Temples mosques churches tall
Conch, Qunut nor bells toll
Grievers moan scarcely on decease befall
Vague stillness seize overall
Death meander at large unmasked
The potent impoverished fear masked
Dear ones dread to dare part
That unholy hour may rip apart
Pyre rose in uncertain bounds
Burials obscured in unknown grounds
Privileged, poor mighty and pious
Beg for breath in lost discourse
Ganges that ran pallid and untainted
Engorge in festering limbs and stained
Not the sacred nor the scared
Save that gloom slyly thread
Loved tears, wreaths nor prayers
To die unceremonious ahead of hour
Coffins bare destitute of farewell
Disgrace death thus mislaid every honour
About the Poetess: Rani Rathna Prabha K. V. is an Assistant Professor of English Literature at Government First Grade College Sirsi, Karnataka. She's an alumnus of Bangalore University.