【1 Day Event: Feb.3rd】Traditional bean-throwing ceremony at Saijo Inari Shrine in Okayama

In accordance with the ancient Japanese seasonal calendar, Setsubun marks the last day of winter and the welcome of the spring season. Dried beans are thrown, symbolizing the fending off of evil or malignant demons, and lucky is welcomed into the people’s homes; people typically shout, Oni wa soto, fuku wa uchi! (“Out with demons, in with good luck!”). The ceremony is performed not only at people’s homes but also at large shrines throughout Japan. In Okayama, one of the largest shrines is Saijo Inari Shrine, which also boasts the largest torii gate in west Japan. The ceremony at this shrine is unique in that the priests and special guests don’t yell `Oni wa Soto” but instead yell only Fuku wa uchi, fuku wa uchi! This is not to drive away demons, but to show the great compassion of Sanmen Daikokuten, the highest deity and the principal image of the mountain, to turn demons back to good beings.

On February 3rd, 750 men and women who are deemed to be lucky based on their birth-year will be allowed to participant in this traditional bean-throwing ceremony at the shrine. Approximately 100,000 bags weighing 2 tons of lucky beans will be thrown into the audience over five sessions. Some of the bags have lottery stickers, and if your bag as the word “special” or a number between1 and 3, you can exchange it for a prize; prizes include a travel voucher for two people, gift certificates, and more.

◆ Date & Time: February 3, 2024 / 10:00~12:00 noon

◆ Location: a 45-minute walk from JR Bitchu-Takamatsu Station, or a 10-minute car/taxi ride

◆ Fee: free-of-charge

◆ For more information, click here: https://inari.ne.jp/2024/01/01/9992/
(You may want to use an extension to translate pages in Japanese.)

◆ Other info:  Special celebrity guests: Hinako Sakurai, “Westland”, YOKO (all are originally from Okayama Prefecture)