CANTO 27,124-142
(The Garden of Eden above the 7^th terrace)

When all the staircase lay beneath us and
we’d reached the highest step, then Virgil set
his eyes insistently on me and said:

^27.124 Come la scala tutta sotto noi
fu corsa e fummo in su 'l grado superno,
in me ficcò Virgilio li occhi suoi,

“My son, you’ve seen the temporary fire
and the eternal fire; you have reached
the place past which my powers cannot see.

¹²⁷ e disse: "Il temporal foco e l'etterno
veduto hai, figlio; e se' venuto in parte
dov' io per me più oltre non discerno

I’ve brought you here through intellect and art;
from now on, let your pleasure be your guide;
you’re past the steep and past the narrow paths.

¹³⁰ Tratto t'ho qui con ingegno e con arte;
lo tuo piacere omai prendi per duce;
fuor se' de l'erte vie, fuor se' de l'arte.

Look at the sun that shines upon your brow;
look at the grasses, flowers, and the shrubs
born here, spontaneously, of the earth.

¹³³. Vedi lo sol che 'n fronte ti riluce;
vedi l'erbette, i fiori e li arbuscelli
che qui la terra sol da sé produce.

Among them, you can rest or walk until
the coming of the glad and lovely eyes—
those eyes that, weeping, sent me to your side

¹³⁶ Mentre che vegnan lieti li occhi belli
che, lagrimando, a te venir mi fenno,
seder ti puoi e puoi andar tra elli

Await no further word or sign from me:
your will is free, erect, and whole—to act
against that will would be to err: therefore

¹³⁹ Non aspettar mio dir più né mio cenno;
libero, dritto e sano è tuo arbitrio,
e fallo fora non fare a suo senno

I crown and miter you over yourself.”

¹⁴² per ch'io te sovra te corono e mitrio."

CANTO 28
(Mathilda describes Lethe and Eunoë)

Now keen to search within, to search around
that divine forest—dense, alive with green —
which tempered the new day before my eyes,

¹ Vago già di cercar dentro e dintorno
la divina foresta spessa e viva,
ch'a li occhi temperava il novo giorno,

without delay, I left behind the rise
and took the plain, advancing slowly, slowly
across the ground where every part was fragrant.

⁴ sanza più aspettar, lasciai la riva,
prendendo la campagna lento lento
su per lo suol che d'ogne parte auliva.

A gentle breeze, which did not seem to vary
within itself, was striking at my brow
but with no greater force than a kind wind’s,

⁷ Un'aura dolce, sanza mutamento
avere in sé, mi feria per la fronte
non di più colpo che soave vento;

a wind that made the trembling boughs—they all
bent eagerly—incline in the direction
of morning shadows from the holy mountain;

¹⁰ per cui le fronde, tremolando, pronte
tutte quante piegavano a la parte
u' la prim' ombra gitta il santo monte;

but they were not deflected with such force
as to disturb the little birds upon
the branches in the practice of their arts;

¹³ non però dal loro esser dritto sparte
tanto, che li augelletti per le cime
lasciasser d'operare ogne lor arte;

for to the leaves, with song, birds welcomed those
first hours of the morning joyously,
and leaves supplied the burden to their rhymes—

¹⁶ ma con piena letizia l'ore prime,
cantando, ricevieno intra le foglie,
che tenevan bordone a le sue rime,

just like the wind that sounds from branch to branch
along the shore of Classe, through the pines
when Aeolus has set Sirocco loose.

¹⁹ tal qual di ramo in ramo si raccoglie
per la pineta in su 'l lito di Chiassi,
quand' Ëolo scilocco fuor discioglie.

Now, though my steps were slow, I’d gone so far
into the ancient forest that I could
no longer see where I had made my entry;

²² Già m'avean trasportato i lenti passi
dentro a la selva antica tanto, ch'io
non potea rivedere ond' io mi 'ntrassi;

and there I came upon a stream that blocked
the path of my advance; its little waves
bent to the left the grass along its banks.

²⁵ ed ecco più andar mi tolse un rio,
che 'nver' sinistra con sue picciole onde
piegava l'erba che 'n sua ripa uscìo.

All of the purest waters here on earth,
when matched against that stream, would seem to be
touched by impurity; it hides no thing—

²⁸ Tutte l'acque che son di qua più monde,
parrieno avere in sé mistura alcuna
verso di quella, che nulla nasconde,

that stream—although it moves, dark, dark, beneath
the never-ending shadows, which allow
no ray of sun or moon to reach those waters.

³¹ avvegna che si mova bruna bruna
sotto l'ombra perpetüa, che mai
raggiar non lascia sole ivi né luna.

I halted, and I set my eyes upon
the farther bank, to look at the abundant
variety of newly-flowered boughs;

³⁴ Coi piè ristetti e con li occhi passai
di là dal fiumicello, per mirare
a gran varïazion d'i freschi mai;

and there, just like a thing that, in appearing
most suddenly, repels all other thoughts,
so great is the astonishment it brings,

³⁷ e là m'apparve, sì com' elli appare
subitamente cosa che disvia
per maraviglia tutto altro pensare,

I saw a solitary woman moving,
singing, and gathering up flower on flower—
the flowers that colored all of her pathway.

⁴⁰ una donna soletta che si gia
e cantando e scegliendo fior da fiore
ond' era pinta tutta la sua via.

“I pray you, lovely lady, you who warm
yourself with rays of love, if I may trust
your looks—which often evidence the heart—

⁴³ "Deh, bella donna, che a' raggi d'amore
ti scaldi, s'i' vo' credere a' sembianti
che soglion esser testimon del core,

may it please you,” I asked of her, “to move
ahead and closer to this river, so
that I may understand what you are singing.

⁴⁶ vegnati in voglia di trarreti avanti,"
diss' io a lei, "verso questa rivera,
tanto ch'io possa intender che tu canti.

You have reminded me of where and what—
just when her mother was deprived of her
and she deprived of spring—Proserpina was.”

⁴⁹ Tu mi fai rimembrar dove e qual era
Proserpina nel tempo che perdette
la madre lei, ed ella primavera."

As, when she turns, a woman, dancing, keeps
her soles close to the ground and to each other
and scarcely lets one foot precede the other,

⁵² Come si volge, con le piante strette
a terra e intra sé, donna che balli,
e piede innanzi piede a pena mette,

so did she turn, upon the little red
and yellow flowers, to me, no differently
than would a virgin, lowering chaste eyes.

⁵⁵ volsesi in su i vermigli e in su i gialli
fioretti verso me, non altrimenti
che vergine che li occhi onesti avvalli;

I had beseeched, and I was satisfied,
for she approached so close that the sweet sound
that reached me then became intelligible.

⁵⁸ e fece i prieghi miei esser contenti,
sì appressando sé, che 'l dolce suono
veniva a me co' suoi intendimenti.

No sooner had she reached the point where that
fair river’s waves could barely bathe the grass,
than she gave me this gift: lifting her eyes.

⁶¹ Tosto che fu là dove l'erbe sono
bagnate già da l'onde del bel fiume,
di levar li occhi suoi mi fece dono.

I do not think a light so bright had shone
beneath the lids of Venus when her son
pierced her in extraordinary fashion.

⁶⁴ Non credo che splendesse tanto lume
sotto le ciglia a Venere, trafitta
dal figlio fuor di tutto suo costume.

Erect, along the farther bank, she smiled,
her hands entwining varicolored flowers,
which that high land, needing no seed, engenders.

⁶⁷ Ella ridea da l'altra riva dritta,
trattando più color con le sue mani,
che l'alta terra sanza seme gitta.

