Drive out the Devil and Welcome Good Fortune
Shouting “Devil Out! Good Fortune In!” has never been more relevant as Japan waits to begin its national vaccination effort in 2021
While most North Americans commemorate early February with the light-hearted Groundhog Day on February 2, the Japanese mark the day before the beginning of spring according to the historical (non-Gregorian) calendar by going through the annual ritual of Setsubun (節分). It is now normally celebrated each year on February 3, although this year it is being recognized on February 2. The purpose of this tradition is to wash away evil spirits symbolized by devils that remain from the previous year and subsequently lay the groundwork for good fortune in the current year. Given the ongoing challenges posed by the coronavirus, this year it does not take much stretch of the imagination to associate the devil with Covid-19 and equate good fortune with the impending vaccination effort.
Get Ready to Throw Some Beans
While many attend shrines or temples to observe the holiday of Setsubun, most Japanese people still make an effort to cast out evil spirits at home. In 2021 this is, naturally, particularly appropriate amid the ongoing lockdown and state of emergency for huge swaths of the country including the largest cities. Since the 14th century Japanese people have dutifully scattered roasted soybeans called fukumame (福豆) in each room of their home before gathering them up to be thrown out the front door or directly at a family member who wears the mask of an ogre called oni (鬼). The practice of throwing beans is called mamemaki (豆撒き). Sometimes peanuts can, by the way, be substituted.
As you can imagine, this component of the ritual is particularly popular with children. The beans can be supplemented with all sorts of other things to throw at those evil devils.
Many Japanese must, however, have mixed feelings about the beloved character Shrek who remains popular 20 years after his movie debut!
In any case, the beans are supposed to absorb all the bad vibes left over from the previous year. While tossing them outside you are supposed to yell “Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!” (鬼は外! 福は内!) which means “Devils out! Fortune in!” Afterwards the front door should be slammed shut which is certainly what most of us would like to do with the coronavirus. Finally, to bring fortune or good luck back inside you are supposed to eat one roasted soybean for each year that you have been alive. Considering the number of elderly citizens in Japan, this last step can be a challenge all by itself!
If you just cannot get enough at home, then you can also head over to your neighborhood shrine or temple to try to catch a lucky bean or two.
Sometimes sumo wrestlers and other celebrities toss out beans at the largest temples and shrines.
Binge on Maki Sushi
Another common and very popular practice is to eat a long uncut maki sushi roll called eho-maki (恵方巻) while pointing in the direction of this year’s zodiac symbol.
As 2021 is the year of the ox, official instructions indicate that the proper direction should be south-southeast on a compass (see the arrow on the accompanying diagram for precise details).
Shhh! One More Important Detail: You are supposed to eat the entire roll in complete silence when facing south-southeast this year.
Backdrop of Covid
This year the symbolism of Setsubun is clear. Due to the ongoing challenge of keeping the coronavirus under control, last night Prime Minister Suga just announced that a state of emergency will be extended until March 7 for the major cities of Japan including Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka.
The country’s Ministry of Health Labor & Welfare has yet to approve a vaccine. They are waiting for the results of clinical trials conducted within Japan on approximately 200 Japanese citizens. (The clinical data from abroad which covered almost 40,000 test subjects were, apparently, not deemed adequate.) It is widely expected that Pfizer’s vaccine will be approved by February 15 which should enable Japan to begin its national vaccine roll-out from the end of the month.
Local clinical trials for the vaccines from Moderna and AstraZeneca are underway but will take a little longer to complete.
Let’s Hope It Works
So, while our friends in North America will be hoping that February 2 is cloudy which will keep the groundhog from seeing its shadow and foretell an early spring, the Japanese will be gathering soybeans to get ready to kick out the coronavirus. It had better work! Hey, it can’t hurt!
Setsubun is on Feb 2nd this year though, so it is tonight! (there is some astrological explanation for that apparently)