Setsubun: Sayonara, Winter. Hello, Spring! Get it on Rabbits.

I am beginning to think the Asians are far far ahead of white civilizations.  For example, China controls the weather all the time.  Sure, maybe not safe, but they do it.  They are god-like for a few days at at time.  I mean, they also add plastic to baby formula though, so I don't want to give them too many props.

Today is Chinese New Year and we find ourselves in the year of the rabbit.  And, as I found out today from a student, the Japanese actually follow the Chinese Zodiac, and have (new word for her!) adopted it as their own.

Cute Zodiac.  A jump-roping dog!

Perhaps, this is why they choose to have Setsubun on the same day as Chinese New Year.  So what is Setsubun? Well, its pronounced like seh-(t)su-bun, and it is officially the last day of winter.

THANK GOD.  As I was walking to work yesterday I couldn't feel my fingers, which is usually just an occurrence that saves itself for when I am trying to go to bed.  My eyes are bloodshot and my skin is flaky from constantly being tortured and dried out like papyrus from the heaters surrounding me 20/7.  I've decided I never want to live somewhere with cold weather and that, yeah, I am a sun-loving girl who would rather wear a scarf in the dead of summer than so chap herself to death.

So, I welcomed Setsubun with open coats, and fingerless gloves (or, groves, depending on where you are from).  But I didn't know it was Setsubun, the end of winter, until around 6pm when a student explained it to me.  I was impressed.  Somehow the weather in Japan doubled in temperature today, and it was actually something I might describe as warm.  I almost didn't wear a coat out.  It's like it KNEW it was supposed to get warmer, like its parents were Asian versions of Mother Earth and Father Time and going to make it practice the violin all day if it wasn't warm on Setsubun*. 

Wanting to know more about this holiday involving beans, bunnies and demons, I quickly structured my last lesson of the night to be a conversation about-WHATASURPRISE!!- Setsubun!  Here is what I found out:

Sushi Log, Roasted Soybeans and a devil who has a drummer fetish

1.  During Setsubun, soybeans are roasted.  People buy these soybeans for two reasons.  One: For good luck, you eat the same amount of roasted beans as years you are old**.  So, of course, I'm eating an invigorating 24 beans.  Two: Little children are then given the midori light to throw the beans all willie-nilly around the house and out the windows.  This "throws" away bad luck and eating the beans invites in good luck.

2.  Sometimes, the father of the house will put on a Demon mask, terrifying the children as they panic and defeat the evil monster by pelting handfuls of roasted beans at him.  This is to ward off evil spirits.  I asked who cleans up after all the "exorcising" and she said everyone (I'm going to read that as the mother) and the neighborhood birds do it outside.

3.  One more tradition also involves eating something so you know I'm in.  You have to down a big, thick, long, black, uncut sushi roll (what, did you think I was going to say something else?) without speaking, while- and here's where the Chinese show up- facing the nautical direction of animal whose year it is on the Zodiac.  So this year is Rabbit, and Mr. R is dead East.

Seriously, a mouthful. Not even hungry.

The Japanese like to party and we have another holiday (work off!) coming up next Friday that I will tell you about too.  In the meantime, go get your sushi log and roast some soybeans to ring in Spring!





*This is most definitely a reference to the latest book I've read, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, in which an Asian-American mother goes on a tirade about raising children the Chinese way.  It's a quick read, and fairly interesting.  You can't help but have an opinion about it, since, you know, growing up is something we've all done.


**To illustrate a key difference in American and Asian cultures, I asked my student, What happens if someone eats more beans than their age?  She was baffled.  This was the first time anything had ever come up.  She just widened her eyes and said, "I've never heard of such a thing before."