The river kept us just three steps apart;
but even Hellespont, where Xerxes crossed—
a case that still curbs all men’s arrogance—

⁷⁰ Tre passi ci facea il fiume lontani;
ma Elesponto, là 've passò Serse,
ancora freno a tutti orgogli umani,

did not provoke more hatred in Leander
when rough seas ran from Abydos to Sestos,
than hatred I bestowed upon that river

⁷³ più odio da Leandro non sofferse
per mareggiare intra Sesto e Abido,
che quel da me perch' allor non s'aperse.

when it refused to open. She began:
“You are new here and may—because I smile
in this place, chosen to be mankind’s nest—

⁷⁶ "Voi siete nuovi, e forse perch' io rido,"
cominciò ella, "in questo luogo eletto
a l'umana natura per suo nido,

wonder, perplexed, unable to detect
the cause; but light to clear your intellect
is in the psalm beginning ‘Delectasti.’

⁷⁹ maravigliando tienvi alcun sospetto;
ma luce rende il salmo Delectasti,
che puote disnebbiar vostro intelletto.

And you, who have stepped forward, who beseeched me,
tell me if you’d hear more; I have come ready
for all your questions till you’re satisfied.”

⁸² E tu che se' dinanzi e mi pregasti,
dì s'altro vuoli udir; ch'i' venni presta
ad ogne tua question tanto che basti."

I said: “The water and the murmuring forest
contend, in me, against the recent credence
I gave to words denying their existence.”

⁸⁵ "L'acqua," diss' io, "e 'l suon de la foresta
impugnan dentro a me novella fede
di cosa ch'io udi' contraria a questa."

At this, she said: “I’ll tell you how the source
of your amazement has its special cause;
I’ll clear the cloud that’s left you so distraught.

⁸⁸ Ond' ella: "Io dicerò come procede
per sua cagion ciò ch'ammirar ti face,
e purgherò la nebbia che ti fiede.

The Highest Good, whose sole joy is Himself,
made man to be—and to enact—good; He
gave man this place as pledge of endless peace.

⁹¹ Lo sommo ben, che solo esso a sé piace,
fé l'uom buono e a bene, e questo loco
diede per arr' a lui d'etterna pace.

Man’s fault made brief his stay here; and man’s fault
made him exchange frank laughter and sweet sport
for lamentation and for anxiousness.

⁹⁴ Per sua difalta qui dimorò poco;
per sua difalta in pianto e in affanno
cambiò onesto riso e dolce gioco.

Below this mountain, land and water vapors,
which follow heat as far as they are able,
produce their perturbations; to prevent

⁹⁷ Perché 'l turbar che sotto da sé fanno
l'essalazion de l'acqua e de la terra,
che quanto posson dietro al calor vanno,

them from molesting man placed here, this mountain
rose up this close to Heaven; from the point
where its gate locks, it’s free of such disturbance.

¹⁰⁰ a l'uomo non facesse alcuna guerra,
questo monte salìo verso 'l ciel tanto,
e libero n'è d'indi ove si serra.

Now, since all of the atmosphere revolves
within a circle, moved by the first circling,
unless its round is broken at some point,

¹⁰³ Or perché in circuito tutto quanto
l'aere si volge con la prima volta,
se non li è rotto il cerchio d'alcun canto,

against this height, which stands completely free
within the living air, that motion strikes;
and since these woods are dense, they echo it.

¹⁰⁶ in questa altezza ch'è tutta disciolta
ne l'aere vivo, tal moto percuote,
e fa sonar la selva perch' è folta;

And when a plant is struck, its power is such
that it impregnates air with seeding force;
the air, revolving, casts this seed abroad;

¹⁰⁹ e la percossa pianta tanto puote,
che de la sua virtute l'aura impregna
e quella poi, girando, intorno scuote;

the other hemisphere, depending on
the nature of its land and sky, conceives
and bears, from diverse powers, diverse trees.

¹¹² e l'altra terra, secondo ch'è degna
per sé e per suo ciel, concepe e figlia
di diverse virtù diverse legna.

If what I’ve said were known, you would not need
to be amazed on earth when growing things
take root but have no seed that can be seen.

¹¹⁵ Non parrebbe di là poi maraviglia,
udito questo, quando alcuna pianta
sanza seme palese vi s'appiglia.

And you must know: the holy plain on which
you find yourself is full of every seed;
and it has fruit that—there—cannot be gathered.

¹¹⁸ E saper dei che la campagna santa
dove tu se', d'ogne semenza è piena,
e frutto ha in sé che di là non si schianta.

Lethe and Eunoë

THE water that you see does not spring from
a vein that vapor—cold-condensed—restores,
like rivers that acquire or lose their force;

¹²¹ L'acqua che vedi non surge di vena
che ristori vapor che gel converta,
come fiume ch'acquista e perde lena;

it issues from a pure and changeless fountain,
which by the will of God regains as much
as, on two sides, it pours and it divides.

¹²⁴ ma esce di fontana salda e certa,
che tanto dal voler di Dio riprende,
quant' ella versa da due parti aperta.

On this side it descends with power to end
one’s memory of sin; and on the other,
it can restore recall of each good deed.

¹²⁷ Da questa parte con virtù discende
che toglie altrui memoria del peccato;
da l'altra d'ogne ben fatto la rende.

To one side, it is Lethe; on the other,
Eunoë; neither stream is efficacious
unless the other’s waters have been tasted:

¹³⁰ Quinci Letè; così da l'altro lato
Eünoè si chiama, e non adopra
se quinci e quindi pria non è gustato:

their savor is above all other sweetness.
Although your thirst might well be satisfied
even if I revealed no more to you,

¹³³ a tutti altri sapori esto è di sopra.
E avvegna ch'assai possa esser sazia
la sete tua perch' io più non ti scuopra,

I’ll give you freely, too, a corollary;
nor do I think my words will be less welcome
to you if they extend beyond my promise.

¹³⁶ darotti un corollario ancor per grazia;
né credo che 'l mio dir ti sia men caro,
se oltre promession teco si spazia.

Those ancients who in poetry presented
the golden age, who sang its happy state,
perhaps, in their Parnassus, dreamt this place.

¹³⁹ Quelli ch'anticamente poetaro
l'età de l'oro e suo stato felice,
forse in Parnaso esto loco sognaro.

Here, mankind’s root was innocent; and here
were every fruit and never-ending spring;
these streams—the nectar of which poets sing.”

¹⁴² Qui fu innocente l'umana radice;
qui primavera sempre e ogne frutto;
nettare è questo di che ciascun dice."

Then I turned round completely, and I faced
my poets; I could see that they had heard
with smiles this final corollary spoken;

¹⁴⁵ Io mi rivolsi 'n dietro allora tutto
a' miei poeti, e vidi che con riso
udito avëan l'ultimo costrutto;

that done, my eyes returned to the fair woman.

¹⁴⁸ poi a la bella donna torna' il viso.

CANTO 29
(Pageant of the Scriptures - History up to Christ )

Her words were done, but without interruption
she sang—like an enamored woman—thus:
“Beati quorum tecta sunt peccata!”

^29.1 Cantando come donna innamorata,
continüò col fin di sue parole:
“Beati quorum tecta sunt peccata!”

And just as nymphs who used to walk alone
among the woodland shadows, some desiring
to see and some to flee the sun, so she

^29.4 E come ninfe che si givan sole
per le salvatiche ombre, disïando
qual di veder, qual di fuggir lo sole,

moved countercurrent as she walked along
the riverbank; and following her short
footsteps with my own steps, I matched her pace.

^29.7 allor si mosse contra ‘l fiume, andando
su per la riva; e io pari di lei,
picciol passo con picciol seguitando.

Her steps and mine together did not sum
one hundred when the banks, still parallel,
so curved about that I was facing east.

^29.10 Non eran cento tra ‘ suoi passi e ‘ miei,
quando le ripe igualmente dier volta,
per modo ch’a levante mi rendei.

Nor had we gone much farther on that path
when she turned fully round toward me and said:
“My brother, look and listen”; and I saw

^29.13 Né ancor fu così nostra via molta,
quando la donna tutta a me si torse,
dicendo: “Frate mio, guarda e ascolta.”

a sudden radiance that swept across
the mighty forest on all sides—and I
was wondering if lightning had not struck.

^29.16 Ed ecco un lustro sùbito trascorse
da tutte parti per la gran foresta,
tal che di balenar mi mise in forse.

