The White Caress of the Clou

 

(A poetic recreation of Arsalan Mohammadi’s poem “نوازش سپید ابر”)

So rare, this clarity—

that even the gaze of the spring

dissolves

in the sorrow of your eyes,

to let a fevered stream

overflow

and wander softly

between the green cheeks of leaves.

The birth of the first raindrop

was hidden

in the secret silence of your eyes—

a silent descent

that shattered

the awe of the still pond,

and freely—

upon earth,

upon leaf,

and stone—

it rained alike.

The quiet dignity of soil,

humble and serene,

keeps the grain and seed

through winter’s hush,

until,

in the blessed step of spring,

a thousand robes of color

rise to greet the day.

A shining whisper of sunlight

after the white caress of the cloud—

your gaze,

the needed light,

for the boundless spring to wash

the captive body of the earth;

and from the moist breath

of rain’s renewal,

a trembling desire,

in the waking green of leaves,

is born again.

— Arsalan

Wiesbaden, October 22, 2025

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💠 Notes on Poetic Recreation

• “The White Caress of the Cloud” preserves the tenderness of نوازش سپید ابر while adding the nuance of “caress,” conveying softness, purity, and intimacy.

• The line “So rare, this clarity” mirrors “زلالی کمیابی” — a direct emotional and conceptual bridge to the Persian version.

• Imagery such as “fevered stream,” “green cheeks of leaves,” and “shining whisper of sunlight” retain the sensory delicacy of the original while remaining fluid in English rhythm.

• Each stanza flows naturally into the next, echoing the organic motion of water and breath in the Persian text.

• The ending line “is born again” evokes both renewal and eternity, completing the philosophical arc of the poem.