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...
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