noun
year-end soot sweeping; house cleaning to welcome New Year gods
Traditional year-end cleaning ritual, especially on December 13th, to purify the home and welcome the New Year kami. Often synonymous with すす払い.
年末に煤掃きをして、家を清める。
At the end of the year, we do susuhaki to purify the house.
煤掃きは新年の神様を迎えるための大
Susuhaki is an important event to welcome the gods of the New Year.
すす払い is a more common synonym for the same year-end cleaning ritual. 煤掃き is less frequent but carries the same meaning.
Compound of 煤 (すす, soot) and 掃き (はき, sweeping), literally 'soot sweeping'. The exact historical origin is uncertain, but it refers to the traditional practice of cleaning soot and dust from the house at year-end.