batch.motif.islamic-koran-rodwell-gutenberg-l8200-l8362
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-rodwell-gutenberg-l8200-l8362
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 8200-8362
start: '8200'
end: '8362'
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 describes a judgment scene in which mouths are sealed and limbs
testify, warns of divine power to blind or transform, states that Muhammad was
not taught poetry but received a clear warning, argues from creation and human
origin to resurrection, and begins Sura XLIII by presenting the Arabic Koran as
a wise archetypal book, recalling rejected prophets, divine creation, rain reviving
dead land, transport by ships and beasts, return to God, and rejecting claims
that God has offspring.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: On the named day, mouths are sealed while hands speak and feet bear witness
to deeds.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The speaker says that, if willed, eyes could be put out and people could be
transformed in place so that they could neither move onward nor return.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The passage says that lengthened days cause a person to stoop through age.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: The passage states that Muhammad was not taught poetry and that the Book is
a warning and a clear Koran.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: Animals are described as created for humans, subjected to them, used for riding,
eating, profitable uses, and beverages.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: Some people are said to have taken other gods beside God, though these gods
have no power to succour them.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:7
text: Man is described as created from moist germs of life and as arguing about
whether rotten bones can be given life.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:8
text: The answer given is that the one who first gave beings existence can give
life to the bones again.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:9
text: Fire is said to be given from the green tree, from which people kindle flame.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:10
text: Divine creation of the heavens and earth is used as a basis for the ability
to create human likenesses.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:11
text: The divine command is described as saying “BE,” after which the thing exists.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: obs:12
text: The opening of Sura XLIII presents the Koran as Arabic, a transcript of an
archetypal Book, lofty and filled with wisdom.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: obs:13
text: The passage states that earlier prophets were mocked and that stronger nations
were destroyed.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: obs:14
text: God is described as making earth a couch, tracing routes, sending rain, reviving
dead land, creating sexual couples, and making ships and beasts for riding.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- id: obs:15
text: Rain reviving dead land is explicitly compared to being brought forth from
the grave.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- id: obs:16
text: Riders are instructed to remember the goodness of their Lord and say that
the subjected mounts were not attainable by themselves.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
- id: obs:17
text: The passage rejects assigning offspring to God and specifically questions
the idea that God adopted daughters while choosing sons for humans.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:17
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: God / the divine speaker
description: The creator, judge, giver of warning, reviver of bones and dead land,
and sovereign over all things.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:8
- ev:10
- ev:11
- ev:14
- ev:15
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Muhammad
description: Named as one not taught poetry; associated with the clear Koran as
warning.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Infidels / transgressing people / man as caviller
description: People warned by the Koran, described as arguing about resurrection,
taking other gods, and assigning offspring to God.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:17
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Hands and feet
description: Body members that speak or bear witness when mouths are sealed.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Other gods beside God
description: Entities taken as helpers, but described as lacking power to succour
their votaries.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Animals, beasts, and ships used for transport
description: Created or made for human use, with animals ridden, eaten, and used
for benefits and beverages; ships and beasts are also means of riding.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:14
- ev:16
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Earlier prophets
description: Prophets sent among people of old and made objects of scorn.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
roles:
- id: role:1
label: divine judge
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The divine speaker seals mouths and receives testimony from hands and feet.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: creator and reviver
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: God is credited with first creation, creation of heavens and earth, and reviving
bones and dead land.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:10
- ev:14
- ev:15
- id: role:3
label: sovereign commander
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The divine command makes things exist by saying “BE,” and sway over all things
is in God’s hand.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: role:4
label: recipient or bearer of warning
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Muhammad is distinguished from a poet, and the Book is called a warning and
clear Koran.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:5
label: disputant or unbelieving audience
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The audience argues about rotten bones, takes other gods, and is warned so
that sentence may be justly given.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: role:6
label: bodily witnesses
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Hands speak and feet bear witness to deeds after mouths are sealed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:7
label: powerless helpers
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The other gods are taken as helpers but have no power to succour.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:8
label: subjected transport and provision
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Animals, beasts, and ships are described as subjected or made for riding
and human benefit.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:14
- ev:16
- id: role:9
label: rejected messengers
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Earlier prophets are said to have been scorned by those to whom they came.
