“Oni wa soto!”

Once in Tokyo, on returning home from work, I found dried soya beans scattered around the threshold of our apartment.

Not some domestic mishap, I learned, but the celebration of Setsubun. Held on February 3rd, it is the day before the beginning of Spring according to the old Japanese calendar.

On this day, families throw beans outside the house to ward off evil spirits and usher in good luck. It is accompanied by the shout “Oni wa soto, fuku wa uchi!” or “Out with the Devil, in with good fortune.”

The tradition stems from the legend of a 10th century monk escaping the clutches of an oni, or devil, by blinding him with a well-aimed bean.

Setsubun is a time when the divide between the spirit and earthly worlds narrows, so it is important to be on one’s guard.

Sometimes, family members volunteer to don a devil’s mask and become the target for the bean throwing. It was only a question of time ….