batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l6279-l6346
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l6279-l6346
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
passage_locator:
label: SECTION III / SECTION IV. / SECTION V. / OF CERTAIN NEGATIVE PRECEPTS IN
THE KORN.; lines 6279-6346
start: '6279'
end: '6346'
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 Sale's account of Qur'anic and Muhammadan condemnation
of pre-Islamic Arabian practices, especially burying daughters alive, exposing
or killing infants, and sacrificing children to idols. It gives reported procedures,
tribal examples, a rescuer of female children, and brief comparisons with other
ancient and later societies.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The passage states that the law of Mohammed stopped the practice of burying
daughters alive among Pagan Arabs.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The stated motives for burying daughters alive include fear of poverty, disgrace
from captivity, or scandalous behavior.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: One reported procedure says a father let a daughter live until about six years
old, had her perfumed and adorned, led her to a well or pit, pushed her in, and
filled the pit level with the ground.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Another reported procedure says a pit was dug at childbirth; a daughter was
thrown into it, while a son was saved alive.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: The custom is said to have been common among several tribes, particularly
Koreish and Kendah, with Koreish associated with burying daughters in Mount Abu
Dalma near Mecca.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: Ssa is said to have redeemed female children from death by giving two pregnant
she-camels and one he-camel for each child.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:7
text: Al Farazdak is said to have called himself the son of the giver of life to
the dead and cited a Qur'anic statement about saving a soul.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: The passage states that exposing infants and putting them to death was common
among ancient peoples and gives examples involving Egyptians, laws attributed
to Lycurgus, China, and Greeks.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:9
text: The passage states that the Qur'an condemns this practice in several passages.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:10
text: The passage says some commentators take a Qur'anic passage also to condemn
child sacrifice to idols, especially in fulfillment of a vow to sacrifice one
son if a certain number of sons were born.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Mohammed
description: Named as the source of the law that stopped the custom and abrogated
other superstitious customs.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Pagan Arabs
description: Collective group said to have practiced burying daughters alive before
the law stopped it.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Daughters / female children
description: Female children described as being buried alive, exposed, redeemed,
or killed.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Father
description: In one reported procedure, the father orders the daughter prepared,
leads her to a pit or well, pushes her in, and covers the pit.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Mother / woman in labour
description: A mother is told to perfume and adorn the daughter; another report
places a woman in labor at the edge of a pit.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Ssa
description: Grandfather of al Farazdak, said to have redeemed female children from
death by payment of camels.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: al Farazdak
description: Poet who alluded to his grandfather's actions by calling himself the
son of the giver of life to the dead.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Idols
description: Objects of worship to which children are said to have been sacrificed
in another condemned custom.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Sons
description: Male children described as saved alive in one birth-pit account and
as possible victims in vows of child sacrifice.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:8
roles:
- id: role:1
label: abrogating lawgiver
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage says the law of Mohammed put a stop to the custom and abrogated
other superstitious customs.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
- id: role:2
label: child-killing agent
assigned_to:
- fig:2
- fig:4
basis: The passage attributes the burying of daughters alive to Pagan Arabs and
describes a father carrying out the act.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: threatened child
assigned_to:
- fig:3
- fig:9
basis: Daughters are the main victims; sons are saved in one account but may be
sacrificed in fulfillment of vows in another custom.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:8
- id: role:4
label: maternal participant in reported procedure
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The mother is involved in preparing the daughter, and a woman in labor is
placed at the edge of a pit in another report.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: role:5
label: redeemer of children
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Ssa is said to have redeemed female children from death with camels.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:6
label: poetic witness to rescue lineage
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Al Farazdak cites his descent from the rescuer in a boast.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:7
label: cult recipient of sacrifice
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: Children are said to have been sacrificed to idols.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: pit or well
literal_form: A well or pit dug for killing and burying a daughter.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: birth pit
literal_form: A pit dug at the brink where a woman in labor was delivered, used
to decide the newborn's fate by sex.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:5
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:3
label: Mount Abu Dalma
literal_form: A mountain near Mecca where Koreish are said to have buried daughters
alive.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs:
- mountain
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:4
label: camel ransom
literal_form: Two pregnant she-camels and one he-camel given for each female child
redeemed from death.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:5
label: idols
literal_form: Idols to which children are said to have been sacrificed.
associated_figures:
- fig:8
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: sym:6
label: vowed number of sons
literal_form: A vow that if a certain number of sons were born, one son would be
offered in sacrifice.
