batch.motif.sufi-rumi-mesnevi-book-1-redhouse-gutenberg-l5384-l5512
---
record_id: batch.motif.sufi-rumi-mesnevi-book-1-redhouse-gutenberg-l5384-l5512
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/mesnevi-book-1-redhouse.md
passage_locator:
label: OF QONYA. / PREFACE. / IN THE NAME OF GOD, / THE ALL-MERCIFUL, THE VERY-COMPASSIONATE.;
lines 5384-5512
start: '5384'
end: '5512'
translation: The Mesnevi
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: The passage opens with the proem of the reed-flute, whose voice laments
separation from its reed-bed and describes love as grief, flame, cure, and longing
for return. It counsels freedom from lust and greed, describes love as raising
the earthly frame toward heaven, and invokes Mount Sinai and Moses. The first
tale begins with a prince who falls in love with a fair handmaid, obtains her
with gold, and is distressed when she falls sick. Physicians promise cures and
compare their healing power to Jesus, but because of pride and failure to say
'God willing,' their remedies worsen her condition.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A reed-flute speaks of being torn from its reed-bed and of causing men and
women to weep.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The speaker says one who is snatched far from home longs to return someday.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The flute's wail is described as a flame rather than a breath, and love is
said to prompt the flute and ferment wine.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The flute is described as both bane and cure, and as proclaiming an absent
lover's grief and joy.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: The passage advises casting off bonds of lust and not becoming enslaved by
wealth or greed.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: Love is addressed as a welcome guest, physician, and cure for pride and shame.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: Through love, the earthly frame is said to ascend to heaven.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:8
text: Mount Sinai is said to shake in a trance of love at God's descent, and Moses
is said to quake.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:9
text: A mirror is said to portray best when bright, but to lose its gleam when rusted;
wiping away the alloy restores reflection.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:10
text: A prince goes hunting with a courtly train, sees a fair handmaid near a grove,
falls in love, spends gold, and makes her his thrall.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: The handmaid falls sick, causing grief to the prince.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:12
text: The prince summons physicians and offers gold, jewels, and thanks to whoever
can save the handmaid.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:13
text: The physicians promise marvels and claim healing power like Jesus, but do
not say 'God willing' because of pride.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:14
text: The text states that the Lord would show human nothingness through the physicians'
pride.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:15
text: The physicians prescribe many drugs, but the handmaid becomes skeletal and
the remedies worsen the illness.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: reed-flute
description: A personified flute that tells a tale, laments absence, and speaks
of being torn from its reed-bed.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: absent lover
description: A lover associated with the flute's grief and joy, and with separation
from the beloved.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: love
description: Personified as flame, ferment, welcome guest, physician, and cure for
pride and shame.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: God / the Lord
description: Named in the opening invocation and later as the one whose will should
be acknowledged; God descends at Sinai.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Moses
description: Named as quaking when Mount Sinai shakes at God's descent.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: prince
description: A ruler with power and wealth who falls in love with a handmaid, obtains
her with gold, and seeks physicians when she falls sick.
role_refs:
- role:6
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: handmaid
description: A fair handmaid seen near a grove, made the prince's thrall, and later
sick.
