Home #AtoZChallenge Dialogues From Within

Dialogues From Within

by Vidya Sury April 4, 2013 47 comments

β€œDialogues From Within”  is the beautiful title of a book of β€œpoetry and verse to lift the spirit and soothe the soul” by my friend’s sister, Shobha Senan.

The first thing I loved about this book is its cover. I am not one to judge a book by its cover but I am not immune to a gorgeous cover either. So when I saw it the first time, I wanted to read the book.

Funny thing is – I am not much of a poetry reader, preferring humor, law/medical/crime fiction and whodunits and police procedurals. Don’t get me wrong, though! I do enjoy poetry – and in fact, took part in the month long Haiku Challenge in February 2012 and had a great time. Since I’ve read and enjoyed excerpts from the author’s brother – Dr.Chandra Senan’s books, I was curious to read Shobha’s verse, what with being tempted by the cover and all.

Soon enough, I received the book (thank you Dr Chandra) and decided to first speed read it. What did happen was, I ended up reading the book from cover to cover, literally. Poetry is a personal thing and I consider the limerick my favorite form. But I enjoyed reading Shobha’s verse, perhaps because I saw a deeper meaning in each verse than met the eye.

Let me share the words of the author from the back cover of the book:

Poetry is a revelation from a place deep within where dialogues never cease, ’till answers are found”. All of us receive these answers. Some of us respond to these voices from within. Others refuse to hear them.

Each time a poem emerges, a storm abates. Peace reigns and once again you feel connected.

Deep seated thoughts, convictions and resolutions manifest at this level. Questions that arise are inevitably answered.

This is what I am sharing with you in my collection β€œDialogues from Within”

That is a very good description of the book and I couldn’t have written it better – and so I thought it best to quote Shobha.

Dialogues from Within

One of the things that stood out for me in this book is it felt like author was having a dialogue with the Almighty, a higher power – call it what you will – always appreciating, with an emphasis on her faith. Take this poem for instance:

On being yourself

Live the life you so rightly deserve
Free the soul you so desperately preserve
Rid yourself of false pretenses
And live your life free of defenses

Live for yourself and all that is real
For God in all his zeal
Meant you to be like yourself
And not like the others

Most of the poems evoke a reflective mood bringing on the realization that hope springs eternal, nothing lasts forever and there’s always the Supreme Power to turn to.

The book’s clean format makes for an easy read – images on the left and the poem on the right.

I wish the book had an β€œAbout the author” blurb. There is none.

Dialogues From Within : Poetry & Verse To Lift The Spirit & Soothe The Soul is available on Amazon. Get some soft music on, preferably instrumental and settle down to enjoy the book!

Question for you:

Do you enjoy poetry? Share a couple of lines from your favorite verse!

Dialogues from Within

Today is Day 4 of the AtoZChallenge 2013 and I recommend:

Damyanti – our dynamic A to Z Challenge co-host’s D.R.E.A.M Catchers #AtoZChallenge

The Daily Dish RecipesΒ  – absolutely mouth-watering blog!

Angels watching over me

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47 comments

sridevi April 4, 2013 at 11:44 am

Thank You for this lovely post Vidya . I love poetry and any form of verse moves me . Here the way the author has defined poetry has found a deeper connection . Should definitely purchase this book πŸ™‚
sridevi recently posted…D is for Darknesses

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Vidya Sury April 8, 2013 at 8:58 am

Thanks, Sridevi! I enjoyed the book!
Vidya Sury recently posted…Batu Caves Malaysia

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Laxmi Chundi Addanki April 4, 2013 at 11:45 am

Lovely review – and the highlighted back cover rocks πŸ™‚

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Vidya Sury April 8, 2013 at 8:58 am

Yeah, isn’t it lovely, Laxmi! πŸ™‚ thanks!
Vidya Sury recently posted…Batu Caves Malaysia

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Suzy April 4, 2013 at 11:49 am

I absolutely adore poetry. I also write poetry and love to haiku – haven’t written one for a long time – thanks for reminding me. And thanks so much for sharing – will check out the book. My most favourite poem of all is Unending Love by Rabindranath Tagore.
Suzy recently posted…UBC 4 – AtoZ – Dreams

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:57 pm

Suzy, did we meet at the Haiku Challenge last year in Feb? Just wondered. Hope to see your poetry soon, perhaps during April? I love Tagore’s work too. So lyrical!

