batch.motif.sufi-omar-khayyam-sufistic-quatrains-gutenberg-l12325-l12516
---
record_id: batch.motif.sufi-omar-khayyam-sufistic-quatrains-gutenberg-l12325-l12516
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
passage_locator:
label: QUATRAINS OF OMAR KHAYYAM / MONSIEUR J.B. NICOLAS / THE QUATRAINS OF KHAYYAM
/ THE QUATRAINS OF OMAR KHAYYAM; lines 12325-12516
start: '12325'
end: '12516'
translation: The Sufistic Quatrains of Omar Khayyam
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: A sequence of quatrains urges renunciation of worldly illusions and sorrow,
repeatedly praises wine, associates wine with divine pouring, life-water, hidden
understanding, and tavern rites, reflects on death and the body’s return to earth
as tomb-dust, jar-cover, bricks, or clay under the potter, invokes God’s pardon,
and uses images of roses, nightingales, thorns, trees, fire, the simourg, and
ruined worldly places.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The passage asks how long a person will be deceived by colors and perfumes
and seek out good and bad, then says even the source of Zemzem or the water of
life cannot avoid entering the earth.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Several quatrains urge drinking wine and resisting renunciation of it, including
during a season of roses, nightingales, and smiling weather.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:14
- id: obs:3
text: The friend, glossed in the passage as God, is described as pouring wine that
rejoices the speaker’s soul.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: Wine is said to contain the virtue of the water of life.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: The speaker asks that after death the dust of his tomb be leveled, his body’s
earth be mixed with wine, and the mixture made into a cover for a wine-jar.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: The Wheel of the Heavens is said to have closed the door to discussions, while
the cupbearer of eternity, glossed as God, has produced many other Khayyams as
globules of wine in the cup of creation.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:7
text: The passage says sorrow will be infinite, stars will keep moving, and bricks
made from the speaker’s body will be used to build palaces for others.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:8
text: The soul is described as crying after the body from which it will be separated,
and the head is described as being trampled under the potter’s feet.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:9
text: A person who passes unknown is called happy and is compared with the simourg
lifted into the skies and the owl sitting among ruins of the world.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:10
text: Drinkers are said to understand the language of roses and wine and what is
occult, while others are excused by ignorance.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:11
text: In the tavern, ablutions can be made only with wine, and a torn veil of shame
cannot be repaired.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: obs:12
text: The passage describes the heart as unable to find a remedy and the soul as
reaching the edge of the lips, glossed as death, without attaining the object
of its love.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: obs:13
text: In the regions of the soul one must walk with discernment, remain silent about
worldly things, and be without eyes, tongues, and ears while still having them.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: obs:14
text: The passage advises not planting the tree of sadness in the heart, but reading
the book of joy, drinking wine, and following the heart because remaining time
is short.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- id: obs:15
text: The speaker asks God for pardon and says God punishes late and pardons early.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
- id: obs:16
text: The speaker contrasts taking up the cup with taking the Koran and says the
only fire he knows is kindled by wine.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:17
- id: obs:17
text: A rose-cheeked charmer is associated with the sting of a thorn, and a comb
must be cut into many teeth before caressing perfumed hair.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:18
- id: obs:18
text: The speaker says he must go, that life is saddened by his going, and that
many important things remain unheard because of human ignorance.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:19
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Speaker / Khayyam
description: The first-person voice named as Khayyam in one quatrain; he drinks,
addresses God, reflects on death, and asks for posthumous treatment of his body.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:4
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:16
- ev:19
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: God / friend / cupbearer of eternity
description: God is glossed as the friend who pours wine and as the cupbearer of
eternity; God is also addressed in a plea for pardon.
role_refs:
- role:2
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
- ev:16
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Drinkers / drunkards
description: Drinkers are described as able to appreciate the language of roses
and wine and to understand occult matters.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Soul
description: The soul is rejoiced by wine, may cry after separation from the body,
and is described as reaching the edge of the lips near death.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:8
- ev:12
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Body / head / earth of the body
description: The body is imagined as tomb-dust, earth mixed with wine, bricks for
palaces, and a head trampled under the potter’s feet.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Simourg and owl
description: The unknown happy person is compared to the simourg lifted into the
skies and to the owl among the ruins of the world.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Roses and nightingales
description: Roses scatter or are washed clean, and nightingales sing or whisper
in seasonal scenes tied to wine.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:14
roles:
- id: role:1
label: wine-drinking speaker
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The speaker repeatedly asks for wine, refuses renunciation, and identifies
his hand with the cup.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:17
- id: role:2
label: divine wine-pourer
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: God is glossed as the friend who pours wine and as the cupbearer of eternity.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
- id: role:3
label: knowers of hidden language
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Drinkers alone are said to understand the language of roses and wine and
occult matters.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: role:4
label: separated or longing soul
assigned_to:
- fig:1
- fig:4
basis: The soul is rejoiced by divine wine, cries after the body, and fails to attain
the object of love before death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:8
- ev:12
- id: role:5
label: body returned to earth and human use
assigned_to:
- fig:1
- fig:5
basis: The dead body is imagined as earth for a wine-jar cover, bricks for palaces,
and clay under a potter’s feet.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: role:6
label: pardoning deity
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: God is addressed as one whose immensity is not diminished by sin and who
pardons early.
