The Ocean Within Me is a deeply reflective collection of one hundred poems by Anil Deswal ‘Dash’, shaped by a lifetime spent between the vastness of the sea and the quiet observations of everyday life. Written across years of voyages and moments of solitude, these poems carry the sincerity of liv ed experience rather than the polish of performance

Dash writes with a meditative voice, attentive to the small and often unnoticed details of the world around him – rivers flowing quietly, a cycle leaning by the roadside, the comfort of a resting place, the companionship of animals, and the stillness of long nights at sea. In his poems, loneliness is not dramatised but gently acknowledged, and companionship is discovered as much in silence and nature as in people.

Many poems are rooted in the author’s seafaring life, and feel authentic and unforced – gently capturing the rhythms of ships, horizons, and distant shores. Yet the reflections extend far beyond the ocean, touching on longing, memory, acceptance, and the quiet resilience that shapes a human life.

Honest, contemplative, and intimate, The Ocean Within Me invites readers into a series of conversations – sometimes with the poet, often with themselves. It is a collection for those who appreciate poetry grounded in lived experience and the quiet beauty of thoughtful observation.

Anil Deswal, or “Dash”, is a marine chief engineer from Rohtak, Haryana. Anil’s life story is as deep and unpredictable as the ocean he’s sailed for decades. He’s a sailor, an external surveyor with the Mercantile Marine Department of India, a lead auditor with Class DNV, and a superintendent. He’s also the president of the Merchant Navy Officers Welfare Association of NCR. Beneath the titles, he is a storyteller at heart – a man who turns waves into words and experiences into ink.