Elephant Bangs Train by William Kotzwinkle Read Free Book Online

the temple of Buddha Amitaba, Sebastian, pretending prayer, popped the jewel from the idol's forehead into his tall mitre hat.
    At dawn they walked along Tokyo Bay among the fishmongers, Sebastian tapping the street with his crooked staff.
    'What say we get married? I'll perform the ceremony.' A basket of squid was before them, squirming with tentacles.
    'If you'll take me away,' said Adria.
    'I propose the Amazon,' said Sebastian, lifting a squid on the end of his shepherd's crook. 'Missionaries are desperately needed there.'
    'No touch!' screamed the fishseller, pointing at the hanging squid with a chopping knife.
    'Quiet, my man, or I shall baptize you. Well?'' asked Sebastian, handing Adria the jewel from Amitaba's forehead.
    'Yes,' said Adria, 'let's go today.'
    An hour before flight time, they went to the Jade Bathhouse, were separated in the steam, and never saw each other again.
    Exceedingly depressed, Adria wandered the city alone. At evening, she stood upon the wooden bridge crossing the stream Otukisama, Goddess of the Moon. Exquisite memories of Sebastian filled her with despair, and she wept quietly, clutching the wedding jewel he'd given her.
    A frog was singing devoutly to the sunset, and Adria tried to lose herself in his song. She stared at the water, in which the suspended red drum of the setting sun was reflected. The spirit of silence stole over her, but let us be going, on and on, said her restless heart. Yet she remained still, and suddenly her thoughts were gone, swallowed by the moonstream.
    Beneath its surface she saw waving weeds, like gold ropes tying the sun which floated like a golden flower. Suddenly the flower opened and in its centre sat a gold being.
    Radiant snakes danced at his feet, and one, a brilliant coral, slipped into Adria, piercing her along the spine. He is Buddha Amitaba, Lord of the Western Paradise , sang the snake. Quivering, Adria sank to her knees.
    The Buddha came forth from the flower throne. His eyes were blue lapis lazuli, in which gold banners flew in flickering expression. A nimbus of many colours surrounded his head, and as he stepped towards her, red and blue balls appeared beneath his feet, in molecular pattern.
    The elegant creature wrapped a glowing patchwork cloak around his shoulders, circumambulated Adria thrice and disappeared into the infinity of space, leaving her with a deafening silence in her heart.
    For days she wandered the streets of Tokyo, neither eating nor sleeping, sustained by her encounter with the powerful being. Gradually, however, the feeling subsided, and to regain it, she climbed Fujicamat Mountain, to a Zen monastery, and prostrated herself before the Master.
    'Accept me in the order.'
    'No good,' said the Master. Several young monks had gathered around wide-eyed, and the noon bell was clumsily struck.
    'Please,' begged Adria.
    'Why you grow such big breasts?' said the Master, and striking Adria on the backside with a stick, drove her out of the monastery gate.
    A Tokyo camera club which had followed Adria up the mountain leapt out of the bushes, and cheering, picked her up out of the dust.
    'A wet bag of bones!' shouted the Master, and slamming shut the gate, returned to his archery practice, the shooting of a rice cake off his own head.
    The camera club wound its way back down the mountain, carrying Adria like a goddess, in a bamboo palanquin. Her old ways, she realized, were impossible to escape, and she obliged the cameramen with several interesting shots of her eggroll.
    Into the sun on Japan Airlines flew the pasta heiress, on the second lap of her journey. By strange coincidence, she shared a seat with the renowned sitarist, Ali Clarkbar. She told him how much she enjoyed his playing, and he must have enjoyed her too, for when they disembarked from the plane at Bengali, the guru's knees were trembling and Adria's mumu was on backwards.
    They stood on the blazing airstrip, gazing deeply into each other's eyes. Clarkbar laid his thumb