating!

 

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