--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A t magic hour, when the sun has gone but…" description: "\"“A t magic hour, when the sun has gone but the light has not, armies of flying foxes unhinge themselves from the Banyan trees in the old graveyard and ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c37/arundhati-roy-346_ice-cream_a-t-magic-hour-when-the-sun-has-gone-but_1656534.jpg" --- # A t magic hour, when the sun has gone but the light has… ![“A t magic hour, when the sun has gone but the light has not, armies of flying foxes unhinge themselves from the Banyan trees in the old graveyard and drift across the city like smoke. When the bats leave, the crows come home. Not all the din of their homecoming fills the silence left by the…” quote by Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c37/arundhati-roy-346_ice-cream_a-t-magic-hour-when-the-sun-has-gone-but_1656534.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c37/arundhati-roy-346_ice-cream_a-t-magic-hour-when-the-sun-has-gone-but_1656534.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c37/arundhati-roy-346_ice-cream_a-t-magic-hour-when-the-sun-has-gone-but_1656534.jpg) > ““A t magic hour, when the sun has gone but the light has not, armies of flying foxes unhinge themselves from the Banyan trees in the old graveyard and drift across the city like smoke. When the bats leave, the crows come home. Not all the din of their homecoming fills the silence left by the sparrows that have gone missing, and the old white-backed vultures, custodians of the dead for more than a hundred million years, that have been wiped out. The vultures died of diclofenac poisoning. Diclofenac, cow-aspirin, given to cattle as a muscle relaxant, to ease pain and increase the production of milk, works – worked – like nerve gas on white-backed vultures. Each chemically relaxed, milk-producing cow or buffalo that died became poisoned vulture-bait. As cattle turned into better dairy machines, as the city ate more ice cream, butterscotch-crunch, nutty-buddy and chocolatechip, as it drank more mango milkshake, vultures’ necks began to droop as though they were tired and simply couldn’t stay awake. Silver beards of saliva dripped from their beaks, and one by one they tumbled off their branches, dead. Not many noticed the passing of the friendly old birds. There was so much else to look forward to.”” [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Diclofenac poisoning kills vultures, exposing how industrial agriculture harms ecosystems and disrupts natural cycles. **In simple terms:** Chemicals in farming harm wildlife. Key Takeaway Advocate for safer livestock practices. Themes environment ecology industrial agriculture wildlife policy health Mood concerned urgent Type environmental advocacy When to use this quote - farming policy - conservation campaigns - public health education - community outreach Key Concepts toxicology ecosystem services Questions to Reflect On - How can consumers influence safer drug use? - What alternatives exist to protect vultures? A Different Perspective Economic pressures may resist change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ice cream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ice-cream/) [Magic hour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic-hour/) [Vultures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vultures/) ## Related quotes > [“Diclofenac, cow aspirin, given to cattle as a muscle relaxant, to ease pain and increase the production of milk, works—worked—like nerve gas on white-backed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/diclofenac-cow-aspirin-given-to-cattle-as-a-muscle-relaxant-to-ease/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“Emily," whispered Teddy, "you're the sweetest girl in the world." The words have been said so often by so many millions of lads to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/emily-whispered-teddy-you-re-the-sweetest-girl-in-the-world-the-words/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [The hours between eight in the evening and one or two in the morning have always been my magic hours. Against the blue candlewick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/the-hours-between-eight-in-the-evening-and-one-or-two-in-the-morning/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“It was deep afternoon when shadows begin to grow, light becomes gold, and you realize that this particular day has reached its destiny. Like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vicki-covington/it-was-deep-afternoon-when-shadows-begin-to-grow-light-becomes-gold/) [Vicki Covington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vicki-covington/) > [“Inconstancy of every second punishes me. The wind, the rain, the clouds, the days, I try to grasp the hours but they banish me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansul-noor/inconstancy-of-every-second-punishes-me-the-wind-the-rain-the-clouds/) [Ansul Noor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansul-noor/) > [When the magic hour arrives, my thoughts center on light rather than on the landscape. I search for perfect light, then hunt for something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/when-the-magic-hour-arrives-my-thoughts-center-on-light-rather-than/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [“The sun was still out, wouldn’t even start to set for an hour, but the early evening still had that “magic hour” feeling. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-kahler/the-sun-was-still-out-wouldn-t-even-start-to-set-for-an-hour-but-the/) [Victoria Kahler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-kahler/) > [I wouldn't do the 'Magic Hour' again, but I would do TV again. The 'Magic Hour' is not me. Anything I would do, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magic-johnson/i-wouldn-t-do-the-magic-hour-again-but-i-would-do-tv-again-the-magic/) [Magic Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magic-johnson/) > [It was the Magic Hour, the moment in time when every leaf and blade of grass seemed to separate, when sunlight, burnished by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-hannah/it-was-the-magic-hour-the-moment-in-time-when-every-leaf-and-blade-of/) [Kristin Hannah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-hannah/) > [“Time was of the essence. For at eight o'clock the world came to an end. It was reading time. The hours between eight in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/time-was-of-the-essence-for-at-eight-o-clock-the-world-came-to-an-end/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“One day we shall meet under the purple sky, during the magic hour”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anamika-mishra/one-day-we-shall-meet-under-the-purple-sky-during-the-magic-hour/) [Anamika mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anamika-mishra/) > [“table sat an antique ormolu clock, its hands frozen on the twelve and the ten, 11:50. The magic hour. The time when Zee’s ghosts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becky-lee-weyrich/table-sat-an-antique-ormolu-clock-its-hands-frozen-on-the-twelve-and/) [Becky Lee Weyrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becky-lee-weyrich/) > [“Oh, magic hour when a child first knows it can read printed words! For quite a while, Francie had been spelling out letters, sounding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/oh-magic-hour-when-a-child-first-knows-it-can-read-printed-words-for/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“For at eight o’clock the world came to an end. It was reading time. The hours between eight in the evening and one or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/for-at-eight-o-clock-the-world-came-to-an-end-it-was-reading-time-the/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“Excuse me,” someone said, interrupting a lively discussion about whom they’d each buy a drink for in the cantina. The whole line looked up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/excuse-me-someone-said-interrupting-a-lively-discussion-about-whom/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) ## More by Arundhati Roy > [...As the disparity between the rich and the poor grows, the fight to corner resources is intensifying. To push through their "sweetheart deals," to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-the-disparity-between-the-rich-and-the-poor-grows-the-fight-to/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [In 2001, we were told that the war in Afghanistan was a feminist mission. The marines were liberating Afghan women from the Taliban. Can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/in-2001-we-were-told-that-the-war-in-afghanistan-was-a-feminist/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Poverty is a crime and the poor are terrorists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/poverty-is-a-crime-and-the-poor-are-terrorists/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Flat muscled and honey coloured. Sea secrets in his eyes. A silver raindrop in his ear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/flat-muscled-and-honey-coloured-sea-secrets-in-his-eyes-a-silver/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Fiction and non-fiction are only different techniques of story telling. For reasons I do not fully understand, fiction dances out of me. Non-fiction is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/fiction-and-non-fiction-are-only-different-techniques-of-story/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [NGOs have a complicated space in neoliberal politics. They are supposed to mop up the anger. Even when they are doing good work, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/ngos-have-a-complicated-space-in-neoliberal-politics-they-are/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I've never been that person who thought that because I've written one novel, I should write another and another. It's only when there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/i-ve-never-been-that-person-who-thought-that-because-i-ve-written-one/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [It is such a supreme folly to believe that nuclear weapons are deadly only if they're used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/it-is-such-a-supreme-folly-to-believe-that-nuclear-weapons-are-deadly/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I think one of the saddest things that's happening to literature is that it's getting over-simplified by this diet of simple political ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/i-think-one-of-the-saddest-things-that-s-happening-to-literature-is/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [The only dream worth having, I told her, is to dream that you will live while you're alive and die only when you're dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/the-only-dream-worth-having-i-told-her-is-to-dream-that-you-will-live/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [But what was there to say? Only that there were tears. Only that Quietness and Emptiness fitted together like stacked spoons. Only that there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/but-what-was-there-to-say-only-that-there-were-tears-only-that/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Truly, there's no alternative to stupidity. Cretinism is the mother of fascism. I have no defence against