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Afshan April 4, 2013 at 12:09 pm

I dream to get my poetry book published one day !!! good luck to ur sisters friend
Each time a poem emerges, a storm abates. Peace reigns and once again you feel connected.——-this makes so much sense to me !

My fav verse written by me is (from my first poem)
dont want to sound like a narcisst but I LOVE the below lines. Nothing feels better than the poem written for the first time.
Not always I will get such a Day.

I hop I jump and enjoy my style.My Way.

Youth is a boon given by God.

Right or Wrong doesn’t matter and even what is Odd!

I will be on my own way,

And listen to what hearts say!!

Fav poets are robert frost , Nizar Qabbani , ralph waldo emerson. Their poems and quotes ROCK

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:56 pm

Frost is magical! Afshan, thanks for quoting that verse. πŸ™‚ How nice of you! And I am sure we’ll be reading your book soon! Good luck!

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Corinne Rodrigues April 4, 2013 at 2:16 pm

I love the title of the book and the contents seem even more exciting. Will try and pick it up off Flipkart because it’s not the kind of book I’d like to read on a Kindle! Thanks for sharing, Vidya.
Heading of to check out the Daily Dishes. Your idea of recommending blogs alphabetically is really neat.
Corinne Rodrigues recently posted…Daily Dose of Vitamin D

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:55 pm

I loved the title too, Corinne. Would you like me to send you the book? I doubt that it is available on Flipkart. I recall Shobha’s brother, who sent me the book, mentioning it was only on Amazon.

The blog reco was a sudden brainwave, I am glad I thought of it early! Thank you for your comment!

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Ruchira April 4, 2013 at 3:43 pm

This is the sort of book I would love to read ! Thanks for the review !
Ruchira recently posted…D is for diary!

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:52 pm

πŸ™‚ Glad you liked the review, Ruchira! Thank you!

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Suzie Cheel April 4, 2013 at 5:10 pm

I love the poem you have shared, thank you and i have now subscribed by email as i missed your post on the A-Z challenge would have been perfect for my BEach Inspiration series. I don’t always open my reader. Next year
all my love
Suzie
Suzie Cheel recently posted…BEach Inspiration: Be You

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:19 pm

Awww, Suzie! Hugs! I’ll personally remind you next year. I am excited about your book!

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Deena Dietrich April 4, 2013 at 7:38 pm

beautiful post

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:18 pm

Thank you, Deena!

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Julie Barrett April 4, 2013 at 9:05 pm

Vidya, That’s lovely πŸ™‚ I don’t read poetry much either but just like song lyrics (which are poetry too, right?) they are my “go to” to express sentiment in the deepest way.
Julie Barrett recently posted…How To Know If You Just Got Scammed By A Psychic Intuitive

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:18 pm

That’s exactly how I feel, Julie! I tend towards humorous verse, though! In fact, I used to convert my tough topics into poetry to study in college. πŸ˜€ Still have a poem on management principles around somewhere. I remember my folks at work promptly published it in the office magazine. πŸ˜€

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Nandana April 4, 2013 at 9:26 pm

Apt title to the book. Poetry is what the soul speaks. Frankly, I’m not much of poetry person, maybe my brain is too superficial to grasp the beauty of poetry, but I try.

Nice post, I like Haiku a bit, I feel like it’s speaking much more directly than other forms.

P.S: Thanks for the smiles with every post πŸ˜‰
Nandana recently posted…D is for Dobby and Dumbledore

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:16 pm

πŸ˜€ Poetry has so many forms, I understand what you’re saying, Nandana. My favorite is the limerick – i like a dash of humor!

You’re welcome to the smiles πŸ˜€ I feel bad to say “Spammer”

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janu April 4, 2013 at 10:08 pm

This sounds like my kind of book. Thanks for sharing this.

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:14 pm

πŸ™‚ I enjoyed it, Janu!

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sharmila April 4, 2013 at 10:33 pm

Sounds interesting Vidya. will surely read this one.
sharmila recently posted…D—Driving me crazy

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:13 pm

You’ll enjoy it, Sharmila! Thanks!