But since, when lightning strikes, it stops at once,
while that light, lingering, increased its force,
within my mind I asked: “What thing is this?”

^29.19 Ma perché ‘l balenar, come vien, resta,
e quel, durando, più e più splendeva,
nel mio pensier dicea: “Che cosa è questa?”

And through the incandescent air there ran
sweet melody; at which, just indignation
made me rebuke the arrogance of Eve

^29.22 E una melodia dolce correva
per l’aere luminoso; onde buon zelo
mi fé riprender l’ardimento d’Eva,

because, where earth and heaven were obedient,
a solitary woman, just created,
found any veil at all beyond endurance;

^29.25 che là dove ubidia la terra e ‘l cielo,
femmina, sola e pur testé formata,
non sofferse di star sotto alcun velo;

if she had been devout beneath her veil,
I should have savored those ineffable
delights before, and for a longer time.

^29.28 sotto ‘l qual se divota fosse stata,
avrei quelle ineffabili delizie
sentite prima e più lunga fïata.

While I moved on, completely rapt, among
so many first fruits of eternal pleasure,
and longing for still greater joys, the air

^29.31 Mentr’ io m’andava tra tante primizie
de l’etterno piacer tutto sospeso,
e disïoso ancora a più letizie,

before us altered underneath the green
branches, becoming like an ardent fire,
and now the sweet sound was distinctly song.

^29.34 dinanzi a noi, tal quale un foco acceso,
ci si fé l’aere sotto i verdi rami;
e ‘l dolce suon per canti era già inteso.

O Virgins, sacrosanct, if I have ever,
for your sake, suffered vigils, cold, and hunger,
great need makes me entreat my recompense.

^29.37 O sacrosante Vergini, se fami,
freddi o vigilie mai per voi soffersi,
cagion mi sprona ch’io mercé vi chiami.

Now Helicon must pour its fountains for me,
Urania must help me with her choir
to put in verses things hard to conceive.

^29.40 Or convien che Elicona per me versi,
e Uranìe m’aiuti col suo coro
forti cose a pensar mettere in versi.

Not far beyond, we made out seven trees
of gold, though the long stretch of air between
those trees and us had falsified their semblance;

^29.43 Poco più oltre, sette alberi d’oro
falsava nel parere il lungo tratto
del mezzo ch’era ancor tra noi e loro;

but when I’d drawn so close that things perceived
through mingled senses, which delude, did not,
now they were nearer, lose their real features,

^29.46 ma quand’ i’ fui sì presso di lor fatto,
che l’obietto comun, che ‘l senso inganna,
non perdea per distanza alcun su atto,

the power that offers reason matter judged
those trees to be—what they were—candelabra,
and what those voices sang to be “Hosanna.”

^29.49 la virtù ch’a ragion discorso ammanna,
sì com’ elli eran candelabri apprese,
e ne le voci del cantare “Osanna.”

The upper part of those fair candles flamed
more radiantly than the midmonth moon
shines at midnight in an untroubled sky.

^29.52 Di sopra fiammeggiava il bello arnese
più chiaro assai che luna per sereno
di mezza notte nel suo mezzo mese.

Full of astonishment, I turned to my
good Virgil; but he only answered me
with eyes that were no less amazed than mine.

^29.55 Io mi rivolsi d’ammirazion pieno
al buon Virgilio, ed esso mi rispuose
con vista carca di stupor non meno.

THE TWENTY-FOUR BOOKS of THE OLD  

TESTAMENT (Elders of Revelation)

Then I looked at the extraordinary
things that were moving toward us—but so slowly
that even brides just wed would move more quickly.

^29.58 Indi rendei l’aspetto a l’alte cose
che si movieno incontr’ a noi sì tardi,
che foran vinte da novelle spose.

The woman chided me: “Why are you only
so eager to behold the living lights
and not in seeing what comes after them?”

^29.61 La donna mi sgridò: “Perché pur ardi
sì ne l’affetto de le vive luci,
e ciò che vien di retro a lor non guardi?”

Then I saw people following those candles,
as if behind their guides, and they wore white—
whiteness that, in this world, has never been.

^29.64 Genti vid’ io allor, come a lor duci,
venire appresso, vestite di bianco;N
e tal candor di qua già mai non fuci.

The water, to my left, reflected flames,
and it reflected, too, my left-hand side
if I gazed into it, as in a mirror.

^29.67 L’acqua imprendëa dal sinistro fianco,
e rendea me la mia sinistra costa,
s’io riguardava in lei, come specchio anco.

When I was at a point along my shore
where all that sundered me from them was water,
I stayed my steps in order to see better,

^29.70 Quand’ io da la mia riva ebbi tal posta,
che solo il fiume mi facea distante,
per veder meglio ai passi diedi sosta,

and I could see the candle flames move forward,
leaving the air behind them colored like
the strokes a painter’s brush might have described,

^29.73 e vidi le fiammelle andar davante,
lasciando dietro a sé l’aere dipinto,
e di tratti pennelli avean sembiante;

so that the air above that retinue
was streaked with seven bands in every hue
of which the rainbow’s made and Delia’s girdle.

^29.76 sì che lì sopra rimanea distinto
di sette liste, tutte in quei colori
onde fa l’arco il Sole e Delia il cinto.

These pennants stretched far back, beyond my vision;
as for the width they filled, I judged the distance
between the outer ones to be ten paces.

^29.79 Questi ostendali in dietro eran maggiori
che la mia vista; e, quanto a mio avviso,
diece passi distavan quei di fori.

Beneath the handsome sky I have described,
twenty-four elders moved on, two by two,
and they had wreaths of lilies on their heads.

^29.82 Sotto così bel ciel com’ io diviso,
ventiquattro seniori, a due a due,
coronati venien di fiordaliso.^N

And all were singing: “You, among the daughters
of Adam, benedicta are; and may
your beauties blessed be eternally.”

^29.85 Tutti cantavan: “Benedicta tue
ne le figlie d’Adamo, e benedette
sieno in etterno le bellezze tue!”

THE FOUR GOSPELS: Matthew-angel; Mark-lion; 

Luke-ox; John-eagle

After the flowers and the other fresh
plants facing me, along the farther shore,
had seen those chosen people disappear,

^29.88 Poscia che i fiori e l’altre fresche erbette
a rimpetto di me da l’altra sponda
libere fuor da quelle genti elette,

then—as in heaven, star will follow star—
the elders gone, four animals came on;
and each of them had green leaves as his crown;

^29.91 sì come luce luce in ciel seconda,
vennero appresso lor quattro animali,N
coronati ciascun di verde fronda.

each had six wings as plumage, and those plumes
were full of eyes; they would be very like
the eyes of Argus, were his eyes alive.

^29.94 Ognuno era pennuto di sei ali;
le penne piene d’occhi; e li occhi d’Argo,
se fosser vivi, sarebber cotali.

Reader, I am not squandering more rhymes
in order to describe their forms; since I
must spend elsewhere, I can’t be lavish here;

^29.97 A descriver lor forme più non spargo
rime, lettor; ch’altra spesa mi strigne,
tanto ch’a questa non posso esser largo;

but read Ezekiel, for he has drawn
those animals approaching from the north;
with wings and cloud and fire, he painted them.

^29.100 ma leggi Ezechïel, che li dipigne
come li vide da la fredda parte
venir con vento e con nube e con igne;

And just as you will find them in his pages,
such were they here, except that John’s with me
as to their wings; with him, John disagrees.

^29.103 e quali i troverai ne le sue carte,
tali eran quivi, salvo ch’a le penne
Giovanni è meco e da lui si diparte.

The space between the four of them contained
a chariot—triumphal—on two wheels,
tied to a griffin’s neck and drawn by him.

^29.106 Lo spazio dentro a lor quattro contenne
un carro, in su due rote, trïunfale,N
ch’al collo d’un grifon tirato venne.

His wings, stretched upward, framed the middle band
with three bands on each outer side, so that,
though he cleaved air, he left the bands intact.

