Jugalbandi

by Rati Saxena

Slippery touch on the wing
The misrab dancing on the navel
Possessed and dancing to the sitar
While filling the emptiness inside
With the slippery sound
Of the desert snake
The whistle of the jungle bamboo
Cries of lightning
The hua hua of the wolves
And when the elephants
Crossing through the thick forest
Rubbing their bodies
And buffaloes are fighting with their horns
Suddenly a stream of sound came up
The force of the stream
Is collected and tightened
On the face of a tabla
While calling whole jungles to arms
Passers-by crossing the sounds
And walking in the vilambit
Running on the drut
Tapping on the toda
And clinking the jhala
The air comes and stands
A little below
And the skies start
Peeping down
Who does not need
The forest happiness to fill
The long emptiness
Who does not want to fill
That unfilled emptiness?