batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l3321-l3372
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l3321-l3372
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
passage_locator:
label: PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE / SECTION I. / SECTION II. / SECTION III; lines 3321-3372
start: '3321'
end: '3372'
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 surveys conjectural explanations for the disjoined letters
A.L.M. at the beginnings of some chapters, including theological, phonetic, and
numerical interpretations. It then describes the Koran as written in elegant Arabic,
inimitable by human composition, and treated as a permanent miracle. Mohammed
is said to have challenged eloquent Arabians to produce a comparable chapter,
and an example is given in which a chapter of the Koran was placed beside a celebrated
poem at the temple gate in Mecca.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Five chapters, including the second, are said to begin with the letters A.L.M.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Several conjectures interpret A.L.M. as abbreviations for divine phrases or
for the names Allah, Gabriel, and Mohammed.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: One interpretation connects A, L, and M with the lower throat, palate, and
lips as successive organs of speech.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The same phonetic interpretation says the letters signify that God is the
beginning, middle, and end, or is to be praised in all words and actions.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: A numerical interpretation gives the total value of A.L.M. as seventy-one
and connects it with a period in which the religion preached in the Koran would
be established.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:6
text: The Koran is described as elegant and pure in language, in the dialect of
the tribe of Koreish, and as a standard of the Arabic tongue.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: The more orthodox position described in the passage treats the Koran as inimitable
by any human pen and as a permanent miracle.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:8
text: Mohammed is said to have appealed to this miracle and publicly challenged
eloquent Arabians to produce even one comparable chapter.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:9
text: A poem by Labid Ebn Raba was fixed on the gate of the temple of Mecca, and
the second chapter of the Koran was later fixed up beside it.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: God / Allah
description: Named in conjectural readings of A.L.M. and in interpretations identifying
God as beginning, middle, and end.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Gabriel
description: Named in one interpretation of A.L.M. as the revealer of the Koran.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Mohammed
description: Named in one interpretation of A.L.M. as preacher of the Koran and
later described as publicly challenging eloquent Arabians to produce a comparable
chapter.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: amanuensis
description: A conjectured writer who may have set letters in the text as an abbreviation
for a command of Mohammed.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Jewish scribe
description: A conjectured scribe associated with letters prefixed to the nineteenth
chapter.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: eloquent men in Arabia
description: Men described as expert in elegant style and composition, challenged
to produce a comparable chapter.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Labid Ebn Raba
description: A poet described as one of the greatest wits in Arabia in Mohammed's
time, whose poem was fixed on the gate of the temple of Mecca.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
roles:
- id: role:1
label: author of the Koran in an interpretive formula
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: One conjecture glosses A.L.M. as Allah, Gabriel, Mohammed, described as author,
revealer, and preacher of the Koran.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: revealer of the Koran in an interpretive formula
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The same conjecture assigns Gabriel the role of revealer.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:3
label: preacher of the Koran in an interpretive formula
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The same conjecture assigns Mohammed the role of preacher.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:4
label: beginning, middle, and end
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: A phonetic interpretation of A.L.M. says the letters signify that God is
the beginning, middle, and end.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:5
label: challenger appealing to a miracle
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Mohammed is said to appeal to the Koran's inimitability and challenge eloquent
men to produce a comparable chapter.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:6
label: conjectured textual copyist or scribe
assigned_to:
- fig:4
- fig:5
basis: The passage reports conjectures attributing certain prefixed letters to an
amanuensis or Jewish scribe.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:7
label: challenged judges or competitors in eloquence
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The passage says Arabia contained many whose study and ambition was eloquent
composition, and that they were challenged to produce a comparable chapter.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:8
label: celebrated poet
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Labid is described as a great wit whose poem was honored at the temple gate
of Mecca.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: A.L.M. letters
literal_form: Three prefixed letters at the beginnings of five chapters
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: organs of speech sequence
literal_form: lower throat, palate, lips
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:3
label: number seventy-one
literal_form: Total numerical value assigned to A.L.M.
