Description

A book that grows over our thoughts, time and nesting energy. These poems come to us using fables, moments and maps to give us a precise insight of humanity and how it must think about itself. It breaks time only to remind us that we need to be content and calculatively greedy about our desires. A collection that illuminates the worth of reckoning and makes us introspect over the small instances of our lives. A stunning awakening happens in this book of poems. There’s no sermon. There’s no final verdict. The poems are here to remind us of what we do and can do. They ensure that we figure out a way for us to not only survive, but to also stay alive to tell what comforts and disturbs us. When most collections are here to quote something important, this one is here to only converse about time and its changing constraints. — Kabir Deb, poet and reviewer

While the spirit of my title, ‘The Cosmic in the Common: Poetry’s New Language of Spiritual Inquiry,’ infuses all twenty-two poems in this collection, each illuminating how sacred insights emerge through secular experience, this foreword of mine focuses on two long-form works that exemplify the collection’s central vision. They are the ‘Ari’ poems series and ‘Four Characters in Search of a Tipping Point.’ These two works serve as compelling case studies of how contemporary poetry can transform everyday observations into vehicles for spiritual awakening, creating a sense of connection and understanding among readers. — Aloysius Joseph, critic

Amirtharaj Arockiyam is a transcendentalist poet with a rich theological research and teaching background. He has served as a professor of Systematic Theology for over a decade. Amirtharaj’s scholarly interests are vast and profound, spanning Philosophy, Theology, Interreligious Spirituality, and Creative Literature. His particular passion for spiritual verse is evident in his work, which reflects a commitment to deepening the dialogue between faith, culture, and human experience. His poetry, while deeply personal, resonate with universal rhythms of growth, discovery, and transformation. Across his body of work, what stands out is the remarkable integration of psychological depth, philosophical wisdom, and spiritual sensitivity. His poetry is a verbal symbol for self-transcendence: they do not just tell stories but enact luminous, inner shifts. Through layered metaphors, gentle pacing, and an unwavering moral and contemplative core, Amirtharaj’s poetry holds a mirror to the reader’s own journey of awakening. It affirms that the path of growth is both personal and universal, and that the inner journey, however quiet, is the most important story we can tell. In reading his poetry, we do not escape the world — we return to it, renewed.