batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l2459-l2507
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l2459-l2507
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
passage_locator:
label: THE KORAN. / PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE / SECTION I. / SECTION II.; lines 2459-2507
start: '2459'
end: '2507'
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 recounts Mohammed's early guardianship after his father's death,
his mercantile training and marriage to Khadjah, and Sale's account of his later
plan to restore an ancient monotheistic religion associated with earlier prophets.
It describes debates over his motives, his conviction concerning the unity of
God, his criticism of idolatry and perceived Jewish and Christian corruptions,
and his yearly retreat to a cave on Mount Hara near Mecca.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Mohammed is described as left in poor circumstances, with five camels and
one Ethiopian female slave as the substance of the household.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Abd'almotalleb took care of his grandchild Mohammed and, at death, instructed
Abu Tleb to provide for him.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Abu Tleb provided for Mohammed, instructed him in trade, and took him into
Syria when Mohammed was thirteen.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Mohammed served Khadjah as her factor and later became her husband, which
raised his social and economic standing in Mecca.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: After the marriage, the passage says Mohammed formed a plan to establish a
new religion, described as replanting the true ancient religion of Adam, Noah,
Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and all the prophets.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: The described religious program aimed to destroy idolatry, remove corruptions
and superstitions attributed to later Jews and Christians, and restore worship
of one God.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: The narrator discusses competing explanations of Mohammed's motives, including
enthusiasm, political ambition, and a sincere intention to bring pagan Arabs to
knowledge of God.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: The passage says Mohammed was persuaded of the unity of God and could conceive
his work as rescuing the world from ignorance and superstition.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:9
text: Mohammed is said to have usually retired for a month each year to a cave in
Mount Hara near Mecca.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Mohammed
description: Central figure described as an orphaned grandchild, merchant, husband
of Khadjah, and founder or restorer of a religion centered on the unity of God.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Abd'almotalleb
description: Mohammed's grandfather, who took care of him and instructed Abu Tleb
to provide for him after his death.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Abu Tleb
description: Eldest son of Abd'almotalleb, brother of Abd'allah by the same mother,
and Mohammed's provider and instructor in mercantile business.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Khadjah
description: A noble and rich widow who employed Mohammed as her factor and later
married him.
role_refs:
- role:7
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and all the prophets
description: Earlier prophetic figures named as professing the ancient true religion
that Mohammed is said to have sought to replant.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: pagan Arabs / idolaters
description: People described as having fallen into gross idolatry and as intended
recipients of Mohammed's reform.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: later Jews and Christians
description: Groups described by the narrator as having introduced corruptions and
superstitions into religion, according to Mohammed's view.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
roles:
- id: role:1
label: orphaned grandchild under guardianship
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage describes Mohammed as the infant son left in poor circumstances
and cared for by Abd'almotalleb and then Abu Tleb.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: merchant or factor
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Abu Tleb instructed him in mercantile business, and Khadjah employed him
as her factor.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: husband of Khadjah
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage says Khadjah made Mohammed her husband.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: religious reformer centered on monotheism
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage says he planned to establish or replant ancient religion and
restore worship of one God.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: role:5
label: grandfather and guardian
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Abd'almotalleb took care of his grandchild Mohammed and arranged future care.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:6
label: uncle, provider, and trade instructor
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Abu Tleb provided for Mohammed and taught him the business of a merchant.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:7
label: noble rich widow and employer
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Khadjah is described as a noble and rich widow who took Mohammed into her
service as factor.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:8
label: wife who raises social standing
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The passage says that by marrying him she raised him to equality with the
richest in Mecca.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:9
label: earlier prophets of the ancient religion
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and all the prophets are named as professors
of the ancient true religion.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:10
label: idolatrous countrymen needing reform
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The passage describes the generality of his countrymen as fallen into idolatry
and the pagan Arabs as targets of instruction in knowledge of God.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:11
label: religious communities criticized for corruption or superstition
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The passage reports Mohammed's view that later Jews and Christians had introduced
corruptions and superstitions.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: cave retreat
literal_form: a cave in Mount Hara near Mecca
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- cave
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:2
label: Mount Hara
literal_form: Mount Hara near Mecca
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- mountain
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:3
label: one God
literal_form: worship of the one only God / unity of God
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Guardianship and mercantile formation
summary: Mohammed is cared for by his grandfather, then by Abu Tleb, who provides
for him and trains him in trade, including travel to Syria.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: scene:2
label: Marriage and rise in Mecca
summary: Mohammed serves Khadjah as factor, marries her, and rises to wealth and
status in Mecca.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Plan to restore ancient monotheism
summary: After the marriage, Mohammed is said to form a plan to establish or replant
ancient prophetic religion by opposing idolatry and restoring worship of one God.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: scene:4
label: Retreat at Mount Hara
summary: The passage links Mohammed's developing conviction of his destined reforming
role with yearly solitude in a cave on Mount Hara near Mecca.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: restoration of primordial monotheism
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Mohammed's project is described as replanting the ancient true religion of
earlier prophets and reducing religion to worship of one God.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
confidence: high
cautions: This is extracted from Sale's preliminary discourse and reflects the narrator's
framing of Mohammed's intention, not a direct Qur'anic narrative scene.
