Demons and Imps

Yesterday was Setsubun （節分）, a Japanese holiday with similar roots to Halloween. Like many things Japanese, it is fairly boring and solem. There are no costumes, no candies, and no parties.

But it was an interesting cultural event to participate in. The festivities begin with the family gathering at the door of their home, each with a bag of beans. The family then chants "Demons are outside, good fortune is inside （鬼は外、福は内）," while throwing beans both outside and inside. From this point the family gathers the beans thrown inside the home and proceeds to eat them. Your age determines how many you eat. For example, I am 24 so I ate 24 beans.

I wonder if the power of beans will really keep the demons out of my home?