At The Naala Maar

It is the evening of a long day in June,

The Maar, breezy air and dusky sky,

The sun has bidden adieu just now;

The night is preparing to disentangle her ravenous locks; A star has appeared behind the hill,

As if some lady is holding an evening lamp at the window.

A gold ola is sliding forward in the Maar in beauteous splendour; Many Khojas are sitting inside with a graceful hubble bubble; The musicians are holding a charming concert;

They are tuning to evening melodies an amorous lyric of Mir; The inebriating cups are ever-flowing with fragrance; A marriage party is progressing forward with torches on the side; Children are shouting A fire: A fire: on that side, Sumptuous marriage feast.

On this bank evening prayers are sung in a Mandhir; Some are standing supplicating with folded hands; Some are prostrating after offering floral tributes; Some are offering tearful oblations to Lord Shiva; Some are blowing conches and others chiming bells; On that side there are devout shouts of “Allah-O-Akbar”

People are flocking out to pay obeisance in Mosques; They are offering prayers and supplications To God who is believed equally merciful towards all.

Birds are singing in melodious groves; Their joyous warble soothes everyone; The Moon is stalking forward and silence is prevailing everywhere; It is late in the evening and all noises have died away; The Humdrum routine of life has come to an end.

On this side of the Maar is standing a sagging hut; Inside the window is standing a woman like a statue; She is alternately sinking and floating on the ocean of thought; She is recollecting her sorrows and disappointments; Is there a graveyard of hopes inside the window?

Late Prof. K L Moza was Professor and Head of the Department of English, Gandhi Memorial College, Srinagar/Jammu