batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l2864-l2911
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l2864-l2911
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
passage_locator:
label: THE KORAN. / PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE / SECTION I. / SECTION II.; lines 2864-2911
start: '2864'
end: '2911'
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 Mohammed as initially preaching without compulsion,
enduring persecution and leaving his birthplace for Medina, then later receiving
permission to defend himself by arms and, as his forces increased, to attack opponents
and establish the faith by the sword. It compares armed and unarmed founders and
contrasts religious propagation by force with Christianity's reported endurance
under persecution.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The narrator says Mohammed declared his business to be preaching and admonishing,
without authority to compel anyone to embrace his religion.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The narrator says belief or unbelief belonged solely to God, not to Mohammed's
concern.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Mohammed is described as exhorting his followers to bear injuries patiently
on account of their faith.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:4
text: When persecuted, Mohammed is described as leaving his birthplace and retiring
to Medina rather than resisting.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:5
text: After receiving assistance from people of Medina, Mohammed is described as
being able to oppose his enemies.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:6
text: The passage says Mohammed announced that God allowed him and his followers
to defend themselves against infidels.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:7
text: As his forces increased, the passage says Mohammed claimed divine leave to
attack opponents, destroy idolatry, and set up the true faith by the sword.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:8
text: The passage reports a political maxim that armed prophets succeed and unarmed
prophets fail.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:9
text: Moses, Cyrus, Theseus, and Romulus are named as founders who would not have
established their institutions for long if unarmed.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:10
text: The first Koran passage said to permit Mohammed's armed defense is identified
as a passage in the twenty-second chapter.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:11
text: The passage states that conversion by the sword is generally disallowed in
other religions but admitted by some for their own religion.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:12
text: The passage contrasts Mohammedism, said by the narrator to have advanced by
the sword, with Christianity, said to have prevailed under persecution and opposition
for 300 years before Roman emperors submitted to it.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Mohammed
description: Religious preacher and founder described as first passive under persecution,
then later authorized to defend and attack by arms.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: God
description: Divine authority to whom belief is said to belong and from whom permission
for armed defense is said to come.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Mohammed's followers
description: Followers exhorted to endure injuries and later said to be allowed
to defend themselves against infidels.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Opposers, enemies, infidels, persecutors
description: Opponents who persecute Mohammed and his followers and are later described
as targets of defense or attack.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:5
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: People of Medina
description: Supporters whose assistance is said to enable Mohammed to oppose his
enemies.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Moses, Cyrus, Theseus, and Romulus
description: Named examples in a political comparison concerning armed founders
of institutions.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Roman emperors
description: Rulers said to have eventually submitted to Christianity.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Christianity
description: Religion described by the narrator as prevailing through truth after
persecutions and opposition for 300 years.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Mohammedism
description: Religion described by the narrator as owing its progress and establishment
almost entirely to the sword.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: preacher and admonisher
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Mohammed is said to declare that his business was only to preach and admonish.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: persecuted emigrant
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He is described as quitting his birthplace for Medina when persecuted.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:3
label: armed religious founder
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He is described as later defending himself and establishing faith by the
sword.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: role:4
label: divine authority
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Belief is said to belong solely to God, and armed defense is said to be allowed
by God.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:5
label: injured believers and later armed defenders
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The followers are exhorted to patience under injury and later said to receive
permission to defend themselves.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:6
label: persecuting opponents
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: They are described as persecutors, enemies, and objects of defense or attack.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:5
- id: role:7
label: allies from Medina
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Their assistance is said to enable Mohammed to oppose his enemies.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:8
label: armed institutional founders
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: They are named as examples who could not have established institutions for
long without arms.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:9
label: submitting rulers
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The Roman emperors are said to have eventually submitted to Christianity.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:10
label: persecuted but prevailing religion
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: Christianity is described as enduring persecutions and opposition before
prevailing.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:11
label: religion propagated by force
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: The narrator says Mohammedism owed progress and establishment almost entirely
to the sword.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: sword
literal_form: sword
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: sym:2
label: arms
literal_form: arms
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: sym:3
label: Medina
literal_form: Medina as place of retirement and source of assistance
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:4
label: Koranic permission passage
literal_form: passage in the twenty-second chapter of the Koran
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Non-compulsion and patience under persecution
summary: Mohammed is presented as preaching and admonishing without compulsion,
while followers are told to bear injuries patiently.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Departure to Medina
summary: When persecuted, Mohammed leaves his birthplace and retires to Medina rather
than resisting.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Authorization of armed defense and attack
summary: After gaining support in Medina, Mohammed is said to announce divine permission
for armed defense and later to attack opponents, destroy idolatry, and establish
the faith by the sword.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: Comparison of armed founders
summary: The passage cites a maxim that armed prophets succeed and names Moses,
Cyrus, Theseus, and Romulus as examples of founders needing arms to preserve institutions.
