Today was the Setsubun service at the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church.

Setsubun literally means ‘season-division,’ dividing Winter from Spring. Prayers are said for our good health and protection against calamity or misfortunes. Traditionally, toshi-otoko (a man of the year) and yoshi-onna (a woman of the year), who were born in the year with the same animal name as the current year, throw soy beans to chase out evil spirits from each house and throw hard candy to welcome good luck throughout the year. At the Sacramento Nichiren Buddhist Church we toss the candy into the audience and afterward hand out envelopes of roasted soy beans. This year was my turn – Year of the Rabbit – to toss the candy.

This was a special Setsubun because it was the first time my grandson, Edwin Lou Woodford Hughes, attended services. He was born just two weeks ago on Jan. 21, 2023. Rev. Igarashi gave his standard Setsubun purification to all in the congregation and then invited my son, Richard, to bring up Edwin to receive a special blessing. Amazingly, Edwin slept through it all.