^29.109 Esso tendeva in sù l’una e l’altra ale
tra la mezzana e le tre e tre liste,
sì ch’a nulla, fendendo, facea male.

His wings—so high that they were lost to sight;
his limbs were gold as far as he was bird;
the rest of him was white mixed with bloodred.

^29.112 Tanto salivan che non eran viste;
le membra d’oro avea quant’ era uccello,
e bianche l’altre, di vermiglio miste.

Not only did no chariot so handsome
gladden Rome’s Africanus or Augustus
himself—even the Sun’s own cannot match it;

^29.115 Non che Roma di carro così bello
rallegrasse Affricano, o vero Augusto,
ma quel del Sol saria pover con ello;N

the Sun’s—which, gone astray, was burnt to cinders
because Earth offered up her pious prayers,
when Jove, in ways not known to us, was just.

^29.118 quel del Sol che, svïando, fu combusto
per l’orazion de la Terra devota,
quando fu Giove arcanamente giusto.

THE THREE THEOLOGICAL VIRTUES: Faith-white; 

Hope-green; Love-red

Three circling women, then advancing, danced
at the right wheel; the first of them, so red
that even in a flame she’d not be noted;

^29.121 Tre donne in giroN da la destra rota
venian danzando; l’una tanto rossa
ch’a pena fora dentro al foco nota;

the second seemed as if her flesh and bone
were fashioned out of emerald; the third
seemed to be newly fallen snow. And now

^29.124 l’altr’ era come se le carni e l’ossa
fossero state di smeraldo fatte;
la terza parea neve testé mossa;

the white one seemed to lead them, now the red;
and from the way in which the leader chanted,
the others took their pace, now slow, now rapid.

^29.127 e or parëan da la bianca tratte,
or da la rossa; e dal canto di questa
l’altre toglien l’andare e tarde e ratte.

THE FOUR CLASSICAL VIRTUES: Temperance; Courage; 

Justice; Prudence (third eye)

Upon the left, four other women, dressed
in crimson, danced, depending on the cadence
of one of them, with three eyes in her head.

^29.130 Da la sinistra quattro facean festa,
in porpore vestite,N dietro al modo
d’una di lor ch’avea tre occhi in testa.

ACTS of THE APOSTLES (Luke-physician) and EPISTLES  

of PAUL (sword)

Behind all of the group I have described
I saw two elders, different in their dress
but like in manner—grave and decorous.

^29.133 Appresso tutto il pertrattato nodo
vidi due vecchi in abito dispari,
ma pari in atto e onesto e sodo.

The first seemed to be one of the disciples
of great Hippocrates, whom nature made
for those who are her dearest living beings;

^29.136 L’un si mostrava alcun de’ famigliari
di quel sommo Ipocràte che natura
a li animali fé ch’ell’ ha più cari;

the other showed an opposite concern—
his sword was bright and sharp, and even on
this near side of the river, I felt fear.

^29.139 mostrava l’altro la contraria cura
con una spada lucida e aguta,
tal che di qua dal rio mi fé paura.

PASTORAL EPISTLES and REVELATION  

of JOHN

Then I saw four of humble aspect; and,
when all the rest had passed, a lone old man,
his features keen, advanced, as if in sleep.

^29.142 Poi vidi quattro in umile paruta;
e di retro da tutti un vecchio solo
venir, dormendo, con la faccia arguta.

The clothes these seven wore were like the elders’
in the first file, except that these had no
garlands of lilies round their brow; instead,

^29.145 E questi sette col primaio stuolo
erano abitüati, ma di gigli
dintorno al capo non facëan brolo,

roses and other red flowers wreathed their heads;
one seeing them less closely would have sworn
that all of them had flames above their eyebrows.

^29.148 anzi di rose e d’altri fior vermigli;
giurato avria poco lontano aspetto
che tutti ardesser di sopra da’ cigli.

And when the chariot stood facing me,
I heard a bolt of thunder; and it seemed
to block the path of that good company,

^29.151 E quando il carro^N a me fu a rimpetto,
un tuon s’udì, e quelle genti degne
parvero aver l’andar più interdetto,

which halted there, its emblems in the lead.

^29.154 fermandosi ivi con le prime insegne.

CANTO 30

CANTO 30
(Beatrice appears and chides Dante)

When the first heaven’s Seven-Stars had halted
(those stars that never rise or set, that are
not veiled except when sin beclouds our vision;

^{30 30.1} Quando il settentrïon del primo cielo,
che né occaso mai seppe né orto
né d’altra nebbia che di colpa velo,

those stars that, there, made everyone aware
of what his duty was, just as the Bear
below brings helmsmen home to harbor), then

^30.4 e che faceva lì ciascuno accorto
di suo dover, come ‘l più basso face
qual temon gira per venire a porto,

the truthful band that had come first between
the griffin and the Seven-Stars turned toward
that chariot as toward their peace, and one

^30.7 fermo s’affisse: la gente verace,N
venuta prima tra ‘l grifone ed esso,
al carro volse sé come a sua pace;

of them, as if sent down from Heaven, hymned
aloud, “Veni, sponsa, de Libano,”
three times, and all the others echoed him.

^30.10 e un di loro, quasi da ciel messo,
“Veni, sponsa, de Libano” cantando
gridò tre volte, e tutti li altri appresso.

Just as the blessed, at the Final Summons,
will rise up—ready—each out of his grave,
singing, with new-clothed voices, Alleluia,

^30.13 Quali i beati al novissimo bandoN
surgeran presti ognun di sua caverna,
la revestita voce alleluiando,

so, from the godly chariot, eternal
life’s messengers and ministers arose:
one hundred stood ad vocem tanti senis.

^30.16 cotali in su la divina basterna
si levar cento, ad vocem tanti senis,
ministri e messagger di vita etterna.

All of them cried: “Benedictus qui venis,”
and, scattering flowers upward and around,
“Manibus, oh, date lilia plenis.”

^30.19 Tutti dicean: “Benedictus qui venis!”
e fior gittando e di sopra e dintorno,
“Manibus, oh, date lilïa plenis!”

I have at times seen all the eastern sky
becoming rose as day began and seen,
adorned in lovely blue, the rest of heaven;

^30.22 Io vidi già nel cominciar del giorno
la parte orïental tutta rosata,
e l’altro ciel di bel sereno addorno;

and seen the sun’s face rise so veiled that it
was tempered by the mist and could permit
the eye to look at length upon it; so,

^30.25 e la faccia del sol nascere ombrata,
sì che per temperanza di vapori
l’occhio la sostenea lunga fïata:

within a cloud of flowers that were cast
by the angelic hands and then rose up
and then fell back, outside and in the chariot,

^30.28 così dentro una nuvola di fiori
che da le mani angeliche saliva
e ricadeva in giù dentro e di fori,

a woman showed herself to me; above
a white veil, she was crowned with olive boughs;
her cape was green; her dress beneath, flame-red.

^30.31 sovra candido vel cinta d’uliva
donna m’apparve, sotto verde manto
vestita di color di fiamma viva.

Within her presence, I had once been used
to feeling—trembling—wonder, dissolution;
but that was long ago. Still, though my soul,

^30.34 E lo spirito mio, che già cotanto
tempo era stato ch’a la sua presenza
non era di stupor, tremando, affranto,

now she was veiled, could not see her directly,
by way of hidden force that she could move,
I felt the mighty power of old love.

^30.37 sanza de li occhi aver più conoscenza,
per occulta virtù che da lei mosse,
d’antico amor sentì la gran potenza.

As soon as that deep force had struck my vision
(the power that, when I had not yet left
my boyhood, had already transfixed me),

^30.40 Tosto che ne la vista mi percosse
l’alta virtù che già m’avea trafitto
prima ch’io fuor di püerizia fosse,

I turned around and to my left—just as
a little child, afraid or in distress,
will hurry to his mother—anxiously,

^30.43 volsimi a la sinistra col respitto
col quale il fantolin corre a la mamma
quando ha paura o quando elli è afflitto,

to say to Virgil: “I am left with less
than one drop of my blood that does not tremble:
I recognize the signs of the old flame.”