figure_refs:
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:5
label: Contrasting religious propagation
summary: The narrator criticizes conversion by the sword and contrasts Mohammedism's
alleged progress by force with Christianity's alleged success under persecution
before Roman imperial submission.
figure_refs:
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Persecuted founder departs to a supportive city
taxonomy_refs:
- departure
basis: Mohammed is described as leaving his birthplace for Medina under persecution
rather than resisting, and Medina later provides assistance.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage is a later polemical historical discussion rather than a narrative
mythic episode; the departure taxonomy is a broad fit.
- id: motif:2
label: Divinely authorized armed defense
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage says Mohammed announced that God allowed him and his followers
to defend themselves against infidels, with a Koranic passage cited as the first
permission for arms.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: No specific available taxonomy family directly names this motif.
- id: motif:3
label: Religion established by the sword
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage repeatedly describes the use of sword or force to establish religion
and criticizes conversion by the sword.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: This is the narrator's evaluative framing; extraction records it as a
passage motif, not as an independent historical judgment.
- id: motif:4
label: Armed founder succeeds where unarmed founder fails
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage reports the maxim that armed prophets have succeeded and unarmed
ones failed, naming several founders as examples.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
confidence: high
cautions: The maxim is attributed to a political observer and footnoted to Machiavelli,
not developed as a mythic narrative in this passage.
- id: motif:5
label: Persecuted truth prevails over worldly powers
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Christianity is described as prevailing against the forces and powers of
the world after enduring persecution and opposition for 300 years.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: This is part of the narrator's apologetic contrast and is not elaborated
through a specific story sequence.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage explicitly compares Mohammed with a broader pattern of armed
prophets or founders who establish institutions through arms.
claim_level: same_function
target: armed prophet or armed institutional founder pattern, illustrated by Moses,
Cyrus, Theseus, and Romulus
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The comparison is made by the narrator through a quoted political maxim;
it does not demonstrate historical contact or shared mythic inheritance.
- id: claim:2
claim: 'The passage contrasts two modes of religious establishment: propagation
by the sword and endurance under persecution until rulers submit.'
claim_level: same_function
target: contrast between Mohammedism's alleged progress by the sword and Christianity's
alleged triumph under persecution
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The claim reflects the narrator's polemical evaluation and should not
be treated as a neutral historical conclusion.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 2864-2872
quote_or_summary: Mohammed is said to declare that he only preaches and admonishes,
cannot compel belief, and exhorts followers to endure injuries; when persecuted,
he leaves his birthplace for Medina rather than resisting.
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 2872-2882
quote_or_summary: The narrator says Mohammed's passiveness was due to lack of power;
after assistance from Medina he announced God's permission for defense and later
claimed divine leave to attack, destroy idolatry, and establish true faith by
the sword.
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 2882-2888
quote_or_summary: 'A political observation is cited: armed prophets have succeeded
and unarmed ones failed; Moses, Cyrus, Theseus, and Romulus are named as examples
who needed arms to establish institutions.'
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 2888-2891
quote_or_summary: The first Koran passage said to grant Mohammed permission for
armed defense is identified as one in the twenty-second chapter; many similar
passages are said to follow.
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 2892-2904
quote_or_summary: The narrator allows that armed self-defense may be defensible
but questions using force to establish religion; conversion by the sword is criticized,
though force is said to be used by those in power and complained of by those suffering
violence.
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 2904-2911
quote_or_summary: The narrator claims Mohammedism owed progress and establishment
almost entirely to the sword, while Christianity prevailed against worldly forces
through truth after persecutions and opposition for 300 years, until Roman emperors
submitted.
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 clear, but it is a polemical preliminary discourse rather
than a narrative mythic text. Motif labels should be reviewed to avoid importing
the narrator's historical judgments as neutral facts.
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: |-
All claims are extracted from the supplied passage only; evaluative assertions are attributed to the narrator where relevant.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg__l2864-l2911
passage_sha256=3dc0a4bd485c9f4ef3642ddfb95f26c95120498e9d5d3035941318f22bcc5d8d