{"id":281,"date":"2020-12-29T16:37:07","date_gmt":"2020-12-29T07:37:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/?page_id=281"},"modified":"2021-07-04T18:13:57","modified_gmt":"2021-07-04T09:13:57","slug":"opiate-for-the-masses","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/home\/photolog\/opiate-for-the-masses\/","title":{"rendered":"Opiate for the masses"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Religion, Marx said, is the Opium of the people.
In context, he also said \u2018Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of the heartless world, and the soul of the soulless conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Marxian perspective on religion is not the subject of this blog, rather it is the paradox of Christmas in Japan. The Opium Marx referred was more of the analgesic properties that it was known for rather than the addictive drug that destroyed societies and even led countries to war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The world today has both real life and entertainment intertwined into an indistinguishable form, it sometimes entertains and occasionally disgusts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christmas or at least the act of celebrating it has gone secular. It\u2019s an occasion to brighten up all that surrounds us and even invent unique traditions around it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the quaint traditions in Japan is the connection between Christmas and the fast food chain, Kentucky Fried Chicken. A marketing promotion held a few decades ago was so successful that ordering a box of fried chicken has become a part of Christmas in this Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Ebisu Square Garden, Baccarat display<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

An Indian restaurant , run by a friend, offers a special \u2018Tandoori Chicken\u2019 set on Christmas. Other fast food joints trying to catch up with KFC, have their own specials, fried chicken in all its possible permutations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is an occasion to go on dates, at least for the lucky ones and feast on junk food, though not necessarily in that order. There are fine dining experiences on offer too, with restaurants offering special meals for couples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Roppongi Mid-Town<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Christmas is not a public holiday in Japan, the percentage of population who celebrate it for religious reason is small, yet people wish each other a \u2018Merry Christmas\u2019. The young and the single hope to find romance, or at least a date on this evening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pandemic has not dampened the spirit in Japan, though the illuminations on display are there for shortened hours now. I set out on Christmas evening with my camera, trying to capture some of what was in display.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Roppongi Mid-Town<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The crowded public places were a hinderance, both in terms of health as well as finding spots to take pictures from. The early winter cold, the occasional draft did not help either, but there are some pictures which are worth the effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I visited Ebisu Garden Place, Roppongi Hills and Midtown on Christmas night. I took another trip to Marunouchi on Dec 28th, hoping for smaller crowds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Keyakizaka Terrace at Roppongi Hills<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The crowds at Ebisu were mainly young couples in their evening best, the masks removed for brief displays of resplendent make up and shiny faces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Roppongi was made up of a few couples and the occasional groups out to take pictures. The crowds spread across the garden, the couples getting privacy and the groups finding more space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Tokyo Tower Visible from the Keyakizaka Terrace<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Christmas crowds in Marunouchi has gone by December 28th but there were a few couples, the brides in their white wedding gowns, the grooms in waistcoats and suits, followed by photographers, make up artists and assistants holdings lights scattered around .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Marunouchi Illumination<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The early evening was cold and the couples braved the time spent outdoors then took a break to warm themselves. The photographers shouted instructions \u2018Bend your knees\u2019 one shouted at the prospective groom, the shutters whirring to catch the brief moment before the tired knees flexed back in protest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few solitary photographers, stretched their tripods or those content with lower shutter speeds clicked away. A middle-aged man explained ideal camera settings to a group of eager learners. The teacher even had a model accompanying him and she helpfully commented on what poses she could strike for the students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Marunouchi Streets<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Tokyo has touched record new infection numbers every day over the last few days. The government asks people to stay indoors, but the spirit of the season, love or at least the display of love seem resilient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Marunouchi Street<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Belief might not matter much, but the display of religion to soothe frayed minds, whether it means dating on Christmas night or taking pictures in white gowns, seems almost analgesic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Opiates are the illusionary displays of belief, branching out perhaps from a lack of belief, but at least they keep the masses happy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Religion, Marx said, is the Opium of the people.In context, he also said \u2018Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":285,"parent":23,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-281","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/281","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=281"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/281\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":295,"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/281\/revisions\/295"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/23"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/285"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/partha.jp\/index.htm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=281"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}