role_refs:
- role:8
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: physicians / doctors / leeches
description: Physicians summoned by the prince who promise cures, omit 'God willing,'
and prescribe ineffective drugs.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Jesus
description: Named as the exemplar of healing power claimed by the physicians.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Galen
description: Named as a medical authority whose skill is said to be nothing compared
with love.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
roles:
- id: role:1
label: lamenting speaker
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The reed-flute narrates its separation and plaintive grief.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: absent lover
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The flute is called the absent lover's flute and proclaims grief and joy.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: healing and transforming force
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Love is described as flame, ferment, physician, cure, and the cause of ascent
toward heaven.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: role:4
label: divine authority
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The passage invokes God and says human action should be qualified by God's
will.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
- id: role:5
label: scriptural witness to theophany
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Moses is named as quaking at God's descent on Sinai.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:6
label: ruler
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The prince holds the power and wealth of Church and State.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:7
label: lover and seeker of cure
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: He falls in love with the handmaid and summons doctors to save her life.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:8
label: beloved
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The prince sees the handmaid and immediately falls in love with her.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:9
label: sick patient
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The handmaid falls sick and becomes skeletal under failed treatments.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: role:10
label: failed healers
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The physicians promise cures but their prescriptions worsen the handmaid's
condition.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: role:11
label: medical or healing exemplar
assigned_to:
- fig:9
- fig:10
basis: Jesus is invoked for healing power, and Galen as a benchmark of medical skill.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: reed-flute
literal_form: A flute made from a reed, separated from its reed-bed and voicing
lament.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: flame of love
literal_form: Flame associated with the flute's wail and with love.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:3
label: wine ferment
literal_form: Wine's ferment attributed to love.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:4
label: bonds of lust
literal_form: Bonds to be cast off for freedom from lust and greed.
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:5
label: sea and fish
literal_form: Whole seas and a fish used in a saying about sufficiency or insatiability.
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:6
label: oyster and pearl
literal_form: An oyster filled before a pearl is sent.
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:7
label: Mount Sinai
literal_form: A mountain that shakes at God's descent while Moses quakes.
associated_figures:
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- mountain
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:8
label: rose and Philomel
literal_form: The spring is over, the rose is gone, and Philomel's song is done.
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:9
label: bright mirror and rust
literal_form: A mirror that reflects clearly when bright but loses its gleam when
rusted.
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:10
label: heart as snared and caged
literal_form: The prince's heart is snared, and the handmaid's form is called its
cage or stall.
associated_figures:
- fig:6
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:11
label: failed medicines
literal_form: Oxymel, almond oil, myrobalans, nutgalls, naphtha, and drinks that
worsen the illness.
associated_figures:
- fig:7
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: The reed-flute laments separation
summary: The reed-flute tells of being torn from its reed-bed, making people weep,
and longing for return after separation from home.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Love as flame, grief, and cure
summary: The flute's wail is identified with love's flame; love is described as
grief, joy, bane, cure, physician, and a remedy for pride and shame.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Counsel against greed and bondage
summary: The speaker advises casting off lust's bonds and not serving wealth or
greed, using images of capacity, sea, fish, oyster, and pearl.
figure_refs: []
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
- sym:5
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Ascent and Sinai
summary: Love is said to cause the earthly frame to ascend toward heaven; Mount
Sinai shakes at God's descent and Moses quakes.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:5
label: Mirror purification image
summary: The proem concludes with an image of a mirror whose reflection is restored
when rust and alloy are wiped away.
figure_refs: []
symbol_refs:
- sym:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:6
label: The prince acquires the handmaid
summary: A wealthy prince goes hunting, sees a fair handmaid near a grove, falls
in love, spends gold, and makes her his thrall.
figure_refs:
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:7
label: Illness and failed physicians
summary: The handmaid falls ill; the prince summons physicians and offers reward.
The physicians promise cures without saying 'God willing,' and their remedies
worsen her sickness.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
symbol_refs:
- sym:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: separation from origin and longing for return
taxonomy_refs:
- departure
- return
basis: The reed-flute is torn from its reed-bed, laments absence, and states that
one snatched far from home longs to return.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
confidence: high
cautions: The motif is expressed in lyric and allegorical form; the passage does
not narrate an actual completed return.
- id: motif:2
label: love as burning and healing power
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_beloved
- annihilation_union
basis: Love is described as flame, wine's ferment, bane and cure, physician, and
cure of pride and shame.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage personifies love strongly, but the supplied excerpt does not
explicitly name the beloved as divine except through adjacent God/Sinai imagery.
