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Setsubun (literally meaning “seasonal division”) is a festival held on February 2nd, 3rd or 4th; one day before the start of spring according to the Japanese lunar calendar. Setsubun is not a national holiday, but rather a cultural and spiritual festival meant to attract good fortune for the new year.For many centuries, the people of Japan have been performing rituals with the purpose of chasing away evil spirits at the start of spring. Around the 13th century, for example, it became a custom to drive away evil spirits by the strong smell of burning dried sardine heads, the smoke of burning wood, and the noise of drums. While this custom is not popular anymore, a few people still decorate their house entrances with fish heads and holly tree leaves in order to deter evil spirits from entering.
Today, the most commonly performed setsubun ritual is the throwing of roasted soybeans around one's house and at Buddhist Temples and Shinto shrines across the country. When throwing the beans, you are supposed to shout “Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!” (“Devils [of the old year] out, happiness in”). It is said that the purpose of throwing roasted beans is to drive away evil spirits and demons and then bring good luck into the new year.
Hoshimatsuri (literally “Star Festival”) is derived from Kyusei “Nine Star” (an astrological system derived from ancient India), which uses nine stars to see the universe’s effects on one’s life. Each year of life we are directly influenced by the position of our Kyusei star in the cosmos, which has both positive and negative star positions of varying degrees. A positively-positioned star means a prosperous year and good fortune, and a negatively-positioned star means possible unfortunate events and troubles.
This celestial year starts with Kyureiki, the lunar calendar New Year, which begins at different times in late January through mid-February each year (refer to the section on the Lunar New Year at the beginning of this chapter). Hoshimatsuri ceremonies are typically held on February 11th, at which time we pray to Myoken Daibosatsu (the deity of the North Star) and perform the kito blessing to bring balance back to our lives, allowing us to be prepared for whatever our fortune may be. Through this ceremony a positive astrological year can be strengthened and a negative astrological year can be mitigated or improved, whereby protection and guidance is given to the person.
At this ceremony we pray for the individuals’ safety and success in spite of the occurrence of Yakudoshi, which means “unlucky ages.”
If you wish to receive the special omamori for this holiday or for Yakudoshi (unlucky year), please contact [email protected].
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