Driving the demon out with beans... Setsubun!

We attended a Setsubun celebration at the Susa Shrine in Sasebo, Japan today. The one I went to last year was in Kamakura.
Kids from a nearby Yochien (Japanese kindergarten) donned Oni (demon) masks and dove for tiny packages of dried soybeans.

The adults in the back got into the action too.

If you forgot to pre-order your Ehoumaki, don't worry, they're for sell on almost every street corner. Last year, I did pre-order and I must have faced the right way because I had all sorts of good stuff happen in the last year.

Remember to face West South West this while consuming.