^30.46 per dicere a Virgilio: “Men che dramma
di sangue m’è rimaso che non tremi:
conosco i segni de l’antica fiamma.”

But Virgil had deprived us of himself,
Virgil, the gentlest father, Virgil, he
to whom I gave my self for my salvation;

^30.49 Ma Virgilio n’avea lasciati scemi
di sé, Virgilio dolcissimo patre,
Virgilio a cui per mia salute die’mi;

and even all our ancient mother lost
was not enough to keep my cheeks, though washed
with dew, from darkening again with tears.

^30.52 né quantunque perdeo l’antica matre,
valse a le guance nette di rugiada
che, lagrimando, non tornasser atre.

“Dante, though Virgil’s leaving you, do not
yet weep, do not weep yet; you’ll need your tears
for what another sword must yet inflict.”

^30.55 “Dante, perché Virgilio se ne vada,
non pianger anco, non piangere ancora;
ché pianger ti conven per altra spada.”

Just like an admiral who goes to stern
and prow to see the officers who guide
the other ships, encouraging their tasks;

^30.58 Quasi ammiraglio che in poppa e in prora
viene a veder la gente che ministra
per li altri legni, e a ben far l’incora;

so, on the left side of the chariot
(I’d turned around when I had heard my name—
which, of necessity, I transcribe here),

^30.61 in su la sponda del carro sinistra,
quando mi volsi al suon del nome mio,
che di necessità qui si registra,

I saw the lady who had first appeared
to me beneath the veils of the angelic
flowers look at me across the stream.

^30.64 vidi la donna che pria m’appario
velata sotto l’angelica festa,
drizzar li occhi ver’ me di qua dal rio.

Although the veil she wore—down from her head,
which was encircled by Minerva’s leaves—
did not allow her to be seen distinctly,

^30.67 Tutto che ‘l vel che le scendea di testa,
cerchiato de le fronde di Minerva,
non la lasciasse parer manifesta,

her stance still regal and disdainful, she
continued, just as one who speaks but keeps
until the end the fiercest parts of speech:

^30.70 regalmente ne l’atto ancor proterva
continüò come colui che dice
e ‘l più caldo parlar dietro reserva:

“Look here! For I am Beatrice, I am!
How were you able to ascend the mountain?
Did you not know that man is happy here?”

^30.73 “Guardaci ben! Ben son, ben son Beatrice.
Come degnasti d’accedere al monte?
non sapei tu che qui è l’uom felice?”

My lowered eyes caught sight of the clear stream,
but when I saw myself reflected there,
such shame weighed on my brow, my eyes drew back

^30.76 Li occhi mi cadder giù nel chiaro fonte;
ma veggendomi in esso, i trassi a l’erba,
tanta vergogna mi gravò la fronte.

and toward the grass; just as a mother seems
harsh to her child, so did she seem to me—
how bitter is the savor of stern pity!

^30.79 Così la madre al figlio par superba,
com’ ella parve a me; perché d’amaro
sente il sapor de la pietade acerba.

Her words were done. The angels—suddenly—
sang, “In te, Domine, speravi”; but
their singing did not go past “pedes meos.”

^30.82 Ella si tacque; e li angeli cantaro
di sùbito “In te, Domine, speravi”;
ma oltre “pedes meos” non passaro.

Even as snow among the sap-filled trees
along the spine of Italy will freeze
when gripped by gusts of the Slavonian winds,

^30.85 Sì come neve tra le vive travi
per lo dosso d’Italia si congela,
soffiata e stretta da li venti schiavi,

then, as it melts, will trickle through itself—
that is, if winds breathe north from shade-less lands—
just as, beneath the flame, the candle melts;

^30.88 poi, liquefatta, in sé stessa trapela,
pur che la terra che perde ombra spiri,
sì che par foco fonder la candela;

so I, before I’d heard the song of those
whose notes always accompany the notes
of the eternal spheres, was without tears

^30.91 così fui sanza lagrime e sospiri
anzi ‘l cantar di quei che notan sempre
dietro a le note de li etterni giri;

and sighs; but when I heard the sympathy
for me within their gentle harmonies,
as if they’d said: “Lady, why shame him so?”—

^30.94 ma poi che ‘ntesi ne le dolci tempre
lor compartire a me, par che se detto
avesser: “Donna, perché sì lo stempre?”

then did the ice that had restrained my heart
become water and breath; and from my breast
and through my lips and eyes they issued—anguished.

^30.97 lo gel che m’era intorno al cor ristretto,
spirito e acqua fessi, e con angoscia
de la bocca e de li occhi uscì del petto.

Still standing motionless upon the left
side of the chariot, she then addressed
the angels who had been compassionate:

^30.100 Ella, pur ferma in su la detta coscia
del carro stando, a le sustanze pie
volse le sue parole così poscia:

“You are awake in never-ending day,
and neither night nor sleep can steal from you
one step the world would take along its way;

^30.103 “Voi vigilate ne l’etterno die,
sì che notte né sonno a voi non fura
passo che faccia il secol per sue vie;

therefore, I’m more concerned that my reply
be understood by him who weeps beyond,
so that his sorrow’s measure match his sin.

^30.106 onde la mia risposta è con più cura
che m’intenda colui che di là piagne,
perché sia colpa e duol d’una misura.

Not only through the work of the great spheres—
which guide each seed to a determined end,
depending on what stars are its companions—

^30.109 Non pur per ovra de le rote magne,
che drizzan ciascun seme ad alcun fine
secondo che le stelle son compagne,

but through the bounty of the godly graces,
which shower down from clouds so high that we
cannot approach them with our vision, he,

^30.112 ma per larghezza di grazie divine,
che sì alti vapori hanno a lor piova,
che nostre viste là non van vicine,

when young, was such—potentially—that any
propensity innate in him would have
prodigiously succeeded, had he acted.

^30.115 questi fu tal ne la sua vita nova
virtüalmente, ch’ogne abito destro
fatto averebbe in lui mirabil prova.

But where the soil has finer vigor, there
precisely—when untilled or badly seeded—
will that terrain grow wilder and more noxious.

^30.118 Ma tanto più maligno e più silvestro
si fa ‘l terren col mal seme e non cólto,
quant’ elli ha più di buon vigor terrestro.

My countenance sustained him for a while;
showing my youthful eyes to him, I led
him with me toward the way of righteousness.

^30.121 Alcun tempo il sostenni col mio volto:
mostrando li occhi giovanetti a lui,
meco il menava in dritta parte vòlto.

As soon as I, upon the threshold of
my second age, had changed my life, he took
himself away from me and followed after

^30.124 Sì tosto come in su la soglia fui
di mia seconda etade e mutai vita,
questi si tolse a me, e diessi altrui.

another; when, from flesh to spirit, I
had risen, and my goodness and my beauty
had grown, I was less dear to him, less welcome:

^30.127 Quando di carne a spirto era salita,
e bellezza e virtù cresciuta m’era,
fu’ io a lui men cara e men gradita;

he turned his footsteps toward an untrue path;
he followed counterfeits of goodness, which
will never pay in full what they have promised.

^30.130 e volse i passi suoi per via non vera,
imagini di ben seguendo false,
che nulla promession rendono intera.

Nor did the inspirations I received—
with which, in dream and otherwise, I called
him back—help me; he paid so little heed!

^30.133 Né l’impetrare ispirazion mi valse,
con le quali e in sogno e altrimenti
lo rivocai: sì poco a lui ne calse!

He fell so far there were no other means
to lead him to salvation, except this:
to let him see the people who were lost.

^30.136 Tanto giù cadde, che tutti argomenti
a la salute sua eran già corti,
fuor che mostrarli le perdute genti.

For this I visited the gateway of
the dead; to him who guided him above
my prayers were offered even as I wept.

^30.139 Per questo visitai l’uscio d’i morti,
e a colui che l’ha qua sù condotto,
li preghi miei, piangendo, furon porti.

