Sohrab Sepehri

Sohrab Sepehri

Sohrab Sepehri (1928-1980), prominent Iranian poet and painter, was born in Kashan on October 7, 1928. The talented Iranian artist made his name and became notable with the publication of “Sound of the Passage of Water”, which marked a milestone in his poetic activity, to which two other volumes were added. In 1969, he participated in the Paris Biennale and shortly after exhibited his paintings in a gallery in New York, where he lived for a brief period.

Having been born into a family known for art and literature, it led him to also fall for art. Sohrab’s father was a post office clerk, craftsman, and builder of a traditional Persian musical instrument, the tar, while his grandmother was also a fairly gifted poet. Kashan and the surrounding villages played a significant role in both his poetry and his paintings. In fact, in his poems his hometown stands out, which, among other things, has a rich and glorious history:

Sepehri is so popular with Iranians that he is often referred to by his first name “Sohrab”, as if he were a friend that everyone knows. Sohrab has traveled beyond the normal trajectory of everyday meanings. The use of new forms in poetry makes it difficult to understand, but deep down they are brilliant metaphors applied to the meaning of words. The reader becomes so immersed in his poetry that he sometimes forgets the real world and experiences a new recognition of man and the entire universe.

Sohrab was a lover of nature. Like a baby cradled in its mother’s arms, he calmed down in nature. He had great respect for nature and everything related to it. He was a true worshiper who loved God and creatures, believing that the flower of love for the entire universe must be planted in the heart. It is defined only by the term love.

Having a deep knowledge of Buddhism, mysticism and Western traditions, and synthesizing Western and Eastern concepts, he created his own style, nothing like those previously existing, in the history of Persian literature. He, expressing his thoughts and feelings in a very different way from others, made his poetry seem like a journey that each person goes one way.

Sohrab takes us to an unknown world in which ugliness becomes beautiful and despised objects become the center of attention of readers. After leaving an indelible poetic mark on Persian literature, the poet passed away in Kashan in 1980. It is worth mentioning that the film “Where is my friend’s house?” Shot by Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami in 1987, it is inspired by his poem “Where is the friend’s house?”