Dante AlighieriPurgatoryfrom The Divine Comedy The Divine Comedy is an epic poem in three parts, describingthe poet’s imagined journey through Hell, Purgatory and Paradise, andculminating in his vision of God. To this extent, it has much in common with the epicmasterpieces of Homer and Virgil whose roots are in history and myth; but theCommedia is also an allegory, dealing with nothing less than man’s relationshipwith and place within the universe. Dante’s universe was, of course, a medievalone in which the sun and stars revolved around the Earth, and while theCommedia takes account of contemporary science in minute detail, his vision ofthe way in which the regions of the afterworld might be contained within thisframework is brilliant in its originality. Hell (the Inferno) is conceived as atapering funnel plunging down into the earth beneath the Northern hemisphere.At its deepest point a passage leads out into the Southern hemisphere, whereMount Purgatory — its shape mirroring that of Hell — tapers upwards towardsHeaven. Paradise itself is conceived as a series of ten ‘spheres’ encirclingthe Earth, with God somewhere beyond the tenth, merely glimpsed by Dante asconsciousness ebbs from him. This colossal construction is subdivided to create a zonefor every facet of human nature. In Hell and Purgatory a place is allotted forevery sin and foible, which exists within the world, while in Paradise the pureand just, the saints and the Holy Trinity are arranged in a strict hierarchy.Dante peoples each region with figures from literature, history and from hisown contemporary society. This allows him to comment on issues of morality notin merely abstract terms, but in relation to actual people and events, many ofthem of titillating contemporary relevance. Because of this, many of the namesencountered mean nothing to modern readers, and this is one of the reasons whymost editions of Dante incorporate many pages of notes for each page of text (apractice which began, incidentally, within a few years of the poem’s firstpublication). The main purpose, however, is not to point the finger or poke funat friends and enemies (though there is undoubtedly an element of this), but toexamine the reality of man’s human and spiritual nature in all its various andcomplex manifestations. Dante calls the three books of The Divine Comedy, ‘canzoni’.Each contains 33 chapters or ‘cantos’, except Inferno, which has an additionalintroductory canto — making 100 cantos in all. Each canto contains roughly 150lines composed according to a strict metrical and rhyme scheme. The language ofthe poem is, importantly, not Latin (as was customary for high art in Dante’sday) but the language used by educated people in 14th century Florence. Inaddition, Dante made liberal use of archaic language and regional dialects, allof which makes life very difficult for the modern translator. But Dante’spurpose was to make his work readable by the ‘ordinary’ reader — not merelyclerics and academics — for despite its lofty theme and layers of symbolism,The Divine Comedy is intended to speak to us directly through the power ofDante’s imagery and narrative skill. This work has not only endured, but has exerted a powerfulinfluence on Western thought for almost seven centuries, especially perhaps TheInferno, whose characters and images can be found peppered throughoutliterature and art right up to the present day. Tchaikovsky’s Francesca daRimini and Puccini’s Gianni Schicci are borrowed from it. Illustrations forDante editions inspired well-known masterpieces by Botticelli, Blake and Doré,while the Pre-Raphaelite painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti (his first name anobvious choice for a father who was a Dante scholar and reputedly able torecite the entire Commedia from memory) returned time and again to Dante forinspiration, notably in the enigmatic “Beata Beatrix”. Samuel Beckett’s plays and novels are full of allusions toboth The Inferno and Purgatory — shades walking slowly weighed down by leadencloaks (Inferno-Canto XXIII), creatures swimming in mud poking and whistling atone another (Inferno-Canto XXII), and indolent characters with littleinclination to struggle any further (Purgatory-Canto IV). Indeed, the characterBelacqua who Dante encounters here, is the primary source for all those laterBeckett characters