batch.motif.sufi-jami-persian-mystics-davis-gutenberg-l1197-l1212
---
record_id: batch.motif.sufi-jami-persian-mystics-davis-gutenberg-l1197-l1212
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/persian-mystics-jami-davis.md
passage_locator:
label: FINITE AND INFINITE BEAUTY / HOW TO OBTAIN UNION WITH THE DIVINE / TRUTH
/ THE GOD BEHIND THE VEIL; lines 1197-1212
start: '1197'
end: '1212'
translation: 'The Persian Mystics: Jámí'
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: '"What eye is strong enough to gaze upon / The dazzling splendour of the
fount of light?"'
summary: A speaker addresses a beautiful veiled figure as a rose and asks why the
face remains hidden. The figure replies that, unlike earthly beauties, he can
still be described while veiled. The passage explains that the unveiled face would
be too bright to endure, comparing it to sunlight softened by a cloud-veil.
language: English
quote_policy: quoted
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The speaker addresses a figure as the fairest rose with a rosebud mouth and
asks why the figure always hides the face.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The addressed figure smiles and says that, unlike earthly beauties, he may
still be described when veiled.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The passage states that the uncovered face would be too bright and that no
eye could endure the sight of the fount of light.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: The passage compares intense sunlight in the sky with sunlight softened by
a veil of cloud.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: speaker
description: The first-person speaker who sighs and asks why the beautiful figure
hides the face.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: God behind the veil
description: A veiled, beautiful figure addressed as a rose; identified by the passage
heading as God behind the veil.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
roles:
- id: role:1
label: questioning speaker
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The speaker asks why the veiled figure hides the face.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: veiled divine beloved
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The heading identifies the figure as God behind the veil, and the passage
describes a beautiful veiled figure whose unveiled brightness cannot be endured.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: veil
literal_form: veil hiding or tempering a face or light
associated_figures:
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: sym:2
label: rose
literal_form: fairest rose with rosebud mouth
associated_figures:
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:3
label: fount of light
literal_form: dazzling splendour of the fount of light
associated_figures:
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:4
label: sun and cloud
literal_form: sunlight made softer by a veil of cloud
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Question to the veiled figure
summary: The speaker addresses the beautiful veiled figure and asks why the face
is hidden.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Answer from the veiled figure
summary: The figure answers that he can still be described while veiled, unlike
earthly beauties.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Explanation through overpowering light
summary: The passage says the unveiled face would be too bright to endure and illustrates
this with sunlight softened by cloud.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: veiled divine beloved
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_beloved
basis: The passage presents a beautiful figure identified as God behind the veil,
addressed in beloved imagery and described as veiled because the unveiled brightness
would be unbearable.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
confidence: high
cautions: The passage is lyric and symbolic; the role is inferred from the heading
and imagery rather than a narrative identification within the dialogue alone.
- id: motif:2
label: divine radiance mediated by concealment
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The veil prevents direct exposure to overwhelming brightness, as cloud tempers
painful sunlight into a gentler light.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: No specific taxonomy reference is available for veil or moderated divine
light in the supplied list.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage can be cautiously grouped with the divine beloved motif family
because the divine figure is addressed through beauty and beloved imagery while
remaining veiled.
claim_level: same_motif
target: divine_beloved
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage does not describe a full narrative of union or courtship;
the grouping rests on symbolic address and the heading.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: quote
locator: lines 1197-1201
quote_or_summary: '"O fairest rose, with rosebud mouth," I sighed, / "Why, like
coquettes, thy face for ever hide?"'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/persian-mystics-jami-davis.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt used for evidence.
- id: ev:2
type: quote
locator: lines 1202-1204
quote_or_summary: He smiled and says that unlike earthly beauties, even when veiled
he may still be described.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/persian-mystics-jami-davis.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized evidence.
- id: ev:3
type: quote
locator: lines 1205-1208
quote_or_summary: The uncovered face would be too bright; no eye is strong enough
to gaze on the dazzling fount of light.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/persian-mystics-jami-davis.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized evidence.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 1209-1212
quote_or_summary: Sunlight blazes painfully in the sky, but when tempered by a veil
of cloud it becomes soft and pleasant to the eye.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/persian-mystics-jami-davis.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized evidence.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: Literal imagery is clear. Motif classification is limited to the supplied
taxonomy and rests partly on the passage heading and symbolic beloved language.
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: |-
No supplied symbol taxonomy entries exactly match veil, rose, sun, cloud, or light, so symbol taxonomy references are empty.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:sufi-jami-persian-mystics-davis-gutenberg__l1197-l1212
passage_sha256=291d3969080f759b861b18a6db3dcb50aa75c79e42d9d192d80fbca2a067b424