Sohrab was born in Kashan, Iran in 1928. He completed his elementary and secondary education in Kashan and moved to Tehran in 1943 to study at teachers’ college (Persian: دانشسرای مقدماتی). He worked as a teacher for a few years, then enrolled as a student in the faculty of fine arts school at University of Tehran (Persian: دانشکده هنرهای زیبا) and graduated with honors. Sohrab Sepehri was very talented in fine arts and his paintings were displayed in many European exhibits. His paintings are about nature and one of his paintings was sold in Tehran in 2018. He is one of Iran’s foremost modernist painters. Unfortunately, he moved to England for treatment but he had to return Tehran because of the progression of his illness. Finally, he passed away in Pars Hospital in Tehran on April 28, 1980. He was buried in Kashan. Sohrab never got married and his grave is frequently visited by many art lovers.

Well-versed in Buddhism, mysticism, and Western traditions, he blended the Eastern concepts with Western techniques, thereby creating a kind of poetry unsurpassed in the history of Persian literature. He had his own style of writing in his poems that he used short sentences rather than longer ones which is used in Persian poetry for centuries. To him, new forms were new means to express his thoughts and feelings. In one of his works called ‘Footsteps of Water’ or ‘The Water’s Footfall’ Sepehri introduces himself, his family, and his way of thinking in a poetic form. This poem which is written like a biography has two aspects: the inner and outer. The Inner aspect of this poem is about God’s recognition through the beauty of nature. Sepehri beautifully explains that he doesn’t blindly do his religious duties. In most of his poems, Sepehri introduces a new form of literature by using romanticism and symbolism. The beauty of his poems is seen through his inspiration of nature and the use of tender and simple language. Abdolali Dastgheib, acclaimed literary critic writer, believes that Sepehri has reached great levels in poetic language following the publication of his later books such as ‘The Water’s Footfall’, ‘Traveler’ and ‘The Green Volume’. In the last one, “The Green Volume” there’s a famous poem called “Beyond the Seas”. As Sepehri is famous in writing about nature and its elements in a very simple but meaningful way. There are many examples of personifications, or symbols in his poetry. In his poem “Let’s not Spoil the Water”, he talks about water, the necessary and basic element of life which people must keep clean. He has used a special symbolism in these poems that makes the objects talk to the reader, rather than explaining those objects. Sepehri’s poetry is full of humanity and concern for human values. He also achieved a new technique in painting which is called Texture and was unknown for the other painters for a long time. He used to create most of his pieces of art in isolated places like “Ghariyeh Chenar” and desserts of Kashan. His poetry has been translated into many languages including English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Swedish, Arabic, Turkish and Russian. An English translation of his selected poems by Ali Salami was published in 2003.