it, really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/truly-there-s-no-alternative-to-stupidity-cretinism-is-the-mother-of/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“...the secret of the Great Stories is that they have no secrets. The Great Stories are the ones you have heard and want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/the-secret-of-the-great-stories-is-that-they-have-no-secrets-the/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“stilts, the ground floors given over to parking. It’s a good idea in this car-maddened city,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/stilts-the-ground-floors-given-over-to-parking-it-s-a-good-idea-in/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“Perhaps it’s true that things can change in a day. That a few dozen hours can affect the outcome of whole lifetimes. And that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/perhaps-it-s-true-that-things-can-change-in-a-day-that-a-few-dozen/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) [Explore all 628 Arundhati Roy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) ## More Ice cream quotes > [The improved American highway system isolated the American-in-transit. On his speedway he had no contact with the towns which he by-passed. If he stopped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-j-boorstin/the-improved-american-highway-system-isolated-the-american-in-transit/) [Daniel J. Boorstin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-j-boorstin/) > [It's still possible to savor the remarkable foods that millennia of human ingenuity have teased from milk. A sip of milk itself or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-mcgee/it-s-still-possible-to-savor-the-remarkable-foods-that-millennia-of/) Harold McGee > [“I've been thinking a lot about the word "everything." Whenever something horrible happens, you hear people say they "lost everything." They lost their house…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-brown/i-ve-been-thinking-a-lot-about-the-word-everything-whenever-something/) [Jennifer Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-brown/) > [“Not very long ago I was driving with my husband on the back roads of Grey County, which is to the north and east…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/not-very-long-ago-i-was-driving-with-my-husband-on-the-back-roads-of/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > ['Constitutional' is just a real pip of a word. Positively rolls off the tongue. In fact, it's downright fun to say. 'Con-stit-too-shun-al.' It's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feig/constitutional-is-just-a-real-pip-of-a-word-positively-rolls-off-the/) [Paul Feig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feig/) > [Oh wow, you know what's wrong with all these families on TV? All these kids say stuff no kid would say. Stuff grown-ups want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/macaulay-culkin/oh-wow-you-know-what-s-wrong-with-all-these-families-on-tv-all-these/) [Macaulay Culkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/macaulay-culkin/) > [It was a very intense and stressful situation. There was playing in the Johnny-pump (an opened fire hydrant) and the ice-cream man coming around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/it-was-a-very-intense-and-stressful-situation-there-was-playing-in/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [“Human milk is like ice cream, penicillin, and the drug ecstasy all wrapped up in two pretty packages.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-williams/human-milk-is-like-ice-cream-penicillin-and-the-drug-ecstasy-all/) [Florence Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-williams/) > [There were some problems only coffee and ice cream could fix.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amal-el-mohtar/there-were-some-problems-only-coffee-and-ice-cream-could-fix/) [Amal El-Mohtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amal-el-mohtar/) > [I am the one who got myself fat, who did all the eating. So I had to take full responsibility for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirstie-alley/i-am-the-one-who-got-myself-fat-who-did-all-the-eating-so-i-had-to/) [Kirstie Alley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirstie-alley/) > [“America's greatest revelation was not the atom bomb, not Fundamentalism, not fat farms, not Elvis, not even the quite astute observation that gentlemen prefer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marisha-pessl/america-s-greatest-revelation-was-not-the-atom-bomb-not/) [Marisha Pessl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marisha-pessl/) > [We have lost the good old British spirit. Instead we have American journalism and black-shirted buffoons making a cheap imitation of ice-cream sellers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-mosley/we-have-lost-the-good-old-british-spirit-instead-we-have-american/) [Oswald Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-mosley/) > [“The first curry recipes published in an American cookbook appeared nearly eighty years later in Mary Randolph’s The Virginia Housewife, the very same cookbook…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-lohman/the-first-curry-recipes-published-in-an-american-cookbook-appeared/) Sarah Lohman > [“love ice cream, I love pancakes, I love the color blue — bullshit. Because when I said love — I meant I bled for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-van-dyken/love-ice-cream-i-love-pancakes-i-love-the-color-blue-bullshit-because/) [Rachel Van Dyken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-van-dyken/) > [The elevator shaft was a kind of heat sink. Hot food was cold by the time it arrived. 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