batch.motif.persian-sadi-gulistan-ross-gutenberg-l1885-l1962
---
record_id: batch.motif.persian-sadi-gulistan-ross-gutenberg-l1885-l1962
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
passage_locator:
label: XXIII / XXVII / XXVIII / XXXIII; lines 1885-1962
start: '1885'
end: '1962'
translation: The Persian Literature, Volume 2, The Gulistan
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: A Syrian holy man living austerely in the wilderness is persuaded by a
king and minister to move near the royal residence. In a paradise-like garden,
the king supplies him with luxury, a beautiful damsel, and a beautiful youth.
The hermit abandons austerity, enjoys rich food, clothing, perfumes, and sensual
company, and is later found altered and comfortable. A vizir advises the king
that money should be given to learned men so they may teach, but nothing should
be given to hermits if they are to remain anchorites.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A holy man of Syria had spent many years in devotion in the wilderness and
fed on leaves of trees.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The king visited the holy man while on pilgrimage and invited him to move
to the capital, promising an abode for easier devotion and public edification.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The hermit initially rejected the king's advice and turned away his face.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: A minister urged the hermit to try the city for a few days and return if contact
with the wicked tarnished his purity.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: The hermit was brought into the city and housed in a garden near the king's
sacred residence.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: The garden is described with roses, spikenard, leafy boughs, and crimson flowers
gleaming like flame.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: The king sent the hermit a beautiful damsel and later a beautiful youth.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: The hermit began to enjoy dainty food, sumptuous clothing, fruits, perfumes,
sweetmeats, and the charms of the handmaid and bondsman.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:9
text: The passage says the hermit's accumulated sanctity ran to waste after he mixed
with the world.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:10
text: On a later visit, the king found the hermit fair, ruddy, plump, and reclining
on brocade cushions with the damsel beside him and the youth attending him with
a peacock-feather fly-flap.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:11
text: The king stated affection for learned people and recluses.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:12
text: The vizir advised giving money to learned men so they may teach others, and
giving nothing to hermits so they may remain anchorites.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: holy man / hermit of Syria
description: A Syrian holy man devoted for many years in the wilderness, later moved
to the city and altered by comfort and luxury.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:6
- ev:8
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: king of that country
description: A king who visits the hermit during pilgrimage, invites him to the
capital, provides a dwelling and attendants, and later revisits him.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: king's minister
description: A minister who persuades the hermit to try living in the city for a
few days.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: moon-faced damsel / handmaid
description: A beautiful damsel sent by the king, later seen lolling beside the
hermit.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:8
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: beautiful youth / bondsman
description: A youth of rare beauty sent after the damsel, later standing in attendance
with a peacock-feather fly-flap.
role_refs:
- role:5
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:8
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: philosophic vizir
description: A worldly-wise vizir present during the king's later visit who gives
advice about benefiting learned men and hermits differently.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
roles:
- id: role:1
label: wilderness ascetic
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The holy man had spent many years in wilderness devotion and lived on leaves.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: recluse altered by luxury
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: After entering the city, he enjoyed rich food, apparel, perfumes, and attendants
and was later found plump and at ease.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:8
- id: role:3
label: royal patron
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The king offers the hermit an abode, has one prepared, sends attendants,
and later visits him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:8
- id: role:4
label: persuasive court adviser
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The minister urges the hermit to test the city and return if necessary.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:5
label: beautiful royal gift
assigned_to:
- fig:4
- fig:5
basis: The king sends the damsel and the youth to the hermit, and the hermit later
delights in them.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:6
label: attendant
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The youth stands beside the hermit holding a peacock-feather fly-flap.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: role:7
label: moral commentator
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The vizir states the lesson that learned men may receive money, but hermits
should receive nothing if they are to remain anchorites.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: wilderness austerity
literal_form: wilderness and leaves of trees used as food
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- tree
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:2
label: paradise-like garden
literal_form: garden near the king's sacred residence with roses, spikenard, boughs,
and flowers
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs:
- tree
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:3
label: flame-like flowers
literal_form: crimson flowers gleaming like a flame among dusky foliage
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
- tree
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:4