The deep design of God would have been broken
if Lethe had been crossed and he had drunk
such waters but had not discharged the debt

^30.142 Alto fato di Dio sarebbe rotto,
se Letè si passasse e tal vivanda
fosse gustata sanza alcuno scotto

of penitence that’s paid when tears are shed.”

^30.145 di pentimento che lagrime spanda.”

CANTO 31
(Dante is Plunged into Lethe)

“O you upon the holy stream’s far shore,”
so she, turning her speech’s point against me-
even its edge had seemed too sharp-began

¹ «O tu che se’ di là dal fiume sacro»,
² volgendo suo parlare a me per punta,
³ che pur per taglio m’era paruto acro,

again, without allowing interruption,
“tell, tell if this is true; for your confession
must be entwined with such self-accusation.”

⁴ ricominciò, seguendo sanza cunta,
⁵ «dì, dì se questo è vero: a tanta accusa
⁶ tua confession conviene esser congiunta».

My power of speech was so confounded that
my voice would move and yet was spent before
its organs had released it. She forbore

⁷ Era la mia virtù tanto confusa,
⁸ che la voce si mosse, e pria si spense
⁹ che da li organi suoi fosse dischiusa.

a moment, then she said: “What are you thinking?
Reply to me, the water has not yet
obliterated your sad memories.”

¹⁰ Poco sofferse; poi disse: «Che pense?
¹¹ Rispondi a me; ché le memorie triste
¹² in te non sono ancor da l’acqua offense».

Confusion mixed with fear compelled a Yes
out of my mouth, and yet that Yes was such-
one needed eyes to make out what it was.

¹³ Confusione e paura insieme miste
¹⁴ mi pinsero un tal «sì» fuor de la bocca,
¹⁵ al quale intender fuor mestier le viste.

Just as a crossbow that is drawn too taut
snaps both its cord and bow when it is shot,
and arrow meets its mark with feeble force,

¹⁶ Come balestro frange, quando scocca
¹⁷ da troppa tesa, la sua corda e l’arco,
¹⁸ e con men foga l’asta il segno tocca,

so, caught beneath that heavy weight, I burst;
and I let tears and sighs pour forth; my voice
had lost its life along its passage out.

¹⁹ sì scoppia’ io sottesso grave carco,
²⁰ fuori sgorgando lagrime e sospiri,
²¹ e la voce allentò per lo suo varco.

At this she said: “In the desire for me
that was directing you to love the Good
beyond which there’s no thing to draw our longing,

²² Ond’ ella a me: «Per entro i mie’ disiri,
²³ che ti menavano ad amar lo bene
²⁴ di là dal qual non è a che s’aspiri,

what chains were strung, what ditches dug across
your path that, once you’d come upon them, caused
your loss of any hope of moving forward?”

²⁵ quai fossi attraversati o quai catene
²⁶ trovasti, per che del passare innanzi
²⁷ dovessiti così spogliar la spene?

What benefits and what allurements were
so evident upon the brow of others
that you had need to promenade before them?”

²⁸ E quali agevolezze o quali avanzi
²⁹ ne la fronte de li altri si mostraro,
³⁰ per che dovessi lor passeggiare anzi?».

After I had withheld a bitter sigh,
I scarcely had the voice for my reply,
but, laboring, my lips gave my words form.

³¹ Dopo la tratta d’un sospiro amaro,
³² a pena ebbi la voce che rispuose,
³³ e le labbra a fatica la formaro.

Weeping, I answered: “Mere appearances
turned me aside with their false loveliness,
as soon as I had lost your countenance.”

³⁴ Piangendo dissi: «Le presenti cose
³⁵ col falso lor piacer volser miei passi,
³⁶ tosto che ’l vostro viso si nascose».

And she: “Had you been silent or denied
what you confess, your guilt would not be less
in evidence: it’s known by such a Judge!

³⁷ Ed ella: «Se tacessi o se negassi
³⁸ ciò che confessi, non fora men nota
³⁹ la colpa tua: da tal giudice sassi!

But when the charge of sinfulness has burst
from one’s own cheek, then in our court the whet-
stone turns and blunts our blade’s own cutting edge.

⁴⁰ Ma quando scoppia de la propria gota
⁴¹ l’accusa del peccato, in nostra corte
⁴² rivolge sé contra ’l taglio la rota.

Nevertheless, that you may feel more shame
for your mistake, and that-in time to come-
hearing the Sirens, you may be more strong,

⁴³ Tuttavia, perché mo vergogna porte
⁴⁴ del tuo errore, e perché altra volta,
⁴⁵ udendo le serene, sie più forte,

have done with all the tears you sowed, and listen:
so shall you hear how, unto other ends,
my buried flesh should have directed you.

⁴⁶ pon giù il seme del piangere e ascolta:
⁴⁷ sì udirai come in contraria parte
⁴⁸ mover dovieti mia carne sepolta.

Nature or art had never showed you any
beauty that matched the lovely limbs in which
I was enclosed-limbs scattered now in dust;

⁴⁹ Mai non t’appresentò natura o arte
⁵⁰ piacer, quanto le belle membra in ch’io
⁵¹ rinchiusa fui, e che so’ ’n terra sparte;

and if the highest beauty failed you through
my death, what mortal thing could then induce
you to desire it? For when the first

⁵² e se ’l sommo piacer sì ti fallio
⁵³ per la mia morte, qual cosa mortale
⁵⁴ dovea poi trarre te nel suo disio?

arrow of things deceptive struck you, then
you surely should have lifted up your wings
to follow me, no longer such a thing.

⁵⁵ Ben ti dovevi, per lo primo strale
⁵⁶ de le cose fallaci, levar suso
⁵⁷ di retro a me che non era più tale.

No green young girl or other novelty-
such brief delight-should have weighed down your wings,
awaiting further shafts. The fledgling bird

⁵⁸ Non ti dovea gravar le penne in giuso,
⁵⁹ ad aspettar più colpo, o pargoletta
⁶⁰ o altra novità con sì breve uso.

must meet two or three blows before he learns,
but any full-fledged bird is proof against
the net that has been spread or arrow, aimed.”

⁶¹ Novo augelletto due o tre aspetta;
⁶² ma dinanzi da li occhi d’i pennuti
⁶³ rete si spiega indarno o si saetta».

As children, when ashamed, will stand, their eyes
upon the ground-they listen, silently,
acknowledging their fault repentantly-

⁶⁴ Quali fanciulli, vergognando, muti
⁶⁵ con li occhi a terra stannosi, ascoltando
⁶⁶ e sé riconoscendo e ripentuti,

so did I stand; and she enjoined me: “Since
hearing alone makes you grieve so, lift up
your beard, and sight will bring you greater tears.”

⁶⁷ tal mi stav’ io; ed ella disse: «Quando
⁶⁸ per udir se’ dolente, alza la barba,
⁶⁹ e prenderai più doglia riguardando».

There’s less resistance in the sturdy oak
to its uprooting by a wind from lands
of ours or lands of Iarbas than I showed

⁷⁰ Con men di resistenza si dibarba
⁷¹ robusto cerro, o vero al nostral vento
⁷² o vero a quel de la terra di Iarba,

in lifting up my chin at her command;
I knew quite well-when she said “beard” but meant
my face-the poison in her argument.

⁷³ ch’io non levai al suo comando il mento;
⁷⁴ e quando per la barba il viso chiese,
⁷⁵ ben conobbi il velen de l’argomento.

When I had raised my face upright, my eyes
were able to perceive that the first creatures
had paused and were no longer scattering flowers;

⁷⁶ E come la mia faccia si distese,
⁷⁷ posarsi quelle prime creature
⁷⁸ da loro aspersïon l’occhio comprese;

and still uncertain of itself, my vision
saw Beatrice turned toward the animal
that is, with its two natures, but one person.

⁷⁹ e le mie luci, ancor poco sicure,
⁸⁰ vider Beatrice volta in su la fiera
⁸¹ ch’è sola una persona in due nature.

