Dante's Divine Comedy: Paradiso
Canto XXX
The angelic circles fade from sight. Beatrice's beauty is now transcendental because the pair have entered the Empyrean, where Dante will behold God, the angels, the saints and the souls of the blessed in the flesh (a vision of the two courts of Heaven). Dante's eyesight is dazzled then rekindled after drinking from the River of Light. This image changes into the White Rose of Paradise, symbol of divine Love. Its yellow center is the light of God's glory whilst the petals rise up in tiers on which the saints are seated on thrones. An empty seat awaits Emperor Henry VII.[1]
Perchance six thousand miles remote from us
Is glowing the sixth hour, and now this world
Inclines its shadow almost to a level,
When the mid-heaven begins to make itself
So deep to us, that here and there a star
Ceases to shine so far down as this depth,
And as advances bright exceedingly
The handmaid of the sun, the heaven is closed
Light after light to the most beautiful;
Not otherwise the Triumph, which for ever
Plays round about the point that vanquished me,
Seeming enclosed by what itself encloses,
Little by little from my vision faded;
Whereat to turn mine eyes on Beatrice
If what has hitherto been said of her
My seeing nothing and my love constrained me.
Were all concluded in a single praise,
Scant would it be to serve the present turn.
Not only does the beauty I beheld
Transcend ourselves, but truly I believe
Its Maker only may enjoy it all.
Vanquished do I confess me by this passage
More than by problem of his theme was ever
O'ercome the comic or the tragic poet;
For as the sun the sight that trembles most,
Even so the memory of that sweet smile
My mind depriveth of its very self.
From the first day that I beheld her face
In this life, to the moment of this look,
The sequence of my song has ne'er been severed;
But now perforce this sequence must desist
From following her beauty with my verse,
As every artist at his uttermost.
Such as I leave her to a greater fame
Than any of my trumpet, which is bringing
Its arduous matter to a final close,
With voice and gesture of a perfect leader
She recommenced: "We from the greatest body
Have issued to the heaven that is pure light;
Light intellectual replete with love,
Love of true good replete with ecstasy,
Ecstasy that transcendeth every sweetness.
Here shalt thou see the one host and the other
Of Paradise, and one in the same aspects
Which at the final judgment thou shalt see."
Even as a sudden lightning that disperses
The visual spirits, so that it deprives
The eye of impress from the strongest objects,
Thus round about me flashed a living light,
And left me swathed around with such a veil
Of its effulgence, that I nothing saw.
"Ever the Love which quieteth this heaven
Welcomes into itself with such salute,
To make the candle ready for its flame."
No sooner had within me these brief words
An entrance found, than I perceived myself
To be uplifted over my own power,
And I with vision new rekindled me,
Such that no light whatever is so pure
But that mine eyes were fortified against it.
And light I saw in fashion of a river
Fulvid with its effulgence, 'twixt two banks
Depicted with an admirable Spring.
Out of this river issued living sparks,
And on all sides sank down into the flowers,
Like unto rubies that are set in gold;
And then, as if inebriate with the odors,
They plunged again into the wondrous torrent,
And as one entered issued forth another.
"The high desire, that now inflames and moves thee
To have intelligence of what thou seest,
Pleaseth me all the more, the more it swells.
But of this water it behooves thee drink
Before so great a thirst in thee be slaked."
Thus said to me the sunshine of mine eyes;
And added: "The river and the topazes
Going in and out, and the laughing of the herbage,
Are of their truth foreshadowing prefaces;
Not that these things are difficult in themselves,
But the deficiency is on thy side,
For yet thou hast not vision so exalted."
There is no babe that leaps so suddenly
With face towards the milk, if he awake
Much later than his usual custom is,
As I did, that I might make better mirrors
Still of mine eyes, down stooping to the wave
Which flows that we therein be better made.[2]
And even as the penthouse of mine eyelids
Drank of it, it forthwith appeared to me
Out of its length to be transformed to round.
Then as a folk who have been under masks
Seem other than before, if they divest
The semblance not their own they disappeared in,
Thus into greater pomp were changed for me
The flowerets and the sparks, so that I saw
Both of the Courts of Heaven made manifest.
O splendor of God! by means of which I saw
The lofty triumph of the realm veracious,
Give me the power to say how it I saw!
There is a light above, which visible
Makes the Creator unto every creature,
Who only in beholding Him has peace,
And it expands itself in circular form
To such extent, that its circumference
Would be too large a girdle for the sun.
The semblance of it is all made of rays
Reflected from the top of Primal Motion,
Which takes therefrom vitality and power.
And as a hill in water at its base
Mirrors itself, as if to see its beauty
When affluent most in verdure and in flowers,
So, ranged aloft all round about the light,
Mirrored I saw in more ranks than a thousand
All who above there have from us returned.
