batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l6508-l6561
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l6508-l6561
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
passage_locator:
label: SECTION V. / OF CERTAIN NEGATIVE PRECEPTS IN THE KORN. / SECTION VI. / OF
THE INSTITUTIONS OF THE KORAN IN CIVIL AFFAIRS.; lines 6508-6561
start: '6508'
end: '6561'
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 discusses legal precepts and comparative legal parallels:
punishments and evidentiary rules concerning adultery and slander, an ordeal involving
bitter water for suspected adultery, marriage restrictions including prohibited
kinship degrees, and special marital privileges attributed to Mohammed. It compares
several Islamic institutions with Mosaic or Jewish legal institutions, including
restrictions on remarriage of a ruler’s or prophet’s wives.'
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A betrothed bondmaid convicted of adultery is described as receiving punishment
while being exempted from death because she was not free.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The passage states that no person was to be put to death on the oath of one
witness.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: A man who slandered his wife is described as being chastised, scourged, and
fined one hundred shekels of silver.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:4
text: A woman suspected of adultery where evidence was lacking is described as being
tried by drinking the bitter water of jealousy and by an oath of cursing to which
she said “Amen.”
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: The passage says that institutions concerning menstrual pollution, taking
slaves as wives, and prohibited degrees of marriage have affinity with institutions
of Moses.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: The passage says pagan Arabs abstained from marrying mothers, daughters, paternal
and maternal aunts, and considered marriage to two sisters or a father’s wife
scandalous.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: The passage states that taking one’s father’s wife was nevertheless often
practiced and is expressly forbidden in the Koran.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: The passage says Mohammed was granted special marital privileges by God, according
to his own claim, exclusive of other Moslems.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:9
text: One stated privilege is that Mohammed could marry as many wives and have as
many concubines as he pleased without a fixed number.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:10
text: Another stated privilege is that Mohammed could alter the turns of his wives
and choose whom to take to his bed without observing ordinary equality.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: A further stated privilege is that no man could marry Mohammed’s wives, whether
divorced during his life or left widows after his death.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:12
text: The passage compares the restriction on marrying Mohammed’s widows with Jewish
rulings about the divorced wife or widow of a king.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: betrothed bondmaid convicted of adultery
description: A non-free betrothed woman described as punished for adultery but exempted
from death.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: woman suspected of adultery
description: A woman suspected of adultery where evidence was lacking, subjected
to bitter water and an oath of cursing.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Mohammed
description: Presented as the prophet who devised an expedient for suspected adultery
and claimed special marital privileges granted by God.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Moses
description: Named as the figure whose institutions are said to have affinity with
several institutions discussed in the passage.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: pagan Arabs
description: A group described as observing certain marriage prohibitions and regarding
some marriages as scandalous.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Mohammed’s wives or relicts
description: Women whose marriage turns are discussed and who, after Mohammed’s
death, are described as remaining in perpetual widowhood.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Jewish doctors
description: Authorities said to have determined that another man should not marry
the divorced wife or widow of a king.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: king or prince
description: A royal figure whose divorced wife or widow is described in Jewish
rulings as not lawful for another man to marry.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: punished adulteress exempted from death
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage says the betrothed bondmaid received punishment but was exempted
from death because she was not free.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: suspected adulteress under ordeal
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The woman is described as suspected of adultery without evidence and forced
to drink bitter water with an oath of cursing.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: prophetic legal innovator
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The passage refers to an expedient devised by Mohammed on a like occasion.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: recipient of exceptional marital privileges
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The passage states that God granted Mohammed exclusive privileges concerning
wives and concubines, as he gave out.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:5
label: comparative legal model
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The institutions discussed are said to have affinity with institutions of
Moses.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:6
label: customary marriage-law group
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The group is described as abstaining from certain marriages and judging others
scandalous.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:7
label: protected or restricted wives
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The wives’ turns and remarriage restrictions are described, including perpetual
widowhood for relicts.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:8
label: legal authorities on royal widows
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The passage says Jewish doctors determined that marrying a king’s divorced
wife or widow was unlawful.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:9
label: royal analogue for prophetic dignity
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The passage compares Mohammed’s relicts with wives or widows of a king in
Jewish legal rulings.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: bitter water of jealousy
literal_form: bitter water used in an adultery ordeal
associated_figures:
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: oath of cursing
literal_form: spoken oath to which the woman was obliged to say “Amen”
associated_figures:
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:3
label: prohibited degrees
literal_form: kinship boundaries restricting marriage
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: sym:4
label: perpetual widowhood
literal_form: state imposed on Mohammed’s relicts after his death
associated_figures:
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Punishments and evidentiary limits in adultery-related cases
summary: The passage lists punishment of a bondmaid convicted of adultery, a rule
against execution on one witness, and punishment for a husband who slanders his
wife.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Ordeal of bitter water and oath
summary: A suspected adulteress without evidence is described as drinking bitter
water of jealousy and accepting an oath of cursing; the passage compares this
with Mohammed’s expedient on a like occasion.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Marriage institutions compared with Mosaic law
summary: Institutions concerning menstrual pollution, slaves as wives, and prohibited
marriage degrees are said to have affinity with the institutions of Moses.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Customary Arab marriage prohibitions
summary: Pagan Arabs are described as avoiding marriage with certain close kin and
condemning marriage to two sisters or to a father’s wife, although the latter
practice occurred and is forbidden in the Koran.
