A Glimpse of Japan

A Glimpse of Japan

Konnichiwa! (HI/Good Day)

I recently began learning a new language - Japanese. I have been watching Japanese anime and dramas since I was in school and I’m also an avid reader of their Manga (Japanese comics). I have learnt a fair amount of Japanese with just these techniques. Common phrases, numbers, slang etc. make up most of my vocabulary. But it was only recently that I decided to actually learn it as a subject.

Japan has always held a fascination for me- its culture, history, myths, food, music, fashion etc. Everything is so unique and intriguing. This maybe due to the fact that it is an island, isolated from the influence of world trends. It is rather a nation that creates trends. In fact, after the devastating effect of World War II Japan had closed her doors to the world. Her technology, trade and her rise to being a huge world power are all due to her own efforts and skill. And it is only in the recent past that she started opening herself to the world.

When you look at Japan, you can see that she is a nation with a huge will power and determination. Every few years she would suffer some calamity or the other and out of the ashes, she would fly like the Phoenix. The Great Yaeyama Tsunami, Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Nuclear Crisis at Fukushima are only a few of the disasters that Japan had to face in her history. Besides these, more than 70 earthquakes, tornadoes, massacres and bombings have also tried to cripple her spirit. But we can see as plain as day how her indomitable spirit has held on and emerged victorious through all her troubles.

Her art and culture is extremely fascinating. The Japanese calligraphy (‘shodō’/ ‘shūji’) is so exquisite and intricately beautiful. Their painting is one of the oldest and most highly refined of the Japanese visual arts, encompassing a wide variety of genres and styles. And in the current generation of Japan, we find a large number of artists engaged in the skillful art of anime. Anime themes and style can be traced to traditional art forms. The methods adopted by these animators are so unique; you can never find them in any other animated works of the world. An anime is truly Japanese. The delicate art of flower arrangement (Ikebana) has gained widespread international fame for its focus on harmony, color use, rhythm, and elegantly simple design. The Japanese theatre is made up of four types-Kabuki, Noh, Kyōgen and Bunraku. Each has individual characteristics that have made it a popular tourist attraction in Japan today. Origami is yet another beautiful Japanese art which has gained popularity all over the world.

J-Pop refers to the popular music of contemporary Japan. In a way, it has influenced music in the world to a large extent. Though personally, I feel K-Pop( Korean music) has gained more success internationally with super cool bands such as Super Junior, SHINee, Girls Generation etc. My favourite Japanese bands include Arashi, Kat-tun, Mr.Children and Kis-My-Ft2 among others. Besides the music, the manga and anime have formed a firm foundation for the popular culture of Japan. Even the CEOs of huge Japanese companies are crazed addicts of anime and manga. Anime such as Naruto is now a household name, as is Bleach and Inu-Yasha. The imagination, versatility and sheer genius of these works have established them as a force to be reckoned with in the fiercely competitive media sector of the world. And channels such as Animax have helped expose the Indian audience to the magnificence of the Japanese Anime. Japanese soap-operas such as Hana Yori Dango (My all time favourite!), Hana Kimi, Kimi-Wa-Petto, Great Teacher Onizuka, Ryusei No Kizuna and Dragon Zakura offer a wide variety of ideas and themes that constantly draws a huge audience. Movies such as Nobody Knows, Tokyo Story, Seven Samurai and others show a realistic and deeply moving picture of Japan. And of course one cannot forget ‘Ring’, which created waves in the West and established Japanese Horror movies as the best in the world.

The only bone I want to pick with Japan is on their Whaling practices. Japan has been hunting whales for centuries, but in the recent past it has become so commercialized that the whale numbers have been depleting severely. Efforts by Greenpeace and other organizations have not had a lot of success in stopping the massacre of these endangered species. We can only hope that the Japanese understand the situation soon and make amends. Thankfully recent statistics show that three-quarters of the meat from whales caught last summer was unsold. It holds some positive belief that this decline in sale of whale meat will help reduce the pressure on the hunting of whales.

Even though the situation is as such, Japan is indeed an inspirational nation. There is so much more to elaborate about her, but I’m quite sure the space here will not be sufficient for it. All the same I hope that I’ve been able to give you atleast a miniscule glimpse of the nation called Japan.

Arigato Gozaimasu!!! (Thank You )