who might say: “what’s the good in climbing?” One of the principal characters in The Divine Comedy (thoughshe does not actually appear in The Inferno) is Beatrice, whose significance inDante’s life needs to be understood. Dante first met and fell in love withBeatrice Portinari when she was eight and he nine years old. He worshiped herfrom afar until her early death at the age of twenty-four. (Dante tells thefull story of this strange ‘love affair’ in his La Vita Nuova). Beatrice thencame to symbolize for Dante all that is pure and worthy. In the Commedia it isBeatrice who sends the poet Virgil to guide Dante through Hell and Purgatory.In Purgatory she herself assumes responsibility for his journey of discovery, andit is she who later reveals to him the splendors of Paradise, leading himeventually to “that love that moves the Sun and other stars.” And it is in Purgatory that Dante gives us the nub of theproblem. The lengthy discourse on love and free will (Canto XVIII) prepares usfor Dante’s meeting with his idealized love and for her unexpected reprimands(Canto XXX). She argues that at her death Dante might have dedicated his greattalents to her (to purity, to wisdom and to truth) but that he allowed himself tobe turned away and thus wasted himself. Her purpose in revealing the Divineorder to him is to restore him to the true path. The almost cinematic splendor of Beatrice’s appearance atthe head of a fantastic allegorical procession provides a stunning climax tothis second book of the trilogy. Notes by Roger Marsh CANTO I Dante and Virgil emerge from Hell just before Dawn on EasterSunday. They meet Cato of Utica, guardian of the shores of Purgatory whochallenges them as fugitives from Hell. They explain their mission. Four stars: Prudence, Justice, Fortitude and Temperance.Cato: guardian of the island-mountain; An opponent of Caesarand a suicide, but also a symbol of devotion to freedom, for whichhe died. At the foot of Purgatory he is on the highest rung ofnatural virtues,and the lowest of godly virtues.Magpies: Pierus, king of Emathia, had nine daughters whounwisely challenged the Muses to a contest of song. Defeated, they were changedinto magpies for their presumption. CANTO II Dante observes a strange object crossing the water — theAngel boatmanferrying souls from their gathering place at the mouth ofthe Tiber toPurgatory’s shore. Casella: a musician-singer friend of Dante’s. All who wish to cross: Boniface VIII declared a Jubilee Yearfrom Christmas 1299 to Christmas 1300 extending plenary indulgence to all pilgrims to Rome, believed to extend to the dead. CANTO III They race on. At the base of the cliff they meet the firstLate Repentants;souls who put off desire for grace and must wait forpurgation. TheContumacious, here, died excommunicated but surrenderedtheir souls to God at the point of death. They must wait thirty times theperiod it took them to repent, their contumacy.Brindisi: Virgil’s body was taken from Brindisi to Naples in19 BC.Manfred: Kingof Sicily, opposed by the Papacy. CANTO IV They reach the opening in the cliff face and begin theclimb. Dante flagsbut Virgil urges him to the next level of the LateRepentants: the Ledge ofthe Indolent. Virgil explains that the beginning of theascent (turning fromSin to True Repentance) is the hardest, but the higher onegoes, the easierit becomes. More than one soul: Plato claimed we have three souls, eachwith a specific function, the vegetative, the emotional and theintellectual. Belacqua: a Florentine lute maker and friend of Dante famed forindolence. CANTO V Dante’s shadow creates excitement among the souls of thenext level, thosewho died by violence without last rites. Since their lives were cut shortthey did not have the chance to repent fully, and so areplaced higher thanthe Indolent. Miserere: Psalm 51, which asks for forgiveness andpurification of the soul.Buonconte: the son of Guido da Montefeltro, in Hell as anevil counselor.Buonconte was killed at the battle of Campaldino. Giovannawas his wife.Pia: traditionally Pia de’ Tolomei of Siena, whose jealoushusband suspected her of adultery and threw her from a window to her death. CANTO VI The souls of those who died by violence continue to pressaround Dante. Hepromises to bear word of them back to the world, but doesnot pause. Virgilspeaks of the power of prayer to