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: wine
literal_form: Wine, cup, juice of the vine, globules of wine, wine-jar, wine used
for ablutions
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:10
- ev:11
- ev:17
- id: sym:2
label: water of life and Zemzem
literal_form: Source of Zemzem and water of life
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- id: sym:3
label: earth of the dead body
literal_form: Tomb-dust, body-earth mixed with wine, bricks made from the body,
head under potter’s feet
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: sym:4
label: cup of creation
literal_form: Cup of creation containing globules of wine that are other Khayyams
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:5
label: roses and nightingales
literal_form: Roses scattering blossoms or washed by clouds; nightingales singing
or whispering
associated_figures:
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:14
- id: sym:6
label: tree of sadness
literal_form: Tree of sadness planted in the heart
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- tree
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- id: sym:7
label: fire kindled by wine
literal_form: Fire known by the speaker and kindled by wine
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:17
- id: sym:8
label: veil of shame
literal_form: A torn veil of shame that cannot be repaired
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: sym:9
label: simourg and owl in ruins
literal_form: Simourg lifted into the skies and owl among ruins of the world
associated_figures:
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: sym:10
label: thorn and comb teeth
literal_form: Thorn accompanying the rose-cheeked charmer; comb cut into many teeth
before caressing perfumed hair
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:18
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Illusion, life-water, and return to earth
summary: The addressee is warned against being deceived by appearances and told
that even life-giving waters cannot escape entering the earth.
figure_refs: []
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Wine, spring, and refusal of renunciation
summary: The speaker urges drinking wine while roses, nightingales, and mild weather
invite joy, and resists commands to renounce wine.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:14
- ev:20
- id: scene:3
label: Divine pouring of wine
summary: God, glossed as friend and cupbearer, pours wine that rejoices the soul
and generates many Khayyams in the cup of creation.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
- id: scene:4
label: Dead body transformed into useful matter
summary: The speaker imagines his body after death becoming leveled tomb-dust, wine-jar
covering, bricks for palaces, and clay beneath a potter.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: scene:5
label: Hidden knowledge in wine and tavern
summary: Drinkers understand the language of roses and wine and occult matters;
in the tavern, ablutions are performed with wine and shame remains irreparable.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- id: scene:6
label: Soul, discernment, and unfulfilled love
summary: The passage describes the soul’s approach to death without attaining love,
and advises discernment in the regions of the soul and silence regarding worldly
matters.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:13
- id: scene:7
label: Joy instead of sadness
summary: The passage advises contentment with bread and clothing, rejecting the
tree of sadness, reading the book of joy, drinking wine, and following the heart.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- ev:21
- id: scene:8
label: Prayer for divine pardon
summary: The speaker asks whether his worship or sins affect God’s greatness and
asks God not to punish, because God punishes late and pardons early.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
- id: scene:9
label: Beauty joined to pain
summary: The passage says one who embraces a rose-cheeked beloved will feel the
thorn and compares this to a comb cut into teeth before touching perfumed hair.
figure_refs: []
symbol_refs:
- sym:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:18
- id: scene:10
label: Departure and unheard wisdom
summary: The speaker says he must go and laments that only one precious pearl has
been pierced while many important things remain unheard because of human ignorance.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:19
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Wine as life-giving and soul-rejoicing medium
taxonomy_refs:
- mystical_quest
- wisdom
basis: Wine is linked with the water of life, divine pouring, soul-rejoicing, hidden
understanding, and tavern ablution.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:10
- ev:11
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage repeatedly praises wine, but the precise symbolic status of
wine requires interpretation beyond literal action.
- id: motif:2
label: Divine cupbearer and beloved source of joy
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_beloved
basis: God is glossed as the friend who pours wine for the speaker and as the cupbearer
of eternity.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage supplies glosses identifying God, but the beloved/cupbearer
imagery remains poetic and should be reviewed.
- id: motif:3
label: Body returned to earth and remade into human objects
taxonomy_refs:
- death_rebirth
basis: After death, the speaker’s body becomes earth mixed with wine, a wine-jar
cover, bricks for palaces, and clay trampled by a potter.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: This is material transformation after death rather than explicit personal
resurrection or rebirth.
- id: motif:4
label: Hidden wisdom accessible to drinkers
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
- mystical_quest
basis: Drinkers alone are said to understand the language of roses and wine and
occult matters.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage contrasts drinkers with the ignorant but does not give a systematic
doctrine.
- id: motif:5
label: Seasonal bloom as invitation to joy before time runs out
taxonomy_refs:
- seasonal_cycle
basis: Roses, nightingales, washed flowers, and mild weather frame exhortations
to drink and rejoice because life is short.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:14
- ev:15
confidence: high
cautions: The seasonal imagery is explicit, though the broader seasonal-cycle motif
is inferred from recurring spring-like signs.