figure_refs:
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Special marital privileges of Mohammed
summary: The passage describes privileges allowing Mohammed unlimited wives and
concubines, altered turns among wives, and exclusive restriction against others
marrying his wives.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:6
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:6
label: Prophetic widows compared with royal widows
summary: The restriction on remarriage of Mohammed’s wives is compared with Jewish
rulings against marrying the divorced wife or widow of a king, and the passage
says Mohammed’s relicts were to remain in perpetual widowhood.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: adultery ordeal by ritual drink and oath
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage describes a suspected adulteress being tested by bitter water
and an oath of cursing, and notes resemblance to a Mohammedan expedient.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage is legal-comparative commentary rather than a mythic narrative;
no divine agent is directly described as judging the outcome in this excerpt.
- id: motif:2
label: kinship boundaries regulating marriage
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage discusses prohibited degrees, customary avoidance of close-kin
marriage, and explicit prohibition of taking a father’s wife.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: This is an institutional/legal pattern, not a mythic episode.
- id: motif:3
label: exceptional marital privilege of a prophet
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage describes Mohammed as receiving exclusive privileges concerning
number of wives and concubines and order among wives.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The privileges are reported through Sale’s commentary and are framed polemically
as what Mohammed claimed.
- id: motif:4
label: restricted remarriage of wives of sacred or ruling figure
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage says no man could marry Mohammed’s wives and compares this with
Jewish rulings about the divorced wife or widow of a king.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage supports a legal analogy between prophetic and royal dignity,
but not a broader historical or mythic derivation.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage claims that the bitter-water ordeal for a woman suspected of
adultery resembles an expedient devised by Mohammed for a similar case.
claim_level: same_function
target: Mosaic/Jewish bitter-water jealousy ordeal and Mohammed’s comparable adultery
procedure
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage states resemblance but does not provide the details of
Mohammed’s expedient in this excerpt.
- id: claim:2
claim: The passage claims that Islamic institutions concerning menstrual pollution,
slave wives, and prohibited marriage degrees have affinity with the institutions
of Moses.
claim_level: same_function
target: Institutions of Moses concerning purity, marriage with slaves, and prohibited
degrees
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The claim is made by the commentator and is supported here only by
summary and footnote references, not by full parallel texts.
- id: claim:3
claim: The passage claims that the rule forbidding marriage to Mohammed’s wives
agrees with Jewish rulings that another man should not marry the divorced wife
or widow of a king.
claim_level: same_function
target: Jewish legal rule concerning wives or widows of kings
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The comparison is limited to the legal restriction on remarriage; the
passage does not establish historical dependence.
- id: claim:4
claim: The passage compares prophetic dignity with regal dignity as a rationale
for restricting remarriage of Mohammed’s relicts.
claim_level: same_function
target: Prophetic marital restriction and royal widow restriction
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: This is an interpretive explanation within the commentary and should
not be treated as an independent doctrinal statement without review.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 6508-6514
quote_or_summary: The passage describes punishment for a betrothed bondmaid convicted
of adultery, a rule against execution on one witness, and punishment for a husband
who slanders his wife.
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 6514-6519
quote_or_summary: A woman suspected of adultery without evidence is tried by drinking
the bitter water of jealousy and by an oath of cursing to which she says “Amen”;
the passage says this resembles Mohammed’s expedient on a like occasion.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized with brief quoted word.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 6520-6523
quote_or_summary: Institutions concerning women’s pollution during courses, taking
slaves as wives, and prohibited degrees are said to have affinity with the institutions
of Moses.
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 6524-6530
quote_or_summary: Pagan Arabs are described as avoiding marriage with mothers, daughters,
and aunts, condemning marriage to two sisters or to a father’s wife, while the
latter practice is said to have occurred and to be forbidden in the Koran.
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 6531-6539
quote_or_summary: 'Mohammed is described as claiming special privileges from God:
unlimited wives and concubines, and freedom to alter the turns of his wives.'
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 6539-6547
quote_or_summary: No man is permitted to marry Mohammed’s wives, whether divorced
or widowed; this is compared with Jewish rulings about wives of kings, and Mohammed’s
relicts are said to remain in perpetual widowhood.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: citation
locator: lines 6548-6561
quote_or_summary: Footnotes cite biblical, Koranic, and Jewish legal references
for the discussed institutions, including Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Numbers, Koran
chapters 4, 33, and 66, and Mishnah/Gemara material.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; citation summary.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: The legal observations and comparisons are explicit in the passage. Motif
classification is less certain because the passage is commentary on legal institutions,
not 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: |-
All entries are based only on the supplied passage and metadata. No historical dependence is inferred beyond the passage’s own stated comparisons.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg__l6508-l6561
passage_sha256=32bc12110943699ba94472446f7ee0b0f39176c730c553085e6a883050f37bad