associated_figures:
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Abolition and condemnation of burying daughters alive
summary: The passage states that Mohammed's law stopped the practice of burying
daughters alive and that the Qur'an condemns it in several passages.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:7
- id: scene:2
label: Daughter led to the pit
summary: A reported account describes a father having his daughter perfumed and
adorned, leading her to a pit or well, pushing her into it, and filling it in.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Gendered birth-pit decision
summary: Another report describes a pit at childbirth, where a daughter is thrown
in but a son is preserved alive.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:5
- fig:9
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Tribal and local setting of the custom
summary: The passage says the practice was common in certain tribes, especially
Koreish and Kendah, and locates Koreish burials at Mount Abu Dalma near Mecca.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Redemption of female children
summary: Ssa is said to redeem female children from death with camels, and al Farazdak
later boasts of descent from him.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:6
label: Child sacrifice to idols
summary: 'The passage reports that some commentators saw another condemned Arabian
custom in the Qur''an: sacrificing a child to idols in fulfillment of a vow connected
with the birth of sons.'
figure_refs:
- fig:8
- fig:9
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Burying daughters alive / female infanticide
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage centers on the condemned practice of burying daughters alive
and gives procedures and motives for it.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: This is a negative legal and ethnographic account in Sale's commentary,
not a mythic narrative episode in itself.
- id: motif:2
label: Child rescued from death by ransom
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: Ssa redeems female children from death by giving specified camels for each
child.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy reference is tentative because the passage presents a social
ransom rather than a clearly sacral exchange.
- id: motif:3
label: Child sacrifice to idols after a vow
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The passage describes a custom of sacrificing one child to idols if a vowed
number of sons were born.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
confidence: high
cautions: The passage reports this through commentators and does not quote the Qur'anic
verse directly in this excerpt.
- id: motif:4
label: Religious law abolishes harmful custom
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage says Mohammed's law stopped burying daughters alive and abrogated
other superstitious customs.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: This is a legal-reform pattern rather than a listed taxonomy motif.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage itself states that the Arabs were not singular in exposing infants
or putting them to death, and it names ancient and later examples as comparable
practices.
claim_level: same_function
target: Infant exposure or child killing among Egyptians as exception, Lycurgan
Sparta, China, and Greeks as discussed in Sale's notes
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage offers brief examples and does not establish historical
contact, common inheritance, or detailed ritual equivalence.
- id: claim:2
claim: The passage says child sacrifice to idols was an Arabian custom and was also
common among other nations of old.
claim_level: same_motif
target: Child sacrifice to idols in other ancient nations
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The compared nations are not named in this excerpt, and the statement
is mediated through Sale's summary of commentators.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 6279-6286
quote_or_summary: Mohammed's law is said to have stopped the Pagan Arab custom of
burying daughters alive, motivated by poverty, disgrace, captivity, or scandal;
a daughter's birth is described as considered a misfortune.
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 6286-6295
quote_or_summary: One account says a father allowed a daughter to live until six,
had her perfumed and adorned, brought her to a well or pit, pushed her in, and
filled the pit level with the ground.
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 6295-6298
quote_or_summary: Another account says a pit was dug at childbirth; if the child
was a daughter, she was thrown in, but if a son, he was saved alive.
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 6298-6301
quote_or_summary: The custom is described as common among several tribes, especially
Koreish and Kendah; Koreish are said to bury daughters alive in Mount Abu Dalma
near Mecca.
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 6301-6308
quote_or_summary: Ssa, grandfather of al Farazdak, is said to have redeemed female
children with two pregnant she-camels and a he-camel each; al Farazdak calls himself
son of the giver of life to the dead and invokes a Qur'anic saying about saving
a soul.
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 6308-6338
quote_or_summary: The passage states that exposing infants and killing children
were common among ancient peoples, noting Egyptians as extraordinary for raising
all children and citing Lycurgus, China, and Greek treatment of daughters.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 6338-6341
quote_or_summary: The practice is said to be condemned by the Qur'an in several
passages.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 6341-6345
quote_or_summary: Some commentators are said to understand a Qur'anic passage as
also condemning the sacrifice of children to idols, especially to fulfill a vow
to sacrifice one child if a certain number of sons were born.
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 6345-6346
quote_or_summary: The passage states that several other superstitious customs were
likewise abrogated by Mohammed but are not discussed further here.
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 explicit about actions, figures, and comparisons, but motif
labeling is partly interpretive because the excerpt is commentary/legal-ethnographic
prose rather than a mythic narrative.
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: |-
Used only supplied passage text and metadata. Taxonomy references were applied only where directly supportable or marked with caution.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg__l6279-l6346
passage_sha256=f42c2e605e04d6ff7a5ca59d00a1e6767042856c0e79173cd2e56e6235515e64