shorten time in Purgatorybut tells Danteto wait for Beatrice to explain. They come upon Sordello, aMantuan likeVirgil. Sordello: a troubadour poet of the early 13th century.Justinian: emperor of Constantinople 527-565, author of thecode of Roman law, ‘the bridle’.Marcellus: a Roman senator who opposed Caesar but wasforgiven by him. CANTO VII Sordello pays homage to Virgil and offers to guide the poetsto St. Peter’s Gate. He explains that none may climb during sunset, and showsthem a flowering valley to rest in. They observe the Negligent Rulers of theLate Repentants, to whom personal satisfaction was more important than publicduty. Snubnose: Philip III of France, the lily is the symbolof France.Kindly features: Henry of Navarre, reportedly suffocated byhis own fat.France’s Plague: Philip IV of France, whose misrule uniteshim with hisfather and father-in-law Henry of Navarre.Robust soul, handsome nose: former enemies, Pedro III ofAragon and Charles I of Anjou. Pedro was responsible for the massacre of theFrench in the ‘Sicilian Vespers’ of 1282. Young man: Alfonso III, the Magnificent, King of Aragon whodied in 1291without heirs.Henry [III] of England: a pious but slothful king whose son,Edward I, was an improvement.William, Marquis: of Montferrat, was captured quelling arebellion inAlessandria and displayed in an iron cage until his death.The Alessandriansinvaded Montferrat and Canovese. CANTO VIII The hour of evening worship arrives. The souls gather andsing the eveningCompline hymn asking for protection in the night. Two angelsdescend fromheaven and take their posts one on each side of the valley.The poets jointhe souls. Te lucis ante terminum: ‘To thee before the ending of thelight’, theopening lines of the Compline hymn. CANTO IX Dante falls asleep. He dreams he is clasped in the talons ofan eagle andraised into an orb of fire. When he wakes he is alone withVirgil, furtherup the mountain, at the portals of Purgatory itself. Theangel inscribesseven P’s on his forehead (for peccatum - sin) representingseven deadlysins to be purged. Tithonus: husband of Aurora, for whom she gained the gift ofeternal lifebut not eternal youth. He grew old and decrepit beside hisageless bride,who eventually turned him into a cicada.We reached the steps: the three stages of repentance. Whitefor sincerity, black and rough for contrition and sorrow for sin, red forpenance and the ardor that leads to good works.Seven P’s: the sins of Pride, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Avarice,Gluttony and Lust.Te Deum laudamus: ‘We praise thee O God’ CANTO X The door clangs shut behind them, and they are faced bynarrow fissure toclimb. Three hours later they come to the first terrace. Onone side is aprecipice, on the other a frieze of marble reliefs. Virgilasks Dante toobserve the penitents of this level bent double under theweight ofboulders — the proud brought low. Polycletus: A fifth century sculptor unsurpassed in carvingimages of men.‘Ecce ancilla Dei’: behold the hand maid of the Lord, thewords of theVirgin Mary at the Annunciation. Luke 1:38The humble psalmist: King David, dancing in humility beforethe Ark of the Covenant. (11 Sam. 6:1-17) Michal his wife was punished withsterility for her scorn. CANTO XI The proud souls, bent double, speak a version of the Lord’sPrayerinterceding for the living and for those still in Purgatory. Oderisi glory of Gubbio: an illuminator of manuscripts who in life boasted he had noequal in painting.Cimabue: a great Florentine master c. 1240-1302 who brokefrom the Byzantine tradition of art with a more natural style.Giotto: a pupil of Cimabue who went on to surpass hismaster. CANTO XII Virgil bids Dante straighten up, but then asks him toobserve the reliefbeneath his feet, with depictions of great pride fromLucifer to the storyof Troy; the Reign of Pride. They reach the angel guidingthe next terrace,who erases the symbol of pride from Dante’s forehead. Briareus: one of the giants who challenged Jupiter.Thymbraeus: another name for Apollo.Niobe: the mother of seven sons and seven daughters whoclaimed hersuperiority over Latona, who had only two. They were Apolloand Diana, who killed her sons and daughters respectively. Niobe was turned tostone, and left to weep stone tears.Arachne: challenged Minerva to a weaving contest, and won,but was turned into a