Photos by Shoji Kudaka ()
If you’re a fan of Demon Slayer, then you’ll want to head in to your local conbinni or grocery store for special themed snacks this week.
Just in time for Japan’s Setsubun holiday, you’ll find a couple of related items like the Morinaga Ramune soda candy or Calbee Potato Chips with Demon Slayer animations on the packaging.
Setsubun is celebrated on February 3 this year and involves a ritual to ward off bad vibes and bring in health and happiness coinciding with the start of the Lunar New Year. You might see your neighbors participating in “Mamemaki,” a ritual of throwing beans toward the outside and inside of their house and chanting “Oni wa soto, Fuku wa uchi (ogre out, happiness in).”
Demon Slayer, or “Kimetsu no Yaiba” in Japanese, has brought lots of attention to the Sestsubun custom as both are related to fighting oni (demons/ogres). In the comic and animated series, Tanjiro, a boy whose parents are killed by demons and whose sister is turned into a demon, joins a group of demon slayers.
The animated series has become an international hit and now you’ll find plenty of merchandise for the Demon Slayer fans in your life. These days it’s not unusual to find Tanjiro and his green-checkered chanchanko jacket on toys, sweets and apparel.
This popular animated series is enjoying boom presently, so keep an eye out for all of the fun snacks for sale in stores. Plus, there’s no harm in getting ready to clear the demons and bad vibes for the Setsubun holiday!
*Kimetsu no Yaiba (Demon Slayer)
The first season is available on NETFLIX, Amazon, Apple TV, etc.
*”Kimetsu no Yaiba (Demon Slayer)” ramune soda candy (110 yen plus tax)
