Devils Go Out Fortune Come In

鬼は外福は内 (oni wa soto fuku wa uchi): demons out, fortune in. These are words shouted, not a maxim: seven syllables of Japanese with no verb, the call of the bean-throwing at Setsubun, the eve of spring in early February. At dusk the head of the household scatters roasted beans through the rooms, ordering the demons out and inviting the god of fortune in, and each person eats as many beans as their years. The oldest witness is a diary: in the winter of 1447 the abbot of Shōkoku-ji wrote that the rich were scattering roasted beans in every room and calling these words, and that it was Japan's way of doing the Chinese demon-expulsion. The two halves are said in either order.

This beautiful calligraphy art of 鬼は外福は内 is appropriate for the entrance to the home and is a wish that evil spirits that bring misfortune and sickness be banished from the home and good fortune be welcomed in. This phrase is part of the mamemaki custom of purifying the home on the day before the start of spring by throwing beans out the front door while saying "oni wa soto! fuku wa uchi!" and then shutting the door.