Breakdown of من به بالا نگاه میکردم که پرتو ماه را دیدم.
من
I
بهbe
to
دیدنdidan
to see / to watch
راrâ
definite direct object marker
Questions & Answers about من به بالا نگاه میکردم که پرتو ماه را دیدم.
Why do we use ke here instead of vaghti (ke) for "when"?
In this structure, ke acts as a narrative interrupter. While vaghti (ke) simply sets the time at the beginning (When I was looking, I saw...), using ke in the middle of the sentence creates a sense of suddenness. It links your background action in the past continuous (negâh mi-kardam) to an unexpected event in the simple past (didam), giving the feeling of "I was looking up, when suddenly I saw..."
Could I just say bâlâ negâh mi-kardam without be?
You generally need be here. bâlâ means "up" or "above," and since looking is an action directed at a specific target or direction, Farsi uses the preposition be (to/towards). You are literally saying "I was looking towards above."
Why does the object marker râ come after mâh if the main thing I saw was the beam (partov)?
The marker râ must follow the entire direct object phrase, not just the head noun. Because "the beam of the moon" (partov-e mâh) acts as a single noun phrase linked by a hidden Ezafe, râ attaches to the very end of that complete block.
How is the past continuous formed in negâh mi-kardam?
It is formed by attaching the continuous prefix mi- to the simple past tense of the compound verb. The simple past is negâh kardam (I looked), so adding makes it (I was looking), which perfectly sets the ongoing background scene.