February - harbinger of spring

Tani kaze ni
tokuru koori no
hima goto ni
uchi izuru nami ya
haru no hatsu hana

The wind from the valley
melts the ice,
revealing the waves
that might be called
the first flowers of spring.

(Fujiwara no Kintô)

February is the month between two seasons - winter, as there's still ice and snow outside, and spring, when the first plum blossoms begin to bloom. Therefore, a traditional name for it is hatsuhana-zuki, first flower, but it is also called yukige-zuki, snow melting, because according to the lunar calendar it is the time when the snow starts to melt. The lunar calendar also has it that the real New Year begins in February - Setsubun on February 3rd marks the last day of winter, the day following it (Feb 4th, risshun) marks the first day of spring, and the night between is traditionally regarded the beginning of the New Year.

On Setsubun, as the last day of winter, is the day to drive out the bad spirits of the past year. This is done with oni-yarai, a custom originating in China and first celebrated in Japan in 706: first the devils are addressed with prayers, then they will be expelled with peach bows and reed arrows. This is still done at some shrines and temples, but often it's simplified into a folk custom with people dispering the devils by scattering beans and shouting "oni wa soto, fuku wa uchi" - "devils, get out! good fortune, come in!".

Coming along with setsubun is the obake festival; the world becomes topsy-turvy because people dress up; and so do Geisha and Maiko as well! They dress as actors/actresses, TV celebrities, heroes of old myths, etc and go to their engagements. And also their guests dress up and entertain them in turn.

There are some more old traditions for Setsubun, like yaikagashi, the hanging of a holly sprig over your door, together with a sardine head (if you can't stand the smell, you can just hang up the sprig of course =), but it has already got out of fashion - more popular, on the contrary, is the custom of the takarabune-makura, the treasure boat pillow: in Japanese folklore, there are seven treasures (takarazukushi) and seven deities of good luck (shichifukujin), coming over the sea on a treasure boat (takarabune). On the night of Setsubun people put a picture of this boat under their pillow and if they have a lucky dream that night, it is believed that they will be lucky for the whole year.

The Blue Lotus Okiya will celebrate the New Year with setsubun on February 3rd at 10am with bean throwing and later the day with obake, and you are cordially invited to celebrate it with us!