batch.motif.islamic-koran-rodwell-gutenberg-l19896-l20006
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-rodwell-gutenberg-l19896-l20006
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
passage_locator:
label: PUBLIC SERVICES, / AND EMINENT LITERARY ATTAINMENTS, / THE TRANSLATOR. /
PREFACE; lines 19896-20006
start: '19896'
end: '20006'
translation: The Koran (Al-Qur'an)
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: The passage gives instructions on almsgiving, usury, debt contracts, witnesses,
pledges, divine reckoning, belief in God and messengers, and a closing prayer
for forgiveness, mercy, protection, and victory.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Guidance is described as God's affair rather than Muhammad's, and alms are
said to benefit the givers and be known by God.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Some poor persons are described as constrained by fighting for God's cause,
unable to travel for wealth, and recognizable by modesty and lack of importunate
begging.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Those who give alms by night and day, privately and publicly, are promised
reward with their Lord and freedom from fear and grief.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: Those who practice usury are described as rising at resurrection like one
touched by Satan; usury is forbidden while selling is allowed.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: Those who return to usury after warning are assigned to the fire, where they
remain forever.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: Believers are commanded to abandon remaining usury; if they do not, they are
told to expect war from God and his apostle, while repentance preserves only the
principal.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:7
text: A debtor in difficulty is to be granted delay, and remission of the debt as
alms is described as better.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:8
text: A day is described when souls return to God, are rewarded according to desert,
and receive no injustice.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:9
text: Debt payable at a fixed date is to be written down by a notary; the debtor
dictates, witnesses are summoned, and the amount and date are recorded to avoid
doubt.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:10
text: On a journey without a notary, pledges may be taken; a trusted person is commanded
to restore the trust and evidence is not to be refused.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:11
text: Everything in the heavens and earth is said to belong to God, who will reckon
with people for what they reveal or conceal.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:12
text: The apostle and the faithful are described as believing in God, angels, books,
and apostles, and saying that they have heard and obeyed.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: obs:13
text: God is said not to burden any soul beyond its power; the passage ends with
a prayer for pardon, forgiveness, pity, protection, and victory.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: God
description: Divine agent who guides, knows almsgiving, forbids usury, reckons with
souls, forgives or punishes, and is addressed in prayer.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- ev:7
- ev:10
- ev:12
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Muhammad
description: Addressed directly in the statement that guidance is not his affair.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: The poor constrained for God's cause
description: Poor persons unable to seek wealth abroad, recognized by modesty and
by not begging importunately.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Those who give alms
description: People who give good things or substance in alms, privately and publicly,
by night and day.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Those who practice usury
description: People who swallow down usury, equate selling with usury, and may return
to it after warning.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Satan
description: Being whose touch is used in the comparison for how usurers arise at
resurrection.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Believers
description: People addressed with commands to fear God, abandon usury, write debts,
and observe right conduct.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:8
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Debtor
description: The person who owes a debt and is to dictate the debt record, or receive
delay if in difficulty.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:8
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Notary or writer
description: Person instructed to record debt faithfully and not refuse to write.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Witnesses
description: Persons summoned to witness debts or sales and commanded not to refuse.
role_refs:
- role:12
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: The apostle
description: Believes in what has been sent down from his Lord and is paired with
God in the warning against continued usury.
role_refs:
- role:13
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:11
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: The faithful
description: Believers who affirm God, angels, books, and apostles and say they
hear and obey.
role_refs:
- role:9
- role:14
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
roles:
- id: role:1
label: divine guide
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: God is said to guide whom he pleases.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: divine judge and reckoner
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: God reckons hidden and revealed things, forgives or punishes, and rewards
souls according to desert.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:10
- id: role:3
label: divine recipient of prayer
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The closing prayer asks the Lord for pardon, forgiveness, pity, protection,
and victory.
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: role:4
label: addressed prophet
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Muhammad is directly addressed in the statement about guidance.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:5
label: proper recipients of alms
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The passage identifies needy persons by their constrained condition and modesty
before discussing alms to them.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:6
label: almsgivers
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: They give goods or substance in alms and are promised repayment and reward.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: role:7
label: usury-takers
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: They swallow down usury and may return to it after warning.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: role:8
label: demonic toucher in simile
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The resurrection state of usury-takers is compared to one whom Satan has
infected by touch.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:9
label: commanded community
assigned_to:
- fig:7
- fig:12
basis: Believers are directly addressed with commands concerning usury, debt, and
obedience.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:8
- ev:11
- id: role:10
label: obligated debtor
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The debtor dictates the record and is protected by delay when payment is
difficult.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:8
- id: role:11
label: legal recorder
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: The notary is instructed to note the debt faithfully.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: role:12
label: legal witnesses
assigned_to:
- fig:10
basis: Witnesses are called, are not to refuse summons, and support debt and sale
transactions.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: role:13
label: apostolic believer and warner
assigned_to:
- fig:11
basis: The apostle believes in revelation and is named in the warning of war against
those who continue usury.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:11
- id: role:14
label: confessing faithful
assigned_to:
- fig:12
basis: The faithful confess belief and obedience.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: fire of punishment
literal_form: fire
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:2
label: day of return to God
literal_form: day wherein souls return to God
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: sym:3
label: written debt record
literal_form: written record of a debt with fixed date
associated_figures:
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: sym:4
label: pledge on a journey
literal_form: pledges taken when no notary is found on a journey
associated_figures:
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: sym:5
label: Satanic touch
literal_form: touch by Satan used in a resurrection comparison
associated_figures:
- fig:5
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Almsgiving and recognition of the modest poor
summary: The passage distinguishes God's guidance from Muhammad's responsibility,
urges alms for God's face, describes modest poor persons, and promises reward
to those who give.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:2
label: Warning against usury
summary: Usurers are compared at resurrection to one touched by Satan, are warned
that usury is forbidden, and are threatened with fire if they return to it.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:11
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: scene:3
label: Debt relief and final return
summary: A debtor in difficulty is to receive delay or remission, and the community
is told to fear the day of return to God when every soul is rewarded justly.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: scene:4
label: Written contracts, witnesses, and pledges
summary: Believers are instructed to write fixed-date debts, use a notary and witnesses,
avoid harming writer or witness, and take pledges when traveling without a notary.