- id: motif:3
label: mystical ascent through love
taxonomy_refs:
- ascent
- mystical_quest
basis: The passage says that through love the earthly frame ascends to heaven and
links love-trance with Sinai and Moses.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
confidence: medium
cautions: The ascent is stated as a poetic doctrine rather than narrated as a completed
journey.
- id: motif:4
label: purification of perception
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The mirror must be cleansed of rust or alloy before it can reflect clearly.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: The moral or mystical interpretation is suggested by the image, but the
passage itself gives only the mirror analogy.
- id: motif:5
label: beloved's illness and search for cure
taxonomy_refs:
- mystical_quest
basis: The prince's beloved handmaid falls sick, and he summons physicians with
promises of reward to save her life.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The quest for cure has begun in this excerpt, but its resolution lies
outside the supplied passage.
- id: motif:6
label: human skill humbled before divine will
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
- divine_judgment
basis: The physicians boast of their healing power, omit 'God willing' through pride,
and their remedies fail while the text says the Lord would show human nothingness.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The passage frames the failure as a moral lesson; no formal judgment scene
is narrated.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage explicitly invokes the Sinai scene, using Moses and the shaking
mountain as an analogue for love-induced trembling and divine descent.
claim_level: same_function
target: scriptural Sinai theophany pattern involving Moses and the mountain
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage alludes to the pattern but does not retell the Sinai narrative
in full or identify a specific source text beyond the named figures and scene.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: quote
locator: lines 5384-5512; Proem 'The Reed-Flute,' opening verses
quote_or_summary: The reed-flute says it was torn from the jungle-bed, makes men's
and women's eyes weep, and says one snatched from home longs to return.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/mesnevi-book-1-redhouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: quote
locator: lines 5384-5512; Proem, verses around 8-14
quote_or_summary: The flute's wail is 'a flame' and not breath; love prompts the
flute and ferments wine; the absent lover's flute proclaims grief and joy and
is called both bane and cure.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/mesnevi-book-1-redhouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: quote
locator: lines 5384-5512; Proem, verses around 16-25
quote_or_summary: The speaker counsels casting off lust's bonds and greed, addresses
love as physician and cure, says the earthly frame ascends to heaven through love,
and names Mount Sinai, God's descent, and Moses quaking.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/mesnevi-book-1-redhouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: quote
locator: lines 5384-5512; Proem, closing verses
quote_or_summary: After images of the absent delight, rose, and Philomel, the speaker
says a mirror reflects best when bright and must have rust or alloy wiped away.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/mesnevi-book-1-redhouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 5384-5512; 'The Prince and the Handmaid,' opening verses 1-5
quote_or_summary: A powerful and wealthy prince goes hunting, sees a fair handmaid
near a grove, falls in love, spends gold to obtain her, and she later falls sick.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/mesnevi-book-1-redhouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 5384-5512; 'The Prince and the Handmaid,' verses around 8-15
quote_or_summary: The prince calls doctors, says two lives depend on their skill,
offers rewards, and the doctors boast of healing power like Jesus but fail to
say 'God willing' because of pride; the Lord would show human nothingness.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/mesnevi-book-1-redhouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 5384-5512; 'The Prince and the Handmaid,' closing lines in supplied
excerpt
quote_or_summary: The doctors prescribe many drugs in vain; the handmaid becomes
skeletal, and treatments such as oxymel, almond oil, myrobalans, and drinks worsen
the condition.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/mesnevi-book-1-redhouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: Literal extraction is strong because the passage is explicit. Motif labels
involving mystical love and ascent are plausible but need human review, especially
where poetic images are mapped to broader motif families.
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 the provided passage and metadata. Taxonomy references are limited to supplied motif families and symbols.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:sufi-rumi-mesnevi-book-1-redhouse-gutenberg__l5384-l5512
passage_sha256=40a3f1e1a41b1d76371bd5ce4dd4f5d6e0a8e906e8641d530d0d8d68f56487cd