a holy hush
descends
on the hills

the king crow
and the green
bee-eater
and the pied
bush chat
have yielded
their dominion

crepuscular
colours
paint
the horizon
where cloud
and hill
kiss or
fail to kiss
like parting
lovers
in unwilling hurry

the chengi
river
receives
the garmented
sky

from the
hindu village
teaked
from view
cascade
the darkling horns
into the vale

and from the vale
toward the hills
rolls
the muezzin's
catabatic call

a choir of crickets
contribute
their refrain
inspired
by the humid heat

and sound
for a while
becomes
the unseen
the unrevealed
the unknown

the darkness

-- Iftekhar Sayeed