He believes that poetry is the evidence of life,an armour of the soul,also its disrobe. And Vijai Vardhan bares his soul in Beyond The Great Beyond,a book of 55 Haikus to open your heart . Its my first book on poetry and yes,Im nervous, smiles the bureaucrat,who has earlier authored a coffee table book Krishna The Enlightened One. Deeply impacted by Sufi saints,their poetry and way of life,Vardhan explains that Haiku poetry originated in the 16th century in Japan. Capturing a moment in time,a Haiku paints a mental image in a readers mind,usually in three,short unrhymed lines. Sometimes a Haiku hits you,many a time,it stays inside you. These Haikus came to me naturally and are a therapeutic outpouring, Vardhan begins his book serenading the Sufis,for he believes that for centuries they have been magnificent friends to the human spirit,greatest seekers,lovers,mystics,guides and poets that human kind has ever known. For a Sufi,poetry is a net thrown in the sea of his love and his relationship with God is a love affair,not forbidden. God is beloved and the intense longing he feels for God is ibbadat. A Sufis death is a reunion with God,its not a funeral procession,but a barat,with dancing,singing. Sufis never pray,they love God, Vardhan shares his passion.

Travelling all over the country on election duties for as long as five years,with ample time to reflect,the Haikus,shares Vardhan were written with passion…Love,romance,agony,ecstasy,time,Vardhan expresses his feelings with simplicity,with the words flowing uninterrupted and with intensity…Symbolic visuals accompany each Haiku,making the book both appealing and colourful,poetry books many a time tend to be dull and unattractive and sometimes the length of the verses also scare readers,so my attempt is to make the book both readable and visually interesting to encourage readers to read poetry, Vardhan admits the inspiration comes from varied sources…My wife Sangita,my friend Kapil who has published the book,our creative designer Prachi and of course,the Sufis have made this possible, Vardhan read out some Haikus at the book release function at Capitol Book Depot and is now all set to release his next book Kurukshetra Timeless Sanctity.