The close of the winter (Bean-throwing ceremony)

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2285.html

http://kikuko-nagoya.com/html/setsubun.html

  Setsubun literally means "division of seasons." It is used to mark the end of winter and summer, and is derived from the old lunar calendar. However, "setsubun" has now come to mean the day before the first day of spring only. It usually occurs around February 3rd. On this day, in a custom called mame-maki, people throw and scatter roasted soy beans inside and outside their houses while saying, "Get goblins out of the house! Invite happiness into the home!" Some people believe that mame comes from the word mametsu which means drive away evil matter, in Kanji.