label: sensual snare of beauty
literal_form: ringlets described as a chain on reason and a snare for the bird of
wisdom
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:5
label: honey entanglement
literal_form: a fly's feet entangled in honey as an image for mixing with the world
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: sym:6
label: peacock-feather fly-flap
literal_form: fly-flap of peacock's feathers held by the youth in attendance
associated_figures:
- fig:5
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: sym:7
label: money for the learned, no money for the hermit
literal_form: diram and dinar contrasted with anchoritic needlessness
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Ascetic life in the wilderness
summary: The Syrian holy man lives for years in wilderness devotion and eats leaves.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Royal invitation and persuasion
summary: The king invites the hermit to the capital; after refusal, a minister persuades
him to test the city temporarily.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Garden dwelling near the royal residence
summary: The hermit is housed in a luxuriant garden described with paradise-like
imagery, roses, boughs, and flame-like flowers.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: Arrival of beautiful attendants
summary: The king sends a beautiful damsel and then a beautiful youth, both described
as overpowering to chastity and piety.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:5
label: Loss of austerity
summary: The hermit enjoys fine food, clothing, perfumes, sweetmeats, and sensual
company; the passage summarizes this as the wasting of his sanctity.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: scene:6
label: King's later visit and vizir's advice
summary: The king finds the hermit comfortable and altered; the vizir advises that
learned men should receive money to teach, but hermits should receive nothing
if they are to remain recluses.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:6
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: ascetic corrupted by luxury and sensual company
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The hermit moves from wilderness austerity to a royal garden, accepts comforts
and attractive attendants, and loses the fruit of many years of sanctity.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: high
cautions: The passage presents this as moral instruction, but it does not name a
formal motif type.
- id: motif:2
label: courtly patronage endangers spiritual withdrawal
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
- sacred_exchange
basis: The king's gifts and support make the hermit comfortable; the vizir concludes
that a hermit should receive nothing if he is to remain an anchorite.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:8
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: The exchange is ethical and social rather than explicitly ritual; the
sacred_exchange taxonomy is only partially applicable.
- id: motif:3
label: beauty as chain and snare for reason
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The passage explicitly describes the ringlets of the lovely as a chain on
reason and a snare for the bird of wisdom, in the context of the hermit's decline.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: This is a metaphor within the passage rather than a standalone narrative
episode.
- id: motif:4
label: departure from solitude to the city followed by spiritual decline
taxonomy_refs:
- departure
- wisdom
basis: The hermit departs his wilderness setting for the city and is transformed
from austerity to comfort and indulgence.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The departure is not framed as a heroic journey; it functions as a moral
exemplum.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 1885-1888
quote_or_summary: A Syrian holy man had spent many years in devotion in the wilderness
and fed on leaves of trees.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 1888-1896
quote_or_summary: The king, visiting on pilgrimage, asks the holy man to move to
the capital where an abode will be prepared for easier devotion and public benefit;
the hermit refuses and turns away.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 1896-1903
quote_or_summary: A minister advises the hermit to try the city for a few days and
return if his purity is endangered by contact with the wicked.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 1904-1916
quote_or_summary: The hermit is persuaded into the city and given a garden dwelling
near the king's sacred residence, described as paradise-like with roses, spikenard,
boughs, and flame-like crimson flowers.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 1917-1930
quote_or_summary: The king sends a moon-faced damsel, then a youth of rare beauty,
both described as overpowering to chastity and piety.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 1931-1939
quote_or_summary: The hermit begins enjoying fine food, rich clothing, fruits, perfumes,
sweetmeats, and the charms of the handmaid and bondsman; the wise compare lovely
ringlets to a chain on reason and a snare for wisdom.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 1940-1947
quote_or_summary: The passage says the merit of the hermit's years of sanctity ran
to waste, comparing him after mixing with the world to a fly entangled in honey.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 1948-1957
quote_or_summary: On another visit, the king finds the hermit ruddy, plump, reclining
on brocade cushions, with the damsel by his side and the youth attending with
a peacock-feather fly-flap.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 1957-1962
quote_or_summary: After the king praises learned men and recluses, a philosophic
vizir advises giving money to learned men so they can teach, but giving nothing
to hermits so they remain anchorites.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Narrative sequence and figures are explicit. Motif labels are cautious and
based on the passage's moral framing. No external comparison claims were made
because the passage itself does not establish cross-textual relationship.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
Used only supplied passage text and metadata; available taxonomy refs applied only where directly supported.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:persian-sadi-gulistan-ross-gutenberg__l1885-l1962
passage_sha256=08d19e8403eb5cb157bc62a448cb097b03c52fd6d8ccbfa53f5386b591fa3ed6