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: sealed mouth
literal_form: mouths sealed on the day of judgment
associated_figures:
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:2
label: testifying limbs
literal_form: hands speaking and feet bearing witness
associated_figures:
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:3
label: rotten bones restored to life
literal_form: bones when rotten, to be given life again
associated_figures:
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: sym:4
label: fire from green tree
literal_form: fire given from the green tree, used to kindle flame
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
- tree
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: sym:5
label: archetypal Book
literal_form: a transcript of the archetypal Book, lofty and filled with wisdom
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: sym:6
label: rain reviving dead land
literal_form: rain sent from heaven in due degree, quickening a dead land
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- ev:15
- id: sym:7
label: ships and riding beasts
literal_form: ships and beasts made for riding, with riders balanced on their backs
associated_figures:
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- ev:16
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Bodily testimony at judgment
summary: A future day is described in which mouths are sealed and bodily members
testify to what people have done.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Threat of disabling transformation
summary: The divine speaker states that blindness or transformation in place could
be imposed, preventing sight, advance, or return.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Warning through the clear Koran
summary: Muhammad is said not to have been taught poetry; the Book is instead a
warning and clear Koran for the living and for just sentence against infidels.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: Created animals and powerless gods
summary: The passage points to animals created and subjected for human riding, food,
and profit, then contrasts this with people taking other gods that cannot help
them.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:5
label: Argument for resurrection
summary: A human disputant questions who can revive rotten bones; the response appeals
to first creation, fire from the green tree, creation of heavens and earth, and
the divine command that brings things into being.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
- ev:10
- ev:11
- id: scene:6
label: Opening of Sura XLIII
summary: The passage presents the Arabic Koran as derived from an archetypal wise
book, recalls mocked prophets and destroyed nations, and describes divine creation,
guidance routes, rain, revival of dead land, sexual couples, ships, beasts, return
to God, and rejection of divine offspring.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
- sym:6
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:13
- ev:14
- ev:15
- ev:16
- ev:17
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Divine judgment with bodily testimony
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: The passage depicts a judgment day where mouths are sealed and hands and
feet testify to deeds, supporting just sentence against unbelievers.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The taxonomy reference is broad; the specific bodily-witness image is
not listed as a separate taxonomy symbol.
- id: motif:2
label: Resurrection from decay and grave
taxonomy_refs:
- resurrection
basis: The passage answers the question of who can give life to rotten bones and
compares rain reviving dead land to being brought forth from the grave.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:15
confidence: high
cautions: The passage argues for resurrection rather than narrating a completed
resurrection event.
- id: motif:3
label: Creation as proof of divine power
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: First creation, creation of heavens and earth, fire from the green tree,
and the command “BE” are invoked to establish divine capacity to create and revive.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- ev:10
- ev:11
confidence: high
cautions: No closer available taxonomy family is supplied beyond related resurrection
and divine judgment categories.
- id: motif:4
label: Rain revives dead land as analogy for resurrection
taxonomy_refs:
- resurrection
basis: Rain from heaven quickens a dead land, and the text explicitly says that
in this way people will be brought forth from the grave.
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- ev:15
confidence: high
cautions: This is an explicit analogy in the passage, not an independent agricultural
myth narrative.
- id: motif:5
label: Revealed wise archetypal book
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The Koran is described as Arabic for understanding and as a transcript of
an archetypal Book that is lofty and filled with wisdom.
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy link to wisdom is general; the passage presents scripture
rather than a wisdom quest narrative.
