batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l7878-l7936
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg-l7878-l7936
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
passage_locator:
label: SECTION VI. / OF THE INSTITUTIONS OF THE KORAN IN CIVIL AFFAIRS. / SECTION
VII. / SECTION VIII.; lines 7878-7936
start: '7878'
end: '7936'
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 theological opinions on divine power, human free
will, moral responsibility, and reward or punishment. It rejects a deterministic
position attributed to the Jabarians, presents a Sunni position in which human
power is limited and dependent on God's will, cites Solomon, Paul, and Abu Hamed
al-Ghazali, and uses analogies of clay and potter, straw moved by the sea, and
thinkers standing confused on the shore of a vast sea.
language: English with extended Latin quotations
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The passage says God could have created all people good but chose to create
both good and bad, because absolute free will and perfect choice belong to God
alone.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The passage cites Solomon as saying that life and death, good and evil, riches
and poverty are from God.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The passage cites Christians as saying that Paul compared a potter making
one vessel for honor and another for dishonor.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The Jabarian opinion is rejected as contrary to human consciousness of power
and choice, and as inconsistent with God's justice and the giving of laws with
rewards and punishments.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: The Sunni opinion is described as affirming that humans have power, but limited
power dependent on God's power and will.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: The passage says human deliberation about doing good or evil makes a person
worthy of punishment or reward.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: The passage distinguishes possible things, which depend on God's power, from
impossible things, which do not depend on God's power though they are comprehended
by God's wisdom.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: Human power is compared to straw moved by the motion of the sea.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:9
text: In the example of homicide, the passage attributes the inward operative power
to God while assigning the external act and choice to the human with respect to
commandment and law.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:10
text: Abu Hamed al-Ghazali is cited as saying the point of free will is hidden,
deep, and difficult to express, and that those who spoke of it remained confused
on the shore of a vast sea.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: God
description: The omnipotent divine agent whose power, will, wisdom, justice, commandments,
and laws are discussed.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Human being
description: The created human agent described as possessing consciousness, limited
power, choice, and responsibility with respect to good or evil actions.
role_refs:
- role:4
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Jabarians
description: A theological group whose opinion is rejected in the passage.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Zunis / Sonnites
description: The group whose third opinion is described as true in the passage.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Solomon
description: A cited authority said to have spoken in his proverbs about life, death,
good, evil, riches, and poverty coming from God.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: St. Paul
description: A cited Christian authority associated with the potter and vessels
comparison.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Abu Hamed al-Ghazali
description: A cited wise authority who describes the point of free will as hidden
and difficult to express.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
roles:
- id: role:1
label: supreme divine power
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage repeatedly states that all possible things and human power depend
on God's power.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:2
label: lawgiver and judge
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage refers to God's justice, laws, commandments, rewards, and punishments.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- id: role:3
label: divine knower
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage says God's wisdom knows both what will not be future and what
is impossible.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:4
label: limited moral agent
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Humans are described as having limited power, deliberation, choice, and responsibility
for external acts.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:7
- id: role:5
label: recipient of reward or punishment
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Human deliberation and actions with respect to divine law make a person worthy
of reward or punishment.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:6
label: rejected determinist position
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The passage says the Jabarian opinion is rejected as contrary to human consciousness
and divine justice.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:7
label: endorsed theological position
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The passage calls the Sunni opinion true and explains it at length.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:8
label: cited authority
assigned_to:
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
basis: Each is named as an authority whose saying or analogy is quoted or summarized.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:8
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: potter and vessels
literal_form: A potter makes one vessel for honor and another for dishonor.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: straw moved by the sea
literal_form: Human power is compared to straw moved by the motion of the sea.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:3
label: vast sea of free will
literal_form: Those speaking about free will are described as confused on the shore
of a great and spacious sea.
associated_figures:
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: sym:4
label: life and death / good and evil / riches and poverty
literal_form: Paired conditions listed as coming from God.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Rejection of Jabarian opinion
summary: The passage rejects the Jabarian view because it conflicts with human awareness
of choice and with divine justice, laws, rewards, and punishments.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:2
label: Explanation of Sunni opinion on limited human power
summary: The passage presents the Sunni view that humans have power and deliberation,
but that this power is limited and dependent on God's power and will.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: scene:3
label: Divine power, possibility, and impossibility
summary: The passage explains that possible things depend on God's power, while
impossible things are known by God's wisdom but do not depend on divine power
as possible creations.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:4
label: Homicide and moral accountability
summary: The passage uses homicide as an example, attributing the operative inward
power to God while holding the human accountable for external act and choice under
commandment and law.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: scene:5
label: Ghazali on the hidden point of free will
summary: Abu Hamed al-Ghazali is cited as saying that the point of free will is
so hidden and deep that ordinary writing and reasoning cannot express it adequately.
