👋🥜THE ORIGINS OF SETSUBUN👹
Setsubun ushered in the first season of the new year. It was a period when the boundaries between our world and the spirit world grew weak, and so people took care to make sure to drive away any spirits that might have wandered into the home.
👋🥜THE ORIGINS OF SETSUBUN👹
Setsubun ushered in the first season of the new year. It was a period when the boundaries between our world and the spirit world grew weak, and so people took care to make sure to drive away any spirits that might have wandered into the home.
Setsubun has its roots in a Chinese folk custom called Nuó (傩). In the 8thC this exorcistic religious tradition arrived in Japan as 'Tsuina' (追儺), a 'ritual to exorcise evil spirits on the last day of winter'.
It was necessary to physically drive away unwanted spirits.
#Kyoto
Originally people would bring tools and outside items into the house to protect them from the spirits. Rice cakes were left at doorways and windows to keep the hungry ghosts at bay.
In Tottori a talisman of holly and dried sardine heads (柊鰯) is still used as an anti-oni charm.
🙏🥜THROWING BEANS🥜🥜
In the Muromachi period the custom of 'mamemaki' (豆撒き) first appeared. Unwanted spirits, thought to bring with them bad luck and sickness, were chased out of the home by the scattering of roasted soybeans.
The tradition is still popular to this day!
Roasted soybeans called 'fukumame' (福豆 'fortune beans') are thrown out of open doorways (or at brave family members dressed as oni) while everyone yells📢
"Devils out! Fortune in!"
(鬼は外! 福は内!).
The doors are then slammed firmly shut, trapping any misfortune outside.
#節分