spider.Tomyris: a Scythian queen who decapitated her son’smurderer, Cyrus, Emperor of the Persians, and threw his head into a vessel ofblood, urging him to drink.Beati paupares spiritu: the first beatitude. Blessed are thepoor in spirit,in praise of humility. CANTO XIII The next terrace is apparently deserted, but as Dante andVirgil walk onthey hear voices crying out examples of great love forothers. These voicesare the Whip of Envy. The souls, when they see them, havetheir eyes sealed, until their envious looks are cured. The examples are ofcharitable concern for others. ‘Vinum non habent’: they have no wine, an allusion to thewedding feast at Cana, where Mary solicits Christ’s first miracle.‘I am Orestes’: Orestes was condemned to death for avengingthe murder of his father, Agammemnon. Pylades pretended to be Orestes to savehis friend’s life, but Orestes would not allow it and asserted his identity.Each declared ‘I am Orestes’. CANTO XIV Two speakers begin to discuss Dante as though he were asdeaf as they areblind. When Virgil and he move on Dante is struck withterror by twodisembodied voices that break over them like thunder — theRein of Envy. Circe: an enchantress, with the power to turn men intobeasts.It flows on: Guido describes the nature of the inhabitantsof the varioustowns of the Arno valley.‘I shall be slain’: the voice is of Cain facing God’spunishment ‘I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth and who everfinds me will kill me.’Gen 4: 13-14I am Aglauros: the second example of Envy. Aglauros,daughter of the king of Athens, tried out of jealousy to prevent a meetingbetween hersister and Mercury, and so was turned to stone. CANTO XV The travelers have rounded a quarter of the mountain and nowface the sun setting in the north. The Angel of Caritas, who passes them on tothe next ledge, dazzles Dante. The Angel sings the fifth beatitude as theyenter the Third Cornice — the Wrathful. The visions that entrance Dante are theWhip of Wrath, extolling the virtue of Meekness. The more each posesses: sharing love does not diminish butincreases the quantity of it.‘Why have you done this to us’: the words of Mary when shefinds Jesus in the temple are meek, despite her distress at losing him.‘If you are ruler of this city’: the allusion is to Athens,over whichNeptune and Athena contested. Pisistratus, its benevolenttyrant was famous for turning away anger with a soft answer.Stoning a boy to death: St. Stephen, the first Christianmartyr. CANTO XVI Dante is blinded by smoke that purifies the wrathful, andclings to Virgil.He hears their voices singing Agnus dei, the lamb of Godsymbol of themeekness of divine love. They sing with one voice for Wrathis the sin thatbreeds division among men. From the fond hands of God: Marco has said that if the worldhas gone astray it is man’s fault, not the stars. But the state of the world isnot caused by depravity inherent in human nature — the soul is innocent but inneed of guidance. The lack of guidance has brought the present corrupt stateabout. CANTO XVII Emerging from the smoke Dante sees the visions that make therein of Wrath. The Angel of Meekness calls them to the next level, but it isdark and the Poets must rest. Virgil explains Purgatory. I saw the cruelty of one: Procne, angered by her husband’srape of hersister killed her own son in wrath and fed him to hisfather. She was turnedinto nightingale.A figure who was crucified: Haman, minister of Ahasuerus,king of Persia, enraged that the Jew Mordecai refused to do him homagepersuaded the king to crucify all the Jews. Esther convinced Ahasuerus ofHaman’s wickedness and the minister was crucified instead.O my queen: Amata wife of Latinus and mother of Lavinia,hoped Turnus would marry her daughter and kill Aeneas, the invader. Amatakilled herself in a rage after hearing a rumor of Turnus’ death. Her crime wasagainst herself and God’s will however because Aeneas was chosen by God tofound Rome and the Empire. CANTO XVIII Dante inquires more about the nature of love. Virgilexplains warning thathe must seek the final answer from Beatrice. A train ofsouls come runninground the mountain — the slothful, now in too much of ahurry to stop and talk. Ismenus and Asopus: Boetian rivers, near Thebes.Barbarossa: Emperor Frederick I, who destroyed Milan in1162.One foot in the grave: Alberto dell Scala, Lord of Verona,who died in1301; the year is presently 1300. CANTO XIX Dante dreams of the Siren, hideous in her true form but whogrowsirresistible as men stare on her. Virgil, prompted by aHeavenly lady stripsthe Siren, exposing her deformities. Dante awakes and theycontinue to thefifth cornice of the Avaricious — the hoarders andspendthrifts. The sweet Siren: represents the vices of Avarice, Gluttonyand Lust which will be purged on the upper three terraces.