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Shail April 4, 2013 at 10:37 pm

I am not a poetry person. I know that’s strange coming from someone who has a book of verse to her credit. The irony! πŸ™‚
But this one does sound interesting.
Shail recently posted…Ruffled feathers

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:13 pm

Thank you, Shail! πŸ™‚

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Roshni April 4, 2013 at 10:52 pm

Thanks so much for a lovely review, Vidya!
Roshni recently posted…Blogging from A to Z April Challenge: D is for….

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:11 pm

Thank you, too, Roshni. I am so enjoying reading your blog!

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Make Money April 5, 2013 at 12:14 am

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Make Money recently posted…50 Best Websites To Sell Your Ebooks

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:10 pm

Thank you!

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Galen Pearl April 5, 2013 at 6:12 am

Just caught up with your last several posts, including the lovely one about the Bhagavad-Gita (no wonder you are so enlightened!). Like you, I’m not always drawn to poetry, but I love this short one by Anais Nin: “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”
Galen Pearl recently posted…Thin Places

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:09 pm

Hugs, Galen! Enlightened, and me? It is so kind of you to say so!

I love that quote by Anais Nin too. I actually collected a lot of Anais Nin quotes for A, but ended up writing something else.

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Vishnu April 5, 2013 at 7:05 am

NOt so much a poetry person Vidya, like you and Galen, but i do appreciate a good poem read by a good poet. Poems can be so moving, inspiring and resonate with the real truth in the world. It is unfettered creative expression usually from the depth of one’s soul. I also admire people who can write poetry.

Are you actually doing a post a day? WOW! I was writing one per week for the year and that seems a little overwhelming:)

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:08 pm

Sometimes it depends on the time/mood we read poetry, Vishnu. I love your comment!

Come close, Vishnu…shhh… yes. I am going to post every day. And I am already feeling the strain – I am a twice/max thrice a week person. πŸ˜€ But it is fun!

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Preetilata April 5, 2013 at 1:49 pm

Dialogues from Within… The title of the book itself evokes such a warm and reflective feeling. Looks to be a very promising book Vidya. Thanks for recommending it to us.
Preetilata recently posted…Embracing Ecstasy

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:07 pm

Yes, the title drew me in, too, Preetilata! It is a very nice book of verse. Thank you for commenting.

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Betsy/Zen Mama April 5, 2013 at 1:51 pm

Looks like a wonderful book Vidya! I love poetry and really liked the one you included here. Thanks!
Betsy/Zen Mama recently posted…Anxiety – How To Keep It At Bay…

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:06 pm

Glad you enjoyed the review, Betsy! I had a tough time choosing which one to show off from the book! πŸ˜€

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Shilpa Garg April 5, 2013 at 3:08 pm

Poems and me are like cheese and cake… never the twain shall meet! πŸ˜€
Shilpa Garg recently posted…E is for… Emotions

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:03 pm

πŸ™‚ Shilpa, I am thinking of all those who love cheese-cake! πŸ˜€

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G Angela April 5, 2013 at 7:21 pm

You have written very well vidya, the books appears inspiring, and I loved the way you presented it, thanks for sharing !

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:02 pm

Thank you, Angela. The book was put together by Shobha very lovingly.

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Nathalie April 5, 2013 at 9:16 pm

Wow… Shobha’s description of poetry is so beautiful! πŸ™‚ And it’s so true that when we are still and listen to the voice within us, the answeres will be there… as long as we choose to listen.
Nathalie recently posted…How to Create Affirmations

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Vidya Sury April 5, 2013 at 10:01 pm

Thank you, Nathalie. I quite enjoyed the book. πŸ™‚

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My Inner Chick April 12, 2013 at 1:29 am

I love love love the title of the poetry book!

I shall order.

But I love you more than 5 ebonly panthers sipping water in Lake Victoria. XXxxxx
My Inner Chick recently posted…For Kay On Your Birthday

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My Inner Chick April 12, 2013 at 1:29 am

I mean EBONY πŸ™‚
My Inner Chick recently posted…For Kay On Your Birthday

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Oxygen - Vidya Sury April 17, 2014 at 9:27 am

[…] my blog for a while, you might remember that I reviewed his sister’s bookΒ  of poetry “Dialogues from Within“, last year during the A toΒ  Z Challenge. We have built a pleasant friendship and I feel […]

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