Total Eclipse
(24.10.95 9.30am)
Indian autumn.
Morning sky darkens
like a bruise.
Moon’s black sphere
glides between
earth and sun.

More spectacular
than sunset
a cone of shadow
funnels darkness
cool as marble
onto Taj Mahal’s dome.

Some think it an omen.
Robed bodies plunge
into the Ganges’
sacred waters.
Frenetic fowl
peck at dry dust.


At the precise
moment of alignment
constellations become visible
sun’s corona - a thin gold ring
marries the planets.

Symbol of undying love
for a dead wife.
The lovers’ tombs
in the crypt
for centuries
await this reunion
of miracle or design.

(c) Deb Matthews-Zott