batch.motif.persian-sadi-gulistan-ross-gutenberg-l3386-l3397
---
record_id: batch.motif.persian-sadi-gulistan-ross-gutenberg-l3386-l3397
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
passage_locator:
label: CHAPTER IV / CHAPTER V / XVIII. / CHAPTER VI; lines 3386-3397
start: '3386'
end: '3397'
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 rich miser's son is gravely ill. Friends advise him to read the Koran
or offer an animal sacrifice so God may restore the son to health. The miser chooses
recitation because the Koran is nearby and his herds are distant. A holy man criticizes
him for preferring easy speech to costly charity.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A rich miser has a son who is grievously sick.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The miser's friends and well-wishers advise either reading the Koran throughout
or offering an animal sacrifice for the son's recovery.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The advised purpose of the recitation or sacrifice is that the Most High God
may restore the son to health.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:4
text: After reflection, the miser chooses reading the Koran because it is ready
at hand and his herds are at a distance.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: A good and holy man hears the miser's answer and criticizes his choice.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: The holy man says Koran recitation passes easily over the tongue, while money
must be wrung from the miser's soul.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: The holy man contrasts readiness for prayer with reluctance in charity.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:8
text: The holy man says the miser will hesitate over giving a dinar but will recite
the first chapter of the Koran a hundred times.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: rich miser
description: A wealthy but miserly father whose son is gravely ill.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: sick son
description: The grievously sick son of the rich miser.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: well-wishers and friends
description: People who advise the miser to undertake religious recitation or animal
sacrifice for the son's recovery.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Most High God
description: The divine figure named as able to restore the son to health.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: good and holy man
description: A hearer of the miser's reply who gives a moral criticism of the miser's
preference.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
roles:
- id: role:1
label: miserly father
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He is called a rich miser and has a sick son.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: chooser of low-cost piety
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He chooses Koran recitation because it is nearby while the herds required
for sacrifice are distant.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: sick child
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: He is described as the miser's son and as grievously sick.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:4
label: advisers
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: They tell the miser what religious actions would be proper for the son's
recovery.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:5
label: healer invoked
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The proposed recitation or sacrifice is intended so that God may restore
the son to health.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:6
label: moral critic
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: He criticizes the miser for easy prayer without accompanying charity.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: Koran recitation
literal_form: Reading the Koran throughout; reciting the Al-hamdi or first chapter.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: sym:2
label: animal sacrifice
literal_form: An animal to be offered in sacrifice from the miser's herds.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:3
label: dinar
literal_form: A dinar given in charity.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:4
label: hand of charity
literal_form: The holy man's image of charity accompanying bowed prayer.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Miser chooses recitation over sacrifice
summary: When advised to seek his son's healing through Koran recitation or animal
sacrifice, the miser chooses recitation because it is easier and less costly;
a holy man exposes the motive as miserliness and contrasts verbal piety with charitable
giving.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Costly sacrifice avoided by verbal piety
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The friends propose animal sacrifice for healing, but the miser chooses Koran
recitation because it is immediately available and does not require parting with
his herds.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
confidence: high
cautions: The passage concerns a proposed sacrifice; no sacrifice is actually performed.
- id: motif:2
label: Wisdom critique of hollow piety without charity
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The holy man interprets the miser's religious choice as ease of recitation
rather than genuine generosity, contrasting bowed prayer with the absent hand
of charity.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: This is an ethical-wisdom reading grounded in the holy man's explicit
critique.
- id: motif:3
label: Religious act sought for healing a sick child
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: The advisers propose Koran recitation or animal sacrifice so that God may
restore the miser's son to health.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage presents the recommendation but does not narrate whether healing
occurs or whether a reciprocal exchange is accepted.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 3386-3390
quote_or_summary: A rich miser's son is grievously sick; friends advise him to read
the Koran throughout or offer an animal sacrifice so that the Most High God may
restore him to health.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; short summary used.
- id: ev:2
type: quote
locator: lines 3390-3392
quote_or_summary: '"It is better to read the Koran, which is ready at hand; and
my herds are at a distance."'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; short quotation used.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 3392-3396
quote_or_summary: A good and holy man says the miser chooses reading because recitation
is easy, while money must be wrung from him; he wishes the hand of charity could
accompany the bowed head in prayer.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; short summary used.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 3396-3397
quote_or_summary: The holy man says the miser hesitates to bestow a dinar but would
recite the first chapter of the Koran a hundred times.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/persian/project-gutenberg/gulistan-sadi-ross.md
rights_note: Public domain source text; short summary used.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: high
notes: The narrative details and explicit moral critique are clear. Motif tagging
is limited to available taxonomy references; no comparison claims were made because
the passage itself does not provide comparative framing.
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. No external taxonomy IDs or cross-text comparisons added.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:persian-sadi-gulistan-ross-gutenberg__l3386-l3397
passage_sha256=f1ce701d55e605ca0960a4479ae6b99c8e9e48cb4423c2607739b44292fa2683