Japan Marks Last Day of Winter with Traditional Setsubun Bean-Throwing

Kyoto shrine hosts 'Setsubun' bean-throwing ceremony

At a shrine in Kyoto, apprentice female entertainers called "maiko" have thrown beans as part of an annual ceremony to pray for people's good health for the year.

Photos of Hakone Shrine marking Setsubun with bean-throwing to ward off evil spirits

HAKONE, Japan (AP) — Scores gathered at a shrine in Japan’s Hakone to try and catch “lucky beans,” hoping to ward off evil spirits as they celebrate the last day of winter in the Japanese lunar calendar.

Driving Out Demons: Chichibu Shrine Believers Prepare for Setsubun

About 20 believers and others dressed in demon masks and costumes gather at Chichibu Shrine in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture, on Wednesday ahead of the annual setsubun festival to be held there on Feb. 3. Practicing for the annual ritual of “oniyarai” (“driving out demons”) they shouted and ran around the shine grounds while wielding clubs, as men who were born in previous years of the horse, the Chinese zodiac symbol for this year, pelted them w…