Beneath her veil, beyond the stream, she seemed
so to surpass her former self in beauty
as, here on earth, she had surpassed all others.

⁸² Sotto ’l suo velo e oltre la rivera
⁸³ vincer pariemi più sé stessa antica,
⁸⁴ vincer che l’altre qui, quand’ ella c’era.

The nettle of remorse so stung me then,
that those-among all other-things that once
most lured my love, became most hateful to me.

⁸⁵ Di penter sì mi punse ivi l’ortica,
⁸⁶ che di tutte altre cose qual mi torse
⁸⁷ più nel suo amor, più mi si fé nemica.

Such self-indictment seized my heart that I
collapsed, my senses slack; what I became
is known to her who was the cause of it.

⁸⁸ Tanta riconoscenza il cor mi morse,
⁸⁹ ch’io caddi vinto; e quale allora femmi,
⁹⁰ salsi colei che la cagion mi porse.

Then, when my heart restored my outer sense,
I saw the woman whom I’d found alone,
standing above me, saying: “Hold, hold me!”

⁹¹ Poi, quando il cor virtù di fuor rendemmi,
⁹² la donna ch’io avea trovata sola
⁹³ sopra me vidi, e dicea: «Tiemmi, tiemmi!».

Asperges Canto 31.97

She’d plunged me, up to my throat, in the river,
and, drawing me behind her, she now crossed,
light as a gondola, along the surface.

⁹⁴ Tratto m’avea nel fiume infin la gola,
⁹⁵ e tirandosi me dietro sen giva
⁹⁶ sovresso l’acqua lieve come scola.

When I was near the blessed shore, I heard
“Asperges me” so sweetly sung that I
cannot remember or, much less, transcribe it.

⁹⁷ Quando fui presso a la beata riva,
⁹⁸ ‘Asperges me’ sì dolcemente udissi,
⁹⁹ che nol so rimembrar, non ch’io lo scriva.

The lovely woman opened wide her arms;
she clasped my head, and then she thrust me under
to that point where I had to swallow water.

¹⁰⁰  La bella donna ne le braccia aprissi;
¹⁰¹  abbracciommi la testa e mi sommerse
¹⁰²  ove convenne ch’io l’acqua inghiottissi.

That done, she drew me out and led me, bathed,
into the dance of the four lovely women;
and each one placed her arm above my head.

¹⁰³  Indi mi tolse, e bagnato m’offerse
¹⁰⁴  dentro a la danza de le quattro belle;
¹⁰⁵  e ciascuna del braccio mi coperse.

“Here we are nymphs; in heaven, stars; before
she had descended to the world, we were
assigned, as her handmaids, to Beatrice;

¹⁰⁶  «Noi siam qui ninfe e nel ciel siamo stelle;
¹⁰⁷  pria che Beatrice discendesse al mondo,
¹⁰⁸  fummo ordinate a lei per sue ancelle.

we’ll be your guides unto her eyes; but it
will be the three beyond, who see more deeply,
who’ll help you penetrate her joyous light.”

¹⁰⁹  Merrenti a li occhi suoi; ma nel giocondo
¹¹⁰  lume ch’è dentro aguzzeranno i tuoi
¹¹¹  le tre di là, che miran più profondo».

So, singing, they began; then, leading me
together with them to the griffin’s breast,
where Beatrice, turned toward us, stood, they said:

¹¹²  Così cantando cominciaro; e poi
¹¹³  al petto del grifon seco menarmi,
¹¹⁴  ove Beatrice stava volta a noi.

“See that you are not sparing of your gaze:
before you we have set those emeralds
from which Love once had aimed his shafts at you.”

¹¹⁵  Disser: «Fa che le viste non risparmi;
¹¹⁶  posto t’avem dinanzi a li smeraldi
¹¹⁷  ond’ Amor già ti trasse le sue armi».

A thousand longings burning more than flames
compelled my eyes to watch the radiant eyes
that, motionless, were still fixed on the griffin.

¹¹⁸  Mille disiri più che fiamma caldi
¹¹⁹  strinsermi li occhi a li occhi rilucenti,
¹²⁰  che pur sopra ’l grifone stavan saldi.

Just like the sun within a mirror, so
the double-natured creature gleamed within,
now showing one, and now the other guise.

¹²¹  Come in lo specchio il sol, non altrimenti
¹²²  la doppia fiera dentro vi raggiava,
¹²³  or con altri, or con altri reggimenti.

Consider, reader, if I did not wonder
when I saw something that displayed no movement
though its reflected image kept on changing.

¹²⁴  Pensa, lettor, s’io mi maravigliava,
¹²⁵  quando vedea la cosa in sé star queta,
¹²⁶  e ne l’idolo suo si trasmutava.

And while, full of astonishment and gladness,
my soul tasted that food which, even as
it quenches hunger, spurs the appetite,

¹²⁷  Mentre che piena di stupore e lieta
¹²⁸  l’anima mia gustava di quel cibo
¹²⁹  che, saziando di sé, di sé asseta,

the other three, whose stance showed them to be
the members of a higher troop, advanced-
and, to their chant, they danced angelically.

¹³⁰  sé dimostrando di più alto tribo
¹³¹  ne li atti, l’altre tre si fero avanti,
¹³²  danzando al loro angelico caribo.

“Turn, Beatrice, o turn your holy eyes
upon your faithful one,” their song beseeched,
“who, that he might see you, has come so far.

¹³³  «Volgi, Beatrice, volgi li occhi santi»,
¹³⁴  era la sua canzone, «al tuo fedele
¹³⁵  che, per vederti, ha mossi passi tanti!

Out of your grace, do us this grace; unveil
your lips to him, so that he may discern
the second beauty you have kept concealed.”

¹³⁶  Per grazia fa noi grazia che disvele
¹³⁷  a lui la bocca tua, sì che discerna
¹³⁸  la seconda bellezza che tu cele».

O splendor of eternal living light,
who’s ever grown so pale beneath Parnassus’
shade or has drunk so deeply from its fountain,

¹³⁹  O isplendor di viva luce etterna,
¹⁴⁰  chi palido si fece sotto l’ombra
¹⁴¹  sì di Parnaso, o bevve in sua cisterna,

that he’d not seem to have his mind confounded,
trying to render you as you appeared
where heaven’s harmony was your pale likeness-

¹⁴²  che non paresse aver la mente ingombra,
¹⁴³  tentando a render te qual tu paresti
¹⁴⁴  là dove armonizzando il ciel t’adombra,

your face, seen through the air, unveiled completely?

¹⁴⁵  quando ne l’aere aperto ti solvesti?

 Canto 32

CANTO 32
(Allegories of The Ages of the Church)

My eyes were so insistent, so intent
on finding satisfaction for their ten-
year thirst that every other sense was spent.

¹ Tant’ eran li occhi miei fissi e attenti
² a disbramarsi la decenne sete,
³ che li altri sensi m’eran tutti spenti.

And to each side, my eyes were walled in by
indifference to all else (with its old net,
the holy smile so drew them to itself),

⁴ Ed essi quinci e quindi avien parete
⁵ di non caler—così lo santo riso
⁶ a sé traéli con l’antica rete!—;

when I was forced to turn my eyes leftward
by those three goddesses because I heard
them warning me: “You stare too fixedly.”

⁷ quando per forza mi fu vòlto il viso
⁸ ver’ la sinistra mia da quelle dee,
⁹ perch’ io udi’ da loro un «Troppo fiso!»;

And the condition that afflicts the sight
when eyes have just been struck by the sun’s force
left me without my vision for a time.

¹⁰ e la disposizion ch’a veder èe
¹¹ ne li occhi pur testé dal sol percossi,
¹² sanza la vista alquanto esser mi fée.

But when my sight became accustomed to
lesser sensations (that is, lesser than
the mighty force that made my eyes retreat),

¹³ Ma poi ch’al poco il viso riformossi
¹⁴ (e dico ‘al poco’ per rispetto al molto
¹⁵ sensibile onde a forza mi rimossi),

I saw the glorious army: it had wheeled
around and to the right; it had turned east;
it faced the seven flames and faced the sun.