figure_refs:
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: scene:5
label: Confession of belief and prayer for mercy
summary: God's ownership and reckoning are affirmed; the apostle and faithful confess
belief and obedience; the passage closes with prayer for forgiveness, relief from
unbearable burdens, protection, and victory.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:11
- fig:12
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- ev:12
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Divine judgment and recompense
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: The passage repeatedly states that God will repay alms, punish or forgive,
reckon hidden and revealed thoughts, and reward each soul according to desert
without injustice.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:7
- ev:10
confidence: high
cautions: The passage is legal and devotional rather than a narrative judgment scene.
- id: motif:2
label: Resurrection with punitive transformation or condition
taxonomy_refs:
- resurrection
basis: Usury-takers are described as rising at resurrection in a condition compared
to one touched by Satan.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The passage gives a simile for resurrection condition but does not narrate
an extended afterlife journey.
- id: motif:3
label: Fire as enduring punishment
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
- fire
basis: Those who return to usury after warning are assigned to the fire and are
said to abide there forever.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The taxonomy reference 'fire' is a symbol reference, while the motif context
is divine judgment.
- id: motif:4
label: Sacred exchange through alms and repayment
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: Almsgiving is framed as seeking God's face and is promised repayment and
reward with God.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage presents ethical-religious recompense rather than a reciprocal
exchange between mythic characters.
- id: motif:5
label: Covenantal obedience and mercy prayer
taxonomy_refs:
- covenant
basis: The faithful declare that they have heard and obeyed, and they petition the
Lord for mercy, forgiveness, and protection.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- ev:12
confidence: medium
cautions: No formal covenant-making ritual is narrated in this passage.
- id: motif:6
label: Divinely taught knowledge and legal order
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The notary writes as God has taught him, and the passage says God will give
knowledge and knows all things.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The focus is practical legal instruction, not a wisdom tale.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 19896-19903
quote_or_summary: Guidance belongs to God rather than Muhammad; alms given seeking
God's face will be repaid and known by God.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 19900-19906
quote_or_summary: The poor who are constrained for God's cause cannot seek wealth
in the earth; they appear rich from modesty and do not beg importunately.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 19908-19910
quote_or_summary: Those who give substance in alms by night and day, privately and
publicly, have reward with their Lord and no fear or grief.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 19912-19920
quote_or_summary: Usury-takers rise at resurrection like one touched by Satan; selling
is allowed and usury forbidden; returning to usury after warning leads to the
fire forever.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 19926-19932
quote_or_summary: Believers are told to fear God and abandon remaining usury; refusal
brings war from God and his apostle, while repentance leaves only the principal.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 19934-19936
quote_or_summary: A debtor in difficulty should receive delay until payment is easy;
remitting the debt as alms is better.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 19938-19939
quote_or_summary: People are told to fear the day when they return to God and every
soul is rewarded according to desert without injustice.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 19941-19959
quote_or_summary: Fixed-date debts should be written by a faithful notary, dictated
by the debtor or a representative, witnessed, and recorded in amount and date;
witnesses and writers must not be harmed.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 19961-19965
quote_or_summary: On a journey without a notary, pledges may be taken; the trusted
person must restore the trust, and evidence must not be refused.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: lines 19967-19970
quote_or_summary: Everything in the heavens and earth is God's; God will reckon
with what people reveal or conceal and will forgive or punish whom he pleases.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:11
type: summary
locator: lines 19972-19976
quote_or_summary: The apostle and the faithful believe in what was sent down, in
God, angels, books, and apostles; they say they have heard and obeyed and must
return to the Lord.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
- id: ev:12
type: summary
locator: lines 19978-19984
quote_or_summary: God does not burden a soul beyond its power; a prayer asks the
Lord not to punish forgetfulness or sin, not to impose unbearable burdens, and
to forgive, pity, protect, and grant victory.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary used.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: The passage is primarily legal, ethical, and devotional instruction. Motif
candidates are limited to explicit religious themes in the passage; no external
comparison claims were made.
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: '2026-04-29'
notes: |-
Footnotes in the supplied passage were not treated as part of the extracted passage content except as source context; no comparison claims were added.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-rodwell-gutenberg__l19896-l20006
passage_sha256=f1e77f36d68ecf122c91251d03eaefe9e0665713b9096eb4d97d3cc85a9e79c5