Setsubun, Tokuan shrine

In Japan, Setsubun (節分) is the day before the beginning of each season. The name literally means "division of season". Usually the term refers to the Spring Setsubun, properly called Risshun (立春), celebrated yearly on February 3rd (associated with the Lunar New Year). Spring Setsubun is traditionally celebrated by the head of the household throwing pan-heated soybeans out the door, while chanting "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" (鬼は外! 福は内!). The literal meaning of the words is "Demons out! Luck in!" -- the beans are thought to symbolically purify the home. In the Heian era, a famous Buddhist monk was said to have driven away Oni (demons or evil spirits) by throwing beans. Setsubun Photography day　February 3, 2004 Photography person　MASA Photography place　Higashi Osaka City, Tokuan shrine File links The following pages link to this file: Setsubun Categories: GFDL images ... Setsubun Photography day　February 3, 2004 Photography person　MASA Photography place　Higashi Osaka City, Tokuan shrine File links The following pages link to this file: Setsubun Categories: GFDL images ... A season is one of the major divisions of the year, generally based on yearly periodic changes in weather. ... February 3 is the 34th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... A banner of the celebration of Chinese New Year. ... Binomial name Glycine max (L.) Merr. ... The Heian period (Japanese: 平安時代, Heian-jidai) is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. ... Buddhism (more correctly Pali Buddhadhamma or Sanskrit Buddhadharma) is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. Buddhism spread throughout the ancient Indian sub-continent in the five centuries... A Roman Catholic monk A monk is a person who practices monasticism, adopting a strict religious and ascetic lifestyle, usually in community with others following the same path. ... Oni statue Oni (鬼) are fabulous creatures from Japanese folklore, similar to Western demons or ogres. ... St. ...

Celebrities throw roasted beans in Ikuta shrine, Kobe

At Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines all over the country, there are celebrations for Setsubun. Priests and invited guests will throw roasted soy beans (some wrapped in gold or silver foil), small envelopes with money, sweets, candies and other prizes. In some bigger shrines, even celebrities and sumo wrestlers will join. Many people will come, and the event turns wild, with everyone pushing and shoving to get the gifts tossed from above. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 396 KB) Summary Celebrations for Setsubun in Ikuta Jinja, Kobe 03 February 2006. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 396 KB) Summary Celebrations for Setsubun in Ikuta Jinja, Kobe 03 February 2006. ... A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. It had subsequently been accepted by... A torii at Itsukushima Shrine Shinto (Kanji: 神道 Shintō) (sometimes called Shintoism) is a native religion of Japan and was once its state religion. ... Sumo (相撲 Sumō, alternatively 大相撲 Ōzumō), or Sumo wrestling, is a competition contact sport where two wrestlers or rikishi face off in a circular area. ...

Families will also put up small decorations of fish heads and holly leaves on their house entrances so that bad spirits will not enter. People also eat the same amount of soy beans as their age, plus one for bringing good luck for the year to come. Species Ilex ambigua- Sand Holly Ilex amelanchier- Swamp Holly Ilex aquifolium- European Holly Ilex bioritsensis Ilex buergeri Ilex canariensis- Small-leaved Holly Ilex cassine- Dahoon Holly Ilex centrochinensis Ilex ciliospinosa Ilex colchica Ilex collina Ilex corallina Ilex coriacea Ilex cornuta- Chinese Holly Ilex crenata- Japanese Holly Ilex cyrtura Ilex decidua...

It is customary to eat uncut maki-zushi on Setsubun while facing the yearly lucky compass direction, determined by the zodiac symbol of that year. Charts are published and occasionally packaged with uncut maki-zushi during February.

External links

• Photos of Narita-san Setsubun Festival in Chiba
• Setsubun (Bean Throwing Festival)