batch.motif.buddhist-jataka-tales-babbitt-gutenberg-l402-l493
---
record_id: batch.motif.buddhist-jataka-tales-babbitt-gutenberg-l402-l493
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/jataka-tales-babbitt.md
passage_locator:
label: PART I / PART II / HOW THE TURTLE SAVED HIS OWN LIFE / THE MERCHANT OF SERI;
lines 402-493
start: '402'
end: '493'
translation: Jataka tales
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Two merchants selling brass and tinware enter a town. A poor old woman
and her granddaughter own an old bowl without knowing it is gold. A greedy merchant
discovers its value but falsely says it is worthless and leaves, hoping to obtain
it for nothing. A second merchant recognizes the bowl as gold and honestly gives
all his money and wares for it, keeping only enough pennies to cross the river.
The greedy merchant returns too late, realizes he has lost the bowl, and fails
to stop the boat carrying the other merchant away.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Two merchants of brass and tinware travel together and divide town streets
between them for selling and trading.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The second merchant is described as greedy and as trying to get as much as
possible while giving as little as possible.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: A poor old woman and her granddaughter possess a bowl that the grandmother
does not know is gold.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The greedy merchant scratches the bowl with a needle, discovers it is gold,
and says it is not worth even a halfpenny.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: The greedy merchant throws the bowl on the ground and leaves.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: The other merchant recognizes the bowl as gold and says all he has is not
worth as much as the bowl.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: The other merchant gives the woman all his money and wares, retaining only
eight pennies, and takes the bowl.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: The merchant uses the eight pennies to pay a boatman to take him across the
river.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:9
text: The greedy merchant returns for the bowl, learns it has been sold, becomes
angry, and says he has lost a small fortune.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:10
text: The greedy merchant calls for the boatman to stop, but the man in the boat
tells the boatman not to stop.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:11
text: The merchant in the boat reaches the city on the other side of the river and
lives well for a time on the money from the bowl.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: greedy merchant
description: A merchant selling brass and tinware, explicitly described as greedy
and attempting to acquire the golden bowl for nothing.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:6
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: other merchant
description: A second merchant selling brass and tinware who recognizes the bowl
as gold and gives his money and wares for it.
role_refs:
- role:2
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: old woman / grandmother
description: A poor old woman who owns the bowl with her granddaughter and offers
it in trade.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: granddaughter / little girl
description: The old woman’s granddaughter, who asks her grandmother to trade the
old bowl for something she wants.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: boatman
description: The person paid eight pennies to take the other merchant across the
river.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: deceptive appraiser
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He tests the bowl, discovers it is gold, and falsely declares it nearly worthless.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:2
label: honest appraiser and purchaser
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: He identifies the bowl as gold and states that his possessions are not equal
to its value before giving what he has.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: role:3
label: poor owners of valuable object
assigned_to:
- fig:3
- fig:4
basis: They are poor and possess the old bowl without recognizing its gold value.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: successful buyer
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: He obtains the golden bowl, crosses the river, and later lives on the money
it brings.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: role:5
label: failed opportunist
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He returns after trying to devalue the bowl and discovers another merchant
has acquired it.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:6
label: ferryman
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: He takes the merchant across the river after receiving eight pennies.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: golden bowl
literal_form: An old bowl that is actually made of gold, kept among pots and pans
and not often used.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: sym:2
label: needle test
literal_form: The greedy merchant scratches the bowl with a needle to identify its
material.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:3
label: river crossing
literal_form: A river crossed by boat after the exchange for the bowl.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: sym:4
label: eight pennies
literal_form: The amount retained by the honest merchant and paid to the boatman.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Merchants enter and divide the town
summary: Two brass and tinware merchants travel together, divide the streets, and
sell or trade with townspeople.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Poor household and hidden golden bowl
summary: A poor old woman and her granddaughter have an old bowl left from earlier
wealth, unaware that it is gold.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Greedy merchant devalues the bowl
summary: The greedy merchant tests the bowl, discovers it is gold, calls it nearly
worthless, throws it down, and leaves.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Honest merchant pays for the bowl
summary: The other merchant recognizes the bowl as gold, refuses to treat it as
worthless, and gives his money and goods for it.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: scene:5
label: River escape and failed pursuit
summary: The buyer pays the boatman to cross the river. The greedy merchant returns,
learns the bowl is gone, and fails to stop the boat.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Honest exchange for a hidden treasure
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: A valuable golden bowl is unknowingly offered in trade; the honest merchant
recognizes its value and gives all his money and wares rather than exploiting
the owners’ ignorance.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The available taxonomy label is broad; the passage presents an ethical
commercial exchange rather than an explicitly sacred ritual exchange.
- id: motif:2
label: Greed defeated by its own deceit
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The greedy merchant lies about the bowl’s value to obtain it cheaply, but
his delay allows an honest merchant to acquire it, leaving him angry over a lost
fortune.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The motif is inferred from the narrative sequence and moral contrast;
the passage itself does not state a formal moral.
- id: motif:3
label: Valuable object unrecognized by its owners
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The old woman keeps the bowl as an ordinary household object and does not
know it is gold until the merchants assess it.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: No supplied taxonomy reference directly matches this object-recognition
pattern.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 402-415
quote_or_summary: Two brass and tinware merchants travel together; one is described
as greedy. In town, they divide streets and sell or trade their wares.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 416-423
quote_or_summary: A poor old woman and her granddaughter live in a house. Their
family once had wealth, and they retain an old bowl that the grandmother does
not know is gold.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 424-440
quote_or_summary: The greedy merchant is shown the bowl, scratches it with a needle,
discovers it is gold, says it is worth not even a halfpenny, throws it down, and
leaves.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 441-462
quote_or_summary: The other merchant is called to the house, takes the bowl, recognizes
it as gold, and says that all he has is not worth as much as the bowl.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 463-471
quote_or_summary: The honest merchant gives the woman all his money and wares, asks
only to keep eight pennies, pays those pennies to the boatman, and crosses the
river.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 472-487
quote_or_summary: The greedy merchant returns asking for the bowl, learns another
merchant paid a great price for it, becomes angry over losing a small fortune,
and calls for the boatman to stop.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 488-493
quote_or_summary: The man in the boat tells the boatman not to stop; he reaches
the city across the river and lives well for a time on the money brought by the
bowl.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal extraction is straightforward. Motif labels are cautious because
the supplied taxonomy has only broad categories and the passage gives no explicit
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 the supplied passage and metadata; comparison_claims left empty because the passage itself does not support a specific cross-textual comparison.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:buddhist-jataka-tales-babbitt-gutenberg__l402-l493
passage_sha256=f359f0bca462eb6a49857382553ffdcfeb4505dc795246ab3c55872409909ef3