The speaker walks through a rain-soaked forest, and the poem slowly reveals that this is a return home. It begins with a wide view of paddy fields, huts and distant mountains, then moves close to the ground: wet leaves, clinging leeches, a rustle in the trees. Each stanza adds new sights and sounds, from a tusker glimpsed across a ridge to flashing red birds, a coughing Sambar and the calls of a giant squirrel.
The speaker feels awe and affection rather than fear. Even the leeches are mentioned lightly, and the wind greets them like an old friend. The Tahr's imagined question, "Where you been all these days?", makes the whole landscape seem like a family that has missed them. The mood is hushed, alive and tender, full of small movements and bird names that show close knowledge of the place. The short last line, "I am home," lands quietly, because the poem has already shown us why.