‘I was Peter’s successor’: Pope Adrian V, of the counts ofLavagna, theriver mentioned. CANTO XX The Poets find the ledge so crowded with sinners there isonly a narrow path left to walk. Dante hears a soul cry out the Whip ofAvarice. The sinner proceeds to denounce the Capetian dynasty, which hefounded, then offer exampla of the Rein of Avarice. The mountain is shaken asif by an earthquake.How poor then you were: the blessed poverty of Mary.Fabricius: the honorable poverty of a Roman Consul whorefused to deal in bribes, and died so poor the state buried him.(Saint) Nicholas: bishop of Myra in Lycia, whose generositysaved animpoverished nobleman from turning his daughters to a lifeof sin throughlack of dowry.Evil past and future may seem less: refers to Philip theFair’s attack on Boniface VII in 1303. He was threatened with execution anddied of‘hysterical seizures.’ The crime, to Dante, dwarfed allelse.Pygmalion: a king of Tyre.Achan: stole some of the consecrated spoils of Jericho.Joshua had him stoned to death with his family. CANTO XXI A newcomer explains why the mountain appeared to shake. Itis Statius anadmirer of Virgil’s work and a poet himself.She who sits spinning: Lachesis, who spins the thread of aman’s life from the measure of wool her sister Clotho puts on the distaff.Atropos the third sister cuts the thread when it is finished.Thaumus daughter: Iris, personification of the rainbow.Tremors: for Dante, earthquakes were caused by winds trappedunderground.Worthy Titus: emperor from 79- 81 AD, destroyed Jerusalem.Statius: the major poet of the Silver Age of Latinliterature. He nevercompleted his second major work the Achilleid. His first isthe Thebaid. CANTO XXII Statius explains how he became a Christian, and inquiresafter his favoritepoets of aniquity. Statius’ besetting sin was prodigality.They come to atree laden with fruits, and from within the foliage a voicecries outexempla for the whip of Gluttony. Jocasta: the mother of Oedipus, whom she later unwittinglymarried. Her two sons Eteocles and Polynices killed each other, the subject ofStatius Thebaid.Many of your people: characters from Statius works.A tree that blocked our path: small branches at the bottom,growing larger at the top, make the fruit unattainable.Daniel: spurned meat and drink of the king’s table and wasgiven the gift by God of interpreting visions and dreams. CANTO XXIII The three poets hear Psalm 51, and a band of emaciatedspirits come frombehind them — the Gluttonous. Dante recognizes one by hisvoice, hisfeatures are so changed by starvation. Forese Donatialthough a laterepentant, has moved up the mountain because of his widow’sprayers. Labis Mea Domine: ‘Open my lips O lord, and my mouth shallsing yourpraises,’ the prayer of the gluttonous.Erysichthon: commited an outrage by cutting down the treesin a grove sacred to Ceres. She afflicted him with ravenous hunger, which ledhim to eat his own flesh.OMO: a medieval notion that God had signed his handiwork,OMO dei, man [is] of God. The eye sockets form the O’s and the brows, nose andcheekbones the M.Eli: Eli, eli, lema sabachthani, my God my God who hast thouforsaken me.Matthew 27 46.Barbagia women: famous for being lascivious and barebreasted. CANTO XXIV Forese identifies many of the Gluttonous. They come to theTree of Knowledge and having skirted it meet the Angel of Abstinence who showsthem to the ascent. Piccarda: Forese’s sister, who took vows but was forced intoa political marriage.Bonagiunta of Lucca: poet and orator of repute, but a famousglutton and drinker too.One behind him: Pope Martin IV, a good pope, if a glutton.Take heart: Forese’s prophecy of the downfall of CorsoDonati, his brother. CANTO XXV Dante wonders how purely spiritual beings can feel hungerand thirst. Statius explains and he finishes as they arrive at the seventh andlast terrace. Meleager: was fated to live as long as a piece of wood onhis mother’shearth remained unconsumed. She kept it from the fire untilin revenge forthe death of her brothers, whom he killed, she burned it. Asit wasconsumed, he died.Summus Deus clementia: God of supreme clemency, the hymn ofthe Lustful, asking God to banish Lust from their hearts.