- id: motif:6
label: Renunciation of sorrow and worldly illusion
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The passage warns against deception by colors and perfumes, advises not planting
the tree of sadness, and counsels discernment and silence concerning worldly things.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:13
- ev:15
confidence: medium
cautions: This is a didactic pattern rather than a narrative mythic episode.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 12325-12330
quote_or_summary: The addressee is asked how long he will be deceived by colors
and perfumes; even Zemzem or the water of life cannot avoid entering the earth.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: quatrain 133; lines 12332-12338
quote_or_summary: The speaker says not to renounce wine when roses scatter blossoms
and nightingales sing.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: quatrain 134; lines 12340-12348
quote_or_summary: The friend, glossed as God, pours wine that rejoices the speaker’s
soul; the speaker asks how he can renounce drinking without God ordering it.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: quatrain 135; lines 12350-12355
quote_or_summary: Constancy is linked with not renouncing wine, because wine has
the virtue of the water of life.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: quatrain 136; lines 12357-12362
quote_or_summary: After death, the speaker wants his tomb dust leveled, his body’s
earth mixed with wine, and made into a cover for a wine-jar.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: quatrain 137; lines 12364-12372
quote_or_summary: The Wheel of the Heavens closes discussion; the cupbearer of eternity,
glossed as God, produces many Khayyams as globules of wine in the cup of creation.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: quatrain 138; lines 12374-12379
quote_or_summary: The speaker urges gaiety, says sorrow is infinite, stars keep
moving, and bricks made from one’s body will build palaces for others.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: quatrain 139; lines 12381-12387
quote_or_summary: Travelers pass through the world; the soul cries after the separated
body, and the head is trampled under the potter’s feet.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: quatrain 140; lines 12389-12396
quote_or_summary: The happy heart passes unknown, not richly clothed, and is compared
to the simourg lifted into the skies and the owl among ruins.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: quatrain 141; lines 12398-12405
quote_or_summary: Drinkers know the language of roses and wine; drunkards alone
understand occult matters.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:11
type: summary
locator: quatrain 142; lines 12407-12413
quote_or_summary: In the tavern, ablutions can be made only with wine, and the torn
veil of shame cannot be repaired.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:12
type: summary
locator: quatrain 144; lines 12423-12430
quote_or_summary: The heart finds no remedy; the soul reaches the edge of the lips,
glossed as death, without attaining the object of love.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:13
type: summary
locator: quatrain 145; lines 12432-12438
quote_or_summary: In the regions of the soul one must walk with discernment, be
silent about worldly things, and be without eyes, tongues, and ears while having
them.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:14
type: summary
locator: quatrain 153; lines 12510-12516
quote_or_summary: The season smiles, clouds wash dust from roses, and nightingales
seem to tell yellow flowers that wine is balm for all.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:15
type: summary
locator: quatrain 147; lines 12447-12454
quote_or_summary: One should not plant the tree of sadness in the heart, should
read the book of joy, drink wine, and follow the heart because remaining time
is short.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:16
type: summary
locator: quatrain 148; lines 12456-12462
quote_or_summary: The speaker asks God whether his obeisance or sins change God’s
immensity, and asks for pardon, saying God punishes late and pardons early.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:17
type: summary
locator: quatrain 149; lines 12464-12472
quote_or_summary: The speaker contrasts a hand accustomed to the cup with taking
the Koran, calls himself moist through drink, and says the only fire he knows
is kindled by wine.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:18
type: summary
locator: quatrain 150; lines 12474-12481
quote_or_summary: A rose-cheeked charmer brings the sting of a thorn; a comb must
be cut into teeth before caressing perfumed hair.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:19
type: summary
locator: quatrain 152; lines 12501-12508
quote_or_summary: The speaker says he must go, life is saddened by his going, only
one precious pearl has been pierced, and many important things remain unheard
because of ignorance.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:20
type: summary
locator: quatrain 151; lines 12483-12499
quote_or_summary: The speaker wishes to keep the juice of the vine in hand and love
beautiful idols like houris, and says he would not obey a command to renounce
these things.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:21
type: summary
locator: quatrain 146; lines 12440-12445
quote_or_summary: A person with bread, clothing, and neither mastery nor servitude
is told to live content and has a sweet existence.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/sufi/project-gutenberg/sufistic-quatrains-omar-khayyam.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: medium
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: The literal imagery is clear, but Sufi-symbolic readings of wine, tavern,
beloved, and death imagery require human review. No comparison claims were added
because the passage itself does not explicitly compare traditions or 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: |-
All evidence is drawn from the supplied public-domain passage. Taxonomy references are limited to supplied available refs.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:sufi-omar-khayyam-sufistic-quatrains-gutenberg__l12325-l12516
passage_sha256=0db09cb6188ac4a8d3145ff09c58fadf0119036dcfc722a5e7e784c8fbc432bf