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:4
label: inimitable book
literal_form: The Koran as a text no human pen can imitate
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: sym:5
label: temple gate display
literal_form: A poem and the second chapter of the Koran fixed on the gate of the
temple of Mecca
associated_figures:
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Conjectures about A.L.M.
summary: The passage lists differing attempts to interpret the letters A.L.M. as
abbreviations, divine names, phonetic symbols, or numerical signs.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:6
- id: scene:2
label: The Koran as inimitable miracle
summary: The Koran is presented as elegant Arabic, a standard of the language, and
in orthodox belief a permanent miracle beyond human imitation.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Challenge to produce a comparable chapter
summary: Mohammed appeals to the Koran's inimitability and challenges eloquent Arabians
to compose even one chapter comparable to it.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: Display beside Labid's poem
summary: A celebrated poem by Labid is displayed on the temple gate of Mecca, and
the second chapter of the Koran is later placed beside it as an example of admired
composition.
figure_refs:
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: enigmatic sacred letters with hidden interpretations
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The prefixed letters A.L.M. are treated as signs requiring specialized interpretation,
with multiple theological, phonetic, scribal, and numerical explanations offered.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage is a later explanatory discourse and reports competing conjectures
rather than a single accepted narrative motif.
- id: motif:2
label: divine totality encoded in speech
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: A.L.M. is interpreted through the sequence of speech organs and made to signify
God as beginning, middle, and end, or as the one to be praised in all words and
actions.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: medium
cautions: This is one reported interpretation among several and may not represent
the passage's own endorsed meaning.
- id: motif:3
label: sacred text as inimitable miracle
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The Koran is described as beyond human imitation and as a permanent miracle
sufficient to demonstrate divine origin.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
confidence: high
cautions: No available taxonomy reference directly matches inimitable sacred speech
or scripture as miracle.
- id: motif:4
label: challenge-contest proving divine mission
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Mohammed is said to challenge the most eloquent Arabians to produce a comparable
chapter, making literary impossibility function as confirmation of his mission.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The motif is framed as apologetic discourse rather than a developed mythic
narrative.
- id: motif:5
label: public display contest of sacred and poetic texts
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage describes Labid's honored poem on the temple gate of Mecca and
the second chapter of the Koran later fixed beside it.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The provided excerpt ends before the outcome of the comparison is fully
narrated.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage explicitly compares the Koran's inimitability as a miracle with
the miracle of raising the dead, presenting the former as greater and more enduring.
claim_level: same_function
target: resurrection miracle as proof of divine power or mission
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The comparison is rhetorical within the passage and does not narrate
an actual resurrection event.
- id: claim:2
claim: The challenge to produce a comparable chapter is framed in relation to Arabic
poetic competition and public display of esteemed compositions.
claim_level: same_function
target: Arabian poetic competition and honored temple-gate display
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage provides only one illustrative example and does not give
a full account of institutional poetic contest rules.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: 3321-3336
quote_or_summary: Five chapters are said to begin with A.L.M.; conjectures gloss
the letters as divine phrases or as Allah, Gabriel, and Mohammed, the author,
revealer, and preacher of the Koran.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: 3336-3346
quote_or_summary: Another interpretation links A, L, and M to the lower throat,
palate, and lips, making them signify God as beginning, middle, and end; a numerical
reading gives their value as seventy-one years until the religion is fully established.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: 3352-3361
quote_or_summary: The Koran is described as elegant and pure Arabic, the standard
of the language, inimitable by human pen, and a permanent miracle greater than
raising the dead.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: 3362-3369
quote_or_summary: Mohammed is said to appeal chiefly to this miracle and to challenge
the most eloquent men in Arabia to produce even a single comparable chapter.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: 3369-3372
quote_or_summary: A poem by Labid Ebn Raba is said to have been fixed on the gate
of the temple of Mecca, and the second chapter of the Koran was later fixed beside
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: 3346-3351
quote_or_summary: A Christian scholar conjectures that certain letters may have
been inserted by an amanuensis or by a Jewish scribe as abbreviated commands.
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 explanatory and polemical rather than narrative; motif labels
therefore describe symbolic and apologetic patterns directly present in the text,
not broader historical claims.
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 provided passage and metadata were used. Taxonomy references were kept sparse because available categories do not directly include sacred language, scripture, or poetic contest motifs.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg__l3321-l3372
passage_sha256=336b0410c7713dee6aa97aa1110f6af0f07da5a2a0daa18889f763b04d834d6d