On February 3rd in Japan, there’s an event called “Setsubun” where people throw soybeans in their house shouting “Oni wa soto, fuku wa uchi!” which means “Demons outside, happiness inside” to get rid of bad fortune coming into the house.
“Oni” (鬼) means demon in Japanese.
Japanese demons are often shown with small horns and a red face, big claws and teeth.
They often wear a tiger skin for clothes and have a big spiked stick.
During Setsubun, usually a member of the family wears an oni mask and scares children who will throw beans at him.
Small children are usually scared, but kids have a lot of fun throwing beans.
Oni is a very popular reference in many manga, anime or games, like Lum, Bleach or Dragon Ball for example.
It’s also used in many Japanese paintings or even architecture with the “Oni”-faced tiles located in the corner of the temples.
■■■ Back Number Articles ■■■
Check All Fun! Japan WORDS
Previous Word
Gôkaku (合格) Fun! Japan Words vol.29
Related Article
Demons appear at the changing of the season?! How people spend Setsubun
Comments