Hʋshi ninak a̱ya

Brianna Le / V Mag at UVA

In the Choctaw language, hʋshi translates to sun, and hʋshi ninak a̱ya translates to moon and sun that travels at night. In Choctaw cosmology, the sun is seen as the eye of God, and the moon is considered the sun’s wife and the second eye of God.

Hʋshi ninak a̱ya

if Hʋshi is the Eye of God,

then adorn me with yours.

shine that moonbeam of muddle

into my hazy gaze

pour that ray of promise

into my well of spite

for i bask in neither dark nor light

without a bath in your pool of midnight.

so if the Sun no longer sets in your lies

sinking low in the Moon’s disguise

when i see your cries

don’t hide your pride,

i know you suffer in the deep of my eternal Eyes.

so when we collide in the sky

and you find the Sun

please don’t run,

the Moon’s song has just begun

for the bright that twirls at night

is blinking and fluttering in flight, 

Hʋshi—

dive into my humility.