- id: motif:6
label: Rejected prophets and destroyed former nations
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: Prophets among those of old were scorned, after which stronger nations were
destroyed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage states the pattern briefly without narrating an individual
prophet story.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The translator’s note connects the image of bodily members bearing witness
against a person with Rabbinic passages in Chagiga and Taanith and with Isaiah
43:12.
claim_level: same_motif
target: Rabbinic and biblical motif of bodily or personal witnesses against a person
evidence_refs:
- ev:18
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The comparison is supplied in a translator’s footnote, not developed
in the Koranic verse itself; exact historical relationship is not established
here.
- id: claim:2
claim: The translator’s note says the Arabic form for the word in the fire-from-tree
phrase is Rabbinic Hebrew, supporting a limited linguistic comparison.
claim_level: linguistic_similarity
target: Rabbinic Hebrew form associated with the fire-from-green-tree phrase
evidence_refs:
- ev:19
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The note concerns word form only and does not establish a shared narrative
motif or historical borrowing.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 8200-8202
quote_or_summary: On that day mouths are sealed; hands speak and feet bear witness
to what people have done.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 8204-8209
quote_or_summary: The speaker says eyes could be put out, or people transformed
where they stand so they cannot move onward or return.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: line 8211
quote_or_summary: One whose days are lengthened is caused to stoop through age.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 8213-8218
quote_or_summary: Muhammad was not taught poetry; the Book is a warning and clear
Koran to warn the living and justify sentence against infidels.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 8220-8226
quote_or_summary: Created animals are mastered and subjected for riding, eating,
profitable uses, and beverages.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 8228-8233
quote_or_summary: People have taken other gods for help, but these gods cannot succour
them, though their votaries serve as an army.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 8237-8242
quote_or_summary: Man, created from moist germs of life, becomes a caviller and
asks who will give life to rotten bones.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 8244-8245
quote_or_summary: The answer says the one who gave beings existence at first will
give life to the bones.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: quote
locator: lines 8247-8248
quote_or_summary: "“out of the green tree hath given you fire”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: lines 8250-8252
quote_or_summary: The creator of the heavens and earth is said to be able to create
human likenesses.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:11
type: quote
locator: lines 8254-8257
quote_or_summary: "“BE, and IT IS”; all things are under God’s sway, and people
will be brought back to Him."
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt with summary.
- id: ev:12
type: summary
locator: lines 8311-8317
quote_or_summary: Sura XLIII opens with the luminous Book; the Koran is Arabic for
understanding and a lofty, wise transcript of the archetypal Book.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:13
type: summary
locator: lines 8321-8327
quote_or_summary: Many prophets were sent among those of old, but each was scorned;
stronger nations were destroyed, and their example has gone before.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:14
type: summary
locator: lines 8329-8339
quote_or_summary: The creator of heavens and earth made earth a couch, traced routes,
sent rain, created sexual couples, and made ships and beasts for riding.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:15
type: summary
locator: lines 8335-8336
quote_or_summary: Rain quickens dead land; the passage says people shall similarly
be brought forth from the grave.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:16
type: summary
locator: lines 8341-8346
quote_or_summary: Riders are to sit balanced on mounts, remember the Lord’s goodness,
and say these were subjected by God, not attained by themselves.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:17
type: summary
locator: lines 8348-8354
quote_or_summary: The passage says humans return to the Lord and rejects assigning
God servants as offspring, daughters, or sons.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:18
type: note
locator: footnote 14 within lines 8260-8295
quote_or_summary: Translator’s note compares the bodily-witness verse with Chagiga
16, Taanith 11, Isaiah 43:12, and another Koran passage.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized note.
- id: ev:19
type: note
locator: footnote 18 within lines 8260-8295
quote_or_summary: Translator’s note says the form of the Arabic word in the fire-from-tree
phrase is Rabbinic Hebrew.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized note.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: Extraction uses only the supplied passage and translator notes. Comparison
claims are limited to explicit footnote material and do not assert historical
dependence.
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: |-
The supplied locator label appears inconsistent with the actual passage content, which contains Qur'anic text and notes rather than the prefatory material named in the label.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-rodwell-gutenberg__l8200-l8362
passage_sha256=9ab76cc0f60109a8fae563ce754c5a6e955b299eae4755f363a007c748de639f