figure_refs:
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: divine judgment through law, reward, and punishment
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: The passage explicitly connects divine laws and commandments with human observance
or transgression and with reward or punishment.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The passage is theological exposition rather than narrative myth; the
motif is conceptual rather than event-based.
- id: motif:2
label: divine sovereignty and limited human agency
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage repeatedly states that human power and will depend on God's power
while still assigning humans external choice and responsibility.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: No exact supplied taxonomy family corresponds to predestination or free
will; this is recorded without a taxonomy reference.
- id: motif:3
label: pairs of opposed conditions from God
taxonomy_refs:
- duality
basis: The passage lists life and death, good and evil, riches and poverty as paired
conditions that come from God.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
confidence: medium
cautions: The duality appears as a doctrinal citation rather than a developed mythic
structure.
- id: motif:4
label: hidden wisdom beyond expression
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The passage cites God's wisdom regarding possibility and impossibility and
cites al-Ghazali on the hidden, profound point of free will that cannot be adequately
expressed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The motif is abstract and philosophical; it does not involve a wisdom
quest or narrative acquisition of wisdom.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage itself places Islamic discussion of divine sovereignty and human
responsibility alongside a Christian Pauline potter-and-vessels analogy.
claim_level: same_function
target: Christian Pauline potter-and-clay analogy concerning vessels for honor and
dishonor
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage reports the comparison as part of argumentation; it does
not establish historical contact beyond citation by the author.
- id: claim:2
claim: The passage itself uses Solomon's proverb-like pairing of life/death, good/evil,
and riches/poverty as a supporting authority for divine control over opposed conditions.
claim_level: same_function
target: Solomonic proverb tradition on opposed conditions coming from God
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage gives a brief citation rather than a full textual comparison.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 7878-7886
quote_or_summary: God could have created all good people, but chose to create both
good and bad; Solomon is cited as saying life and death, good and evil, riches
and poverty come from God.
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 7886-7889
quote_or_summary: Christians are said to cite St. Paul asking whether clay may question
the potter for making one vessel for honor and another for dishonor.
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 7894-7899
quote_or_summary: The Jabarian opinion is rejected as contrary to human consciousness
of power and choice and inconsistent with God's justice and laws that carry rewards
and punishments.
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 7899-7906
quote_or_summary: 'The Sunni opinion is described as true: humans have power, but
limited power dependent on God''s power and will; deliberation about good or evil
makes one worthy of punishment or reward.'
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 7906-7920
quote_or_summary: God's power concerns possible things, while God's wisdom also
comprehends things that are impossible; examples include creating another god
like God or a thing moving and resting at the same time.
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 7920-7926
quote_or_summary: All that exists or moves in heaven or earth depends on God's power;
human power is compared to straw moved by the motion of the sea.
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 7926-7932
quote_or_summary: In the case of killing, the passage says the act should not be
attributed solely to human power; God operates by eternal power, while fault is
assigned to the human with respect to commandment and law, and only the external
act and choice are attributed to the human.
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 7932-7936
quote_or_summary: Abu Hamed al-Ghazali is cited as saying the point of free will
is indivisible, secret, hidden, deep, and beyond adequate writing or reasoning;
those who discuss it stand confused on the shore of a vast sea.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: citation
locator: line 7936
quote_or_summary: A note cites Al Shahrestani as quoted in Pococke's Specimen, page
258.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-sale.md
rights_note: Public domain source; citation only.
confidence:
extraction: medium
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: The passage is doctrinal and philosophical rather than narrative mythology.
Motif labels are therefore conceptual and should be reviewed by a human specialist.
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 the supplied passage and metadata were used. Latin spellings and diacritics were normalized only in summaries where necessary for readability.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-sale-gutenberg__l7878-l7936
passage_sha256=ba743f597cc87c09e328094f6f818f1812b21f62ad417977193764c9d074b4a7