According to the lady-in-waiting, Ying Chan was alone in the garden, standing under a phoenix tree with its smoky vermilion flowers. Although there was no one else there, she was heard laughing. The lady-in-waiting thought it strange that she should be laughing all by herself. Clear, innocent sounds that rose in the sunny blue sky. The laughter ceased and almost at once turned into shrill screams. The lady-in-waiting rushed up to find Ying Chan on the ground, her thigh bitten by a cobra.
It was an hour before the doctor arrived. In the interval, her muscles slackened and she lost all motor control. She complained of sleepiness and double vision. Spinal paralysis set in and she began to salivate. Her breathing slowed while her pulse quickened and became irregular. Ying Chan had gone into final convulsions and died before the doctor arrived.
Footnotes
∗ That is, recompensation in the present life for deeds already done, in the next rebirth for deeds now done, and in subsequent lives. (Translators’ note.)
∗ The five organs of the senses: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and body as roots of knowing. (Translators’ note.)
∗ Magic formulas. (Translators’ note.)
Yukio Mishima, The Temple of Dawn
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