batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l23710-l23808
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l23710-l23808
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
passage_locator:
label: CHAPTER XVII. / IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD. / CHAPTER XVIII. /
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.; lines 23710-23808
start: '23710'
end: '23808'
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 presents Dhu'lkarnein traveling to the places of the sun's
setting and rising, judging peoples according to belief and injustice, then reaching
two mountains where a people ask him to build a barrier against Gog and Magog.
He refuses tribute, requests strenuous assistance, and constructs a wall with
iron heated by bellows and molten brass. Translator notes identify debated traditions
about Dhu'lkarnein, including Alexander, and give ethnographic and geographic
explanations for the peoples and mountains.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Commentary identifies Dhu'lkarnein as 'the two-horned' and reports disagreement
over whether he is Alexander the Great or another ancient conqueror or king.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Dhu'lkarnein reaches the place where the sun sets and finds it setting in
a spring of black mud near a people.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Dhu'lkarnein is addressed with a choice either to punish the people or use
gentleness toward them.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: Dhu'lkarnein says unjust persons will be punished and then returned to the
Lord for severe punishment, while believers who do right will receive an excellent
reward and an easy command.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: Dhu'lkarnein continues to the place where the sun rises and finds a people
without shelter from it.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: Dhu'lkarnein journeys from south to north until he reaches between two mountains
and finds a people who scarcely understand speech.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:7
text: The people between the mountains say that Gog and Magog waste the land and
ask whether they may pay tribute for Dhu'lkarnein to build a rampart between them
and Gog and Magog.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:8
text: Dhu'lkarnein refuses reliance on tribute, says his Lord's strengthening is
better, asks for strenuous assistance, and promises a strong wall between the
people and Gog and Magog.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:9
text: Dhu'lkarnein requests large pieces of iron, has the space between the mountain
sides filled, orders bellows blown until the iron is red hot as fire, and orders
molten brass to be poured on it.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:10
text: Commentary describes Gog and Magog as two nations or tribes that make destructive
incursions into neighboring countries.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Dhu'lkarnein
description: A ruler or conqueror called 'the two-horned,' described in commentary
as a true believer; in the passage he travels widely, judges peoples, and builds
a barrier.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: People near the place where the sun sets
description: A people found near the spring of black mud at the place where the
sun sets; commentary calls them an unbelieving nation living on what the sea cast
ashore.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:11
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: People at the place where the sun rises
description: A people on whom the sun rises and who have no shelter from it; commentary
says they had neither clothes nor houses and retreated into holes underground
from the heat.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:12
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: People between the two mountains
description: A people beneath the two mountains who scarcely understand speech and
ask Dhu'lkarnein for a rampart against Gog and Magog.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Gog and Magog
description: Named as peoples who waste the land; commentary describes them as destructive
tribes or nations.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:10
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Lord
description: The divine source to whom wrongdoers return for punishment and whose
strengthening Dhu'lkarnein says is better than tribute.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:8
roles:
- id: role:1
label: journeying ruler
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He travels to the sun's setting, the sun's rising, and the region between
two mountains.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:2
label: judge of peoples
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He is given a choice to punish or be gentle and states different outcomes
for unjust people and righteous believers.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:3
label: builder of protective wall
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He promises and constructs a strong wall with iron and molten brass between
the mountain sides.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: role:4
label: people subject to judgment
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: They are the people about whom Dhu'lkarnein is told either to punish or treat
gently.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: role:5
label: unsheltered people
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: They are described as having nothing to shelter themselves from the sun.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:6
label: petitioning people
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: They ask Dhu'lkarnein to build a rampart and offer tribute.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: role:7
label: land-wasting adversaries
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The petitioning people say Gog and Magog waste the land; commentary describes
their destructive incursions.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:10
- id: role:8
label: divine authority
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The Lord is invoked as punisher of wrongdoers and source of Dhu'lkarnein's
strength.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:8
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: spring of black mud
literal_form: spring of black mud at the place where the sun sets
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: two mountains
literal_form: two mountains with a space between their sides
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- mountain
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:9
- id: sym:3
label: protective rampart or wall
literal_form: strong wall made with iron pieces and molten brass
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: sym:4
label: red-hot iron as fire
literal_form: iron heated by bellows until red hot as fire
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: sym:5
label: sun's setting and rising places
literal_form: places where the sun sets and where the sun rises
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Commentarial identification of Dhu'lkarnein
summary: Translator notes report that Dhu'lkarnein means or is glossed as 'the two-horned'
and that commentators differ on whether the figure is Alexander or another ancient
ruler.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Judgment at the western limit
summary: Dhu'lkarnein reaches the place of sunset, finds a black-mud spring and
a nearby people, and states that injustice will be punished while belief and right
action will be rewarded.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: scene:3
label: Eastern unsheltered people
summary: Dhu'lkarnein reaches the place where the sun rises on a people who lack
shelter from it.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:4
label: Petition between the mountains
summary: Dhu'lkarnein reaches the space between two mountains; the local people,
who scarcely understand speech, ask him to build a rampart against Gog and Magog.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: scene:5
label: Construction of the iron and brass wall
summary: Dhu'lkarnein declines tribute, asks for assistance, and has iron and molten
brass used to construct a strong wall between the mountain sides.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: ruler journeys to cosmic limits
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Dhu'lkarnein travels to the places of sunset and sunrise and then onward
to the region between two mountains.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: The available taxonomy does not contain a specific cosmic-limit journey
motif; this label is descriptive.