‘Virum non cognosco’: ‘I know no man,’ the reply of theVirgin Mary when she was told she would conceive and bear a son.Diana Helice: Diana took to the woods to preserve hervirginity. Helice, one of her nymphs, was seduced by Jove and banished. CANTO XXVI They proceed avoiding the flames. A conversation beginsbetween Dante and some souls, but is interrupted by another group of soulsrushing in the opposite direction. The two groups greet each other, and thenshout exempla of Lust. Sodom and Gomorrah: words shouted in self-reproach for thesin of sodomy.Pasiphae enters the cow: the wife of Minos of Crete whoPoseidon caused to lust after a bull. She had a structure made resembling a cowinto which she climbed and was possessed by the bull. The union produced theMinotaur.Guido Guinzelli: vernacular poet of mid 13th century.Arnault Daniel: author of late 13th century Provencalpoetry, some pornographic. CANTO XXVII They meet the angel of chastity but Dante is afraid to passthrough thecurtain of fire. Virgil persuades him in Beatrice’s name. Achant comingfrom the other side guides them, sung by the Angel guardianof the EarthlyParadise. They hurry on but night overtakes them and theysleep on the steps up. Dante has a prophetic dream. Beati mundo corde: Blessed are the pure in heart.Pyramus and Thisbe: tragic lovers of Babylon. At theirrendezvous by amulberry bush, Pyramus comes across Thisbe’s bloody scarfand assumes she has been killed. He stabs himself, and his blood stains theground turning the mulberries, hitherto white, a deep red. Thisbe whispers hername to him as he dies.Leah: the first wife of Jacob; Rachel was his second. Leahwas fertile,Rachel sterile but with beautiful clear eyes. They were heldto berepresentative of the active and contemplative liferespectively. CANTO XXVIII Dante wanders at leisure in the earthly paradise until thewaters of Letheblock his way. He comes across Matilda who explains theGarden to him. A solitary lady: Matilda who symbolizes the active life ofthe Soul, butalso the intermediary between Human Reason and Beatrice’svariousmanifestations Divine Love, contemplative life of the souland others.Delectasti: from Psalm 92. ‘For thou Lord hast made me gladthrough thy Work.’Lethe: classically, the river from which the souls of thedead drink to forget their first existence. Eunoe is Dante’s invention from theGreek for well-minded. CANTO XXIX When the lady has finished speaking, she begins to walkupstream singing,Dante keeping pace with her on the other side. A gloriouslight and sweetmelody fills the air with rapture. Dante cries out againstEve’s daring,through which such joy was lost to mankind. The heavenly pageant: is an allegory of the churchtriumphant. The seven candlesticks and their rainbow trails represent the giftsof the Holy Spirit (wisdom understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, piety andfear of the Lord. The twenty-four elders are the books of the Old Testament,and the four beasts guarding the chariot, the evangelists — Mathew, Mark, Lukeand John. The griffon’s dual nature reflects the human and divine nature ofChrist. To the right of the chariot the three dancing ladies are thetheological virtues Faith, Hope and Charity; to the left arethe fourCardinal virtues: Prudence Justice, Fortitude, andTemperance. The seven men following are the remaining books of the NewTestament, the last being the Apocalypse of St. John.Three eyes: indicate Prudence’s ability to see past presentand future.Prudence is a good memory of the past, good knowledge of thepresent, and good foresight of the future.Great Hippocrates: the reference is to Luke, the physicianof the soul.The other: St. Paul. The sword represents the word of God.Four with an humble aspect: the minor epistles of James,Peter, John and Jude. CANTO XXX Dante encounters Beatrice, feeling shame at the years he hasignored her.Dante turns to Virgil and finds he has disappeared. BeatricereprimandsDante for having wasted his talents.Veni sponsa de Libano: ‘come my bride from Lebanon’ from theSong of Solomon. Here the soul is wedded to Christ.Benedictus qui venis: ‘Blessed art thou that comest’ Matthew21: 9Manibus, O date lilia plenis: O, give us lilies with fullhands, Aeneid VI883. A tribute to the now departed Virgil.Appeared a lady: Beatrice, who in life, left Dantestupefied. He would often faint in her presence.I know the flame of old: the words spoken by Dido of herpassion for Aeneas, which she thought had died, Aen IV, 23.In te Domini speravi: ‘In thee, O lord have I put mytrust.’ Psalm 31 CANTO XXXI Beatrice’s reprimand continues, forcing Dante to confess hisfaults until heswoons with grief and pain at the thought of his sin. Hewakes in the waters of Lethe, held by Matilda. Asperges me: Cleanse me [of sin]. Psalms Ii 7. Matilda isperforming theoffice of absolution after Dante’s confession andrepentance.The four women: the Cardinal virtues Justice, Prudence,Fortitude,Temperance. Here as nymphs, but also as the stars Dante sawat the base of the mountain.Three beyond: faith hope and charity.Second beauty: i.e., salvation.Parnassus: the fountain of Castalia. To drink from it is toreceive poeticgifts, to grow pale in its shadow is to labor at masteringthe art. CANTO XXXII Beatrice unveils and for the first time in ten years hegazes on herradiance, thereby nearly losing his sight. He recovers toobserve a strangemetamorphosis of the chariot, an allegory of the church interms of themisdirection and heresies it has suffered. The tree: is an off shoot of the Tree of Knowledge, fromwhich Christ’sCross was made. The pole the Griffon is pulling and whatdraws the Church(i.e. the chariot) forward is allegorically the true crosstoo.Syrinx: The hundred eyes of Argus, or Panoptes, Juno’sgamekeeper set towatch Io her rival in love for Jupiter. Mercury lulled himto sleep andbeheaded him. Juno set Argus’ eyes into the peacock’s tail.Bird of Jove: the eagle. Here its attack symbolizes theRoman persecution of early Christianity. The ship metaphor is often used forthe Church.A fox: the heresies that threatened the early church.A dragon: SatanThe seven heads: the deadly sins. Those with two horns, theworst, PrideWrath and Envy, Avarice Sloth Gluttony and Lust have onlyone, as sins ofthe flesh not the spirit.Ungirt whore: the corrupt papacy.The giant: the French monarchy, especially Philip the Fair,who forced thepapacy to Avignon and under his control. CANTO XXXIII The seven nymphs sing a hymn of sorrow for the Church. Theywalk on infront, with Dante, Statius and Matilda behind Beatrice. Shedelivers anobscure prophecy regarding the church for Dante to recordfor the living.Dante drinks from the restoring waters of Eunoe and is readyfor the stars. Deus venerunt gentes: a lament for the destruction of thetemple ofJerusalem — ‘O God, the nations have come into yourinheritance, thy holy temple they have defiled.’ Psalm 78. Modicum et non videbitis me: a little while and you shallnot see me, (et iterum), and again (modicum et vos videbitis me), a littlewhile and you shall see me. The words of Christ regarding his own departure andreturn. John 16, 16. Tigris and Euphrates: two of the four rivers mentioned inGenesis aswatering the Earthly Paradise. Notes by Benedict Flynn Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri was born in Florence in 1265 into a familyof the city’slesser nobility in reduced circumstances. They were Guelphs,a partyoriginally identified with the claims of papal authority andopposed by theGhibellines, who offered allegiance to the German Emperorsin Italy. ByDante’s time both parties had developed into vehicles forfeud and privateinterest. In 1302 control of Florence fell into the hands of‘Black’ Guelphsand the faction exiled Dante. It was during this permanentexile fromFlorence that The Divine Comedy was written, completed theyear of his death in Ravenna, 1321. Heathcote Williams As poet, playwright and actor, Heathcote Williams has made asignificant contribution to many fields. He is best known for his extendedpoems on environmental subjects, Whale Nation (1988); Falling for a Dolphin(1988); Sacred Elephant (1989) and Autogeddon (1991). But his plays have alsowon acclaim, notably AC/DC produced at London’s Royal Court, and Hancock’s LastHalf Hour. As an actor he has been equally versatile — among his most memorableroles was Prospero in Derek Jarman’s film of The Tempest.