And if the lowest row collect within it
So great a light, how vast the amplitude
Is of this Rose in its extremest leaves!
My vision in the vastness and the height
Lost not itself, but comprehended all
The quantity and quality of that gladness.
There near and far nor add nor take away;
For there where God immediately doth govern,
The natural law in naught is relevant.
Into the yellow of the Rose Eternal
That spreads, and multiplies, and breathes an odor
Of praise unto the ever-vernal Sun,
As one who silent is and fain would speak,
Me Beatrice drew on, and said: "Behold
Of the white stoles how vast the convent is!
Behold how vast the circuit of our city!
Behold our seats so filled to overflowing,
That here henceforward are few people wanting!
On that great throne whereon thine eyes are fixed
For the crown's sake already placed upon it,
Before thou suppest at this wedding feast
Shall sit the soul (that is to be Augustus
On Earth) of noble Henry, who shall come
To redress Italy ere she be ready.[3]
Blind covetousness, that casts its spell upon you,
Has made you like unto the little child,
Who dies of hunger and drives off the nurse.
And in the sacred forum then shall be
A Prefect such, that openly or covert
On the same road he will not walk with him.
But long of God he will not be endured
In holy office; he shall be thrust down
Where Simon Magus is for his deserts,[4]
And make him of Alagna lower go!"[5]
Footnotes
1. Dante and Beatrice now arrive at the Empyrean, the "highest" level of Paradise. Unlike the nine lower levels, which are imagined as physical places, the Empyrean exists outside time and space. As Beatrice ascends, her beauty and splendor shine forth ever mo re strongly, and Dante gives up trying to describe how lovely she is.
At first, the Empyrean blinds Dante with its sheer radiance. Then, however, his vision adjusts, and he sees a supernally bright landscape of spring-green hills and ruby-red flowers. A river of pure, sparkling light flows through the middle of the scene. This imagery, Beatrice explains, is God's way of accommodating Dante's limited mortal mind, as he is not yet ready for the full experience of Paradise. The river, the grass, the flowers—all are "shadowed prefaces" of the true joys of Heaven.
Drinking of the river, Dante finds his sight growing still clearer. He now beholds the saints and angels arrayed in concentric rings around the "Splendor of God," which appears as a white light at the center. The whole "gathering," he says, is like a vast, pure-white rose with thousands of petals. Beatrice reminds Dante he will share in this glory someday. She then points out an empty spot in the celestial choir. She prophesies it will soon be occupied by Emperor Henry VII (1269–1313 AD), "who came to rule an Italy unready for him yet."
2. The mirror symbolizes the relationship between divine light and human perception, illustrating how the blessed reflect God's glory. The mirror experiment highlights themes of unity and differentiation in creation, emphasizing that while souls may differ in their heavenly ranks, they all share in the divine light of God. Mirrors also convey themes of light and knowledge. As Dante ascends through the celestial spheres, he sees the light of God reflected in Beatrice's eyes. This connection emphasizes that true beauty and understanding come from recognizing the divine presence in others. Beatrice, as a guide, helps Dante perceive the higher truths of existence, reinforcing the notion that beauty leads to enlightenment.
3. Henry VII (1275–1313 AD), also known as Henry of Luxembourg, was Count of Luxembourg, King of Germany (_Rex Romanorher) from 1308 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1312. He was the first emperor of the House of Luxembourg. During his brief career he reinvigorated the imperial cause in Italy, which was racked with the partisan struggles between the divided Guelph and Ghibelline factions, and inspired the praise of Dino Compagni and Dante Alighieri. He was the first emperor since the death of Frederick II in 1250, en ding the Great Interregnum of the Holy Roman Empire; however, his premature death threatened to undo his life's work. His son, John of Bohemia, failed to be elected as his successor, and there was briefly another anti-king, Frederick the Fair, contesting the rule of Louis IV.
4. Simon Magus, also known as Simon the Magician, was a religious figure whose confrontation with Peter is recorded in the Acts of the Apostles. The act of simony, or paying for position, is named after Simon, who tried to buy his way into the power of the Apostles.
According to Acts, Simon was a Samaritan magus or religious figure of the 1st century AD and a convert to Christianity, baptized by Philip the Evangelist. Simon later clashed with Peter. Accounts of Simon by writers of the second century exist, but are not considered verifiable. Surviving traditions about Simon appear in traditional texts, such as those of Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, Hippolytus, and Epiphanius, where he is often described as the founder of Gnosticism, which has been accepted by some modern scholars, while others reject claims that he was a Gnostic, maintaining that he was merely considered to be one by the Church Fathers.
5. Alagna refers to the birthplace of Pope Boniface VIII, who is mentioned as being punished in Hell for his actions. The term is used to highlight the Pope's downfall and his opposition to the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII, whom Dante supported.
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