- id: motif:2
label: prophet-reformer withdrawing to cave or mountain solitude
taxonomy_refs:
- ascent
basis: The passage states that Mohammed usually withdrew for a month each year to
a cave in Mount Hara while the idea of a providential reforming mission took root.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage mentions cave and mountain solitude, but does not describe
a visionary event or ascent in this excerpt.
- id: motif:3
label: orphan protected by kin before future mission
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Mohammed is described as an infant in poor circumstances who is successively
cared for by his grandfather and uncle before his later religious role is discussed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
confidence: medium
cautions: The future mission is narrated later in the same passage, but the excerpt
does not explicitly present the childhood guardianship as a mythic sign.
- id: motif:4
label: single divine truth opposed to idolatry and corruption
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The passage emphasizes Mohammed's conviction regarding the unity of God and
his aim to rescue others from ignorance, superstition, and idolatry.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy link to wisdom is broad; the passage's primary category is
religious reform and monotheistic doctrine.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage frames Mohammed's proposed religion as functionally continuous
with the religion of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and the prophets, presenting
his mission as restoration rather than novelty.
claim_level: same_function
target: earlier prophetic religion named in the passage
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: This is the narrator's report of Mohammed's expressed framing; the
passage does not compare detailed narratives or ritual structures.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 2459-2465
quote_or_summary: Mohammed is described as left in poor circumstances; Abd'almotalleb
cared for him and directed Abu Tleb to continue providing for him.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 2465-2471
quote_or_summary: Abu Tleb taught Mohammed trade, took him to Syria at age thirteen,
and recommended him to Khadjah, whose service and marriage raised his status in
Mecca.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 2472-2482
quote_or_summary: After his advantageous marriage, Mohammed is said to plan a new
religion or restoration of the ancient religion of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses,
Jesus, and the prophets, opposing idolatry and restoring worship of one God.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 2483-2494
quote_or_summary: The narrator discusses possible motives, including enthusiasm,
political ambition, and a sincere initial design to bring pagan Arabs to knowledge
of God.
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 2495-2503
quote_or_summary: The passage states that Mohammed was persuaded of the unity of
God and may have considered rescuing the world from ignorance and superstition
a meritorious work.
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 2503-2507
quote_or_summary: The passage says the idea of a destined reformation may have deepened
during Mohammed's solitude, when he usually retired for a month each year to a
cave in Mount Hara near Mecca.
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: The passage is biographical and interpretive rather than a mythic narrative;
motifs are therefore candidate patterns requiring human review.
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: |-
Uses only the supplied passage and metadata. The source is Sale's public-domain English preliminary discourse and contains polemical eighteenth-century framing; extracted claims are treated as passage-level statements, not independent historical assertions.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg__l2459-l2507
passage_sha256=7b4d8c4fb2a7dae78a6815017f66cec0203e1c886c02795872db561210889e9a