- id: motif:2
label: divinely accountable judgment of peoples
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: The passage contrasts punishment for injustice with divine punishment after
return to the Lord and reward for belief and right action.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: Dhu'lkarnein performs the earthly judgment, while final punishment is
attributed to the Lord.
- id: motif:3
label: culture hero builds protective barrier
taxonomy_refs:
- culture_hero
basis: Dhu'lkarnein protects a threatened people by constructing a strong wall against
Gog and Magog with their assistance.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage does not explicitly call him a culture hero; the taxonomy
reference is based on his protective civilizing function in the episode.
- id: motif:4
label: dangerous outsiders contained by a mountain wall
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Gog and Magog are said to waste the land, and a rampart is built between
them and the petitioning people in a mountain pass.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
- ev:10
confidence: high
cautions: No specific available taxonomy reference directly names Gog-and-Magog
containment.
- id: motif:5
label: wise refusal of tribute in favor of divine strength
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
- sacred_exchange
basis: Dhu'lkarnein refuses the offered tribute, saying the power by which the Lord
strengthened him is better, but asks the people to assist in the work.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy references are interpretive and should be reviewed; the passage
frames the exchange as refusal of payment and acceptance of labor assistance.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The translator's notes report a commentator tradition identifying or associating
Dhu'lkarnein with Alexander the Great, while also recording dissenting identifications.
claim_level: same_motif
target: Alexander/Iscander traditions of the two-horned world conqueror
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
counter_evidence_refs:
- ev:13
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage presents the identification as a matter of commentary and
dispute, not as an unqualified statement of the Qur'anic text.
- id: claim:2
claim: The notes connect the 'two-horned' epithet with visual and textual traditions
involving horns, including coins or statues of Alexander as son of Jupiter Ammon
and a comparison to Daniel's he-goat.
claim_level: visual_similarity
target: horned Alexander imagery and Danielic he-goat imagery
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
counter_evidence_refs:
- ev:13
confidence: low
limitations: The note reports proposed explanations for an epithet; it does not
establish historical dependence among the traditions.
- id: claim:3
claim: The destructive Gog and Magog of this passage correspond by name and function
to a broader Gog-and-Magog barrier tradition mentioned by the translator's notes.
claim_level: same_motif
target: Gog and Magog as destructive peoples restrained by a rampart
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:10
- ev:15
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage and notes support the shared names and containment pattern,
but details of external traditions are not provided here beyond brief commentary.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808, note r
quote_or_summary: Commentary glosses Dhu'lkarnein as 'the two-horned' and says many
commentators suppose him to be Alexander the Great, while other opinions identify
another ancient conqueror or king; all agree he was a true believer, but dispute
whether he was a prophet.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: quote
locator: lines 23710-23808
quote_or_summary: "“until he came to the place where the sun setteth; and he found
it to set in a spring of black mud; and he found near the same a certain people.”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt.
- id: ev:3
type: quote
locator: lines 23710-23808
quote_or_summary: "“O Dhu'lkarnein, either punish this people, or use gentleness
towards them.”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808
quote_or_summary: Dhu'lkarnein answers that the unjust will be punished and then
returned to the Lord for severe punishment, while those who believe and do right
receive an excellent reward and an easy command.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808
quote_or_summary: Dhu'lkarnein continues to the place where the sun rises and finds
it rising on people who have not been given anything to shelter themselves from
it.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808
quote_or_summary: He journeys from south to north until he comes between two mountains,
beneath which he finds people who can scarcely understand what is said.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: quote
locator: lines 23710-23808
quote_or_summary: "“Gog and Magog waste the land; shall we therefore pay thee tribute,
on condition that thou build a rampart between us and them?”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808
quote_or_summary: Dhu'lkarnein says the power with which his Lord strengthened him
is better than their tribute, asks them to assist strenuously, and promises to
set a strong wall between them and Gog and Magog.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808
quote_or_summary: He asks for large pieces of iron to fill the space between the
mountain sides, orders bellows blown until the iron is red hot as fire, and calls
for molten brass to pour over it.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808, note b
quote_or_summary: The note says Arabs call them Yajuj and Majuj, describe them as
two nations or tribes, and report that they made destructive spring incursions
into neighboring countries and carried off or destroyed fruits of the earth.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:11
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808, note t
quote_or_summary: The people near the sunset place are described in commentary as
an unbelieving nation clothed in skins of wild beasts and living on what the sea
cast ashore.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:12
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808, note y
quote_or_summary: The note explains the sunrise people as lacking clothes and houses
and retreating into underground holes from the heat of the sun; it also mentions
identifications with the Zenj or Troglodytes.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:13
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808, note r
quote_or_summary: The note records dissent from the Alexander identification, including
views that the figure was another ancient Persian conqueror contemporary with
Abraham or a king of Yaman.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:14
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808, note r
quote_or_summary: The note says some modern writers connect the epithet with Alexander
represented on coins and statues with horns as son of Jupiter Ammon, or with Daniel's
comparison to a he-goat, while noting Daniel represents the animal with one horn.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:15
type: summary
locator: lines 23710-23808, note z
quote_or_summary: The note identifies the two mountains as the location where Dhu'lkarnein
built the famous rampart against the incursions of Gog and Magog and reports differing
geographic placements.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: Core actions and figures are explicit in the passage. Motif labels using
broader taxonomy are partly interpretive and require review, especially culture_hero,
wisdom, and sacred_exchange.
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: |-
Only the supplied passage and metadata were used. Footnotes in the supplied passage were treated as part of the available source evidence.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg__l23710-l23808
passage_sha256=fe4791aba89af47511bca762db963584849a26f718200ddb14f5dd16fa2bc0ca