[3] In 1942 he graduated from Özel Pangaltı Ermeni Lisesi, the local Mechitarist Armenian lyceum.

[4][5] Due to the fear that his family wouldn't appreciate the fact that he wanted to be a poet, he changed his pen name to "Zahrad".

[3] Levon Ananyan, the president of the Writers Union of Armenia, characterized Zahrad as "the huge oak tree of diasporan poetry, whose literary heritage had a deep and stable influence upon modern poetry of not only the diaspora, but also Armenia.

"[6][7] Writer and journalist Rober Haddeciyan is quoted as saying, "all the roads taken by our poems don't lead to Rome, but to Zahrad".

[8] President of Armenia Robert Kocharian has awarded Zahrad with the Movses Khorenatsi medal for his contribution to Armenian literature and culture.