¹⁶ vidi ’n sul braccio destro esser rivolto
¹⁷ lo glorïoso essercito, e tornarsi
¹⁸ col sole e con le sette fiamme al volto.

Just as, protected by its shields, a squadron
will wheel, to save itself, around its standard
until all of its men have changed direction;

¹⁹ Come sotto li scudi per salvarsi
²⁰ volgesi schiera, e sé gira col segno,
²¹ prima che possa tutta in sé mutarsi;

so here all troops of the celestial kingdom
within the vanguard passed in front of us
before the chariot swung around the pole-shaft.

²² quella milizia del celeste regno
²³ che procedeva, tutta trapassonne
²⁴ pria che piegasse il carro il primo legno.

Back to the wheels the ladies then returned;
and though the griffin moved the blessed burden,
when he did that, none of his feathers stirred.

²⁵ Indi a le rote si tornar le donne,
²⁶ e ’l grifon mosse il benedetto carco
²⁷ sì, che però nulla penna crollonne.

The lovely lady who’d helped me ford Lethe,
and I and Statius, following the wheel
that turned right, round the inner, smaller arc,

²⁸ La bella donna che mi trasse al varco
²⁹ e Stazio e io seguitavam la rota
³⁰ che fé l’orbita sua con minore arco.

were slowly passing through the tall woods-empty
because of one who had believed the serpent;
our pace was measured by angelic song.

³¹ Sì passeggiando l’alta selva vòta,
³² colpa di quella ch’al serpente crese,
³³ temprava i passi un’angelica nota.

The space we covered could be matched perhaps
by three flights of an unleashed arrow’s shafts,
when Beatrice descended from the chariot.

³⁴ Forse in tre voli tanto spazio prese
³⁵ disfrenata saetta, quanto eramo
³⁶ rimossi, quando Bëatrice scese.

ADAM (Humanity/The Tree of Life) renewed by

CHRIST/THE GRIFFIN

“Adam,” I heard all of them murmuring,
and then they drew around a tree whose every
branch had been stripped of flowers and of leaves.

³⁷ Io senti’ mormorare a tutti «Adamo»;
³⁸ poi cerchiaro una pianta dispogliata
³⁹ di foglie e d’altra fronda in ciascun ramo.

As it grows higher, so its branches spread
wider; it reached a height that even in
their forests would amaze the Indians.

⁴⁰ La coma sua, che tanto si dilata
⁴¹ più quanto più è sù, fora da l’Indi
⁴² ne’ boschi lor per altezza ammirata.

“Blessed are you, whose beak does not, O griffin,
pluck the sweet-tasting fruit that is forbidden
and then afflicts the belly that has eaten!”

⁴³ «Beato se’, grifon, che non discindi
⁴⁴ col becco d’esto legno dolce al gusto,
⁴⁵ poscia che mal si torce il ventre quindi».

So, round the robust tree, the others shouted;
and the two-natured animal: “Thus is
the seed of every righteous man preserved.”

⁴⁶ Così dintorno a l’albero robusto
⁴⁷ gridaron li altri; e l’animal binato:
⁴⁸ «Sì si conserva il seme d’ogne giusto».

And turning to the pole-shaft he had pulled,
he drew it to the foot of the stripped tree
and, with a branch of that tree, tied the two.

⁴⁹ E vòlto al temo ch’elli avea tirato,
⁵⁰ trasselo al piè de la vedova frasca,
⁵¹ e quel di lei a lei lasciò legato.

Just like our plants that, when the great light falls
on earth, mixed with the light that shines behind
the stars of the celestial Fishes, swell

⁵² Come le nostre piante, quando casca
⁵³ giù la gran luce mischiata con quella
⁵⁴ che raggia dietro a la celeste lasca,

with buds-each plant renews its coloring
before the sun has yoked its steeds beneath
another constellation: so the tree,

⁵⁵ turgide fansi, e poi si rinovella
⁵⁶ di suo color ciascuna, pria che ’l sole
⁵⁷ giunga li suoi corsier sotto altra stella;

whose boughs-before-had been so solitary,
was now renewed, showing a tint that was
less than the rose, more than the violet.

⁵⁸ men che di rose e più che di vïole
⁵⁹ colore aprendo, s’innovò la pianta,
⁶⁰ che prima avea le ramora sì sole.

DANTE SLEEPS as if at CHRIST’S

TRANSFIGURATION

I did not understand the hymn that they
then sang - it is not sung here on this earth -
nor, drowsy, did I listen to the end.

⁶¹ Io non lo ’ntesi, né qui non si canta
⁶² l’inno che quella gente allor cantaro,
⁶³ né la nota soffersi tutta quanta.

Could I describe just how the ruthless eyes
(eyes whose long wakefulness cost them so dear),
hearing the tale of Syrinx, fell asleep,

⁶⁴ S’io potessi ritrar come assonnaro
⁶⁵ li occhi spietati udendo di Siringa,
⁶⁶ li occhi a cui pur vegghiar costò sì caro;

then like a painter painting from a model,
I’d draw the way in which I fell asleep;
but I refrain-let one more skillful paint.

⁶⁷ come pintor che con essempro pinga,
⁶⁸ disegnerei com’ io m’addormentai;
⁶⁹ ma qual vuol sia che l’assonnar ben finga.

I move, therefore, straight to my waking time;
I say that radiance rent the veil of sleep,
as did a voice: “Rise up: what are you doing?”

⁷⁰ Però trascorro a quando mi svegliai,
⁷¹ e dico ch’un splendor mi squarciò ’l velo
⁷² del sonno, e un chiamar: «Surgi: che fai?».

Even as Peter, John, and James, when brought
to see the blossoms of the apple tree-
whose fruit abets the angels’ hungering,

⁷³ Quali a veder de’ fioretti del melo
⁷⁴ che del suo pome li angeli fa ghiotti
⁷⁵ e perpetüe nozze fa nel cielo,

providing endless wedding-feasts in Heaven-
were overwhelmed by what they saw, but then,
hearing the word that shattered deeper sleeps,

⁷⁶ Pietro e Giovanni e Iacopo condotti
⁷⁷ e vinti, ritornaro a la parola
⁷⁸ da la qual furon maggior sonni rotti,

arose and saw their fellowship was smaller-
since Moses and Elijah now had left-
and saw a difference in their Teacher’s dress;

⁷⁹ e videro scemata loro scuola
⁸⁰ così di Moïsè come d’Elia,
⁸¹ e al maestro suo cangiata stola;

so I awoke and saw, standing above me,
she who before-compassionate-had guided
my steps along the riverbank. Completely

⁸² tal torna’ io, e vidi quella pia
⁸³ sovra me starsi che conducitrice
⁸⁴ fu de’ miei passi lungo ’l fiume pria.

bewildered, I asked: “Where is Beatrice?”
And she: “Beneath the boughs that were renewed,
she’s seated on the root of that tree; see

⁸⁵ E tutto in dubbio dissi: «Ov’ è Beatrice?».
⁸⁶ Ond’ ella: «Vedi lei sotto la fronda
⁸⁷ nova sedere in su la sua radice.

the company surrounding her; the rest
have left; behind the griffin they have climbed
on high with song that is more sweet, more deep.”

⁸⁸ Vedi la compagnia che la circonda:
⁸⁹ li altri dopo ’l grifon sen vanno suso
⁹⁰ con più dolce canzone e più profonda».

I do not know if she said more than that,
because, by now, I had in sight one who
excluded all things other from my view.

⁹¹ E se più fu lo suo parlar diffuso,
⁹² non so, però che già ne li occhi m’era
⁹³ quella ch’ad altro intender m’avea chiuso.

ALLEGORIES of THE AGES of

THE CHURCH

She sat alone upon the simple ground,
left there as guardian of the chariot
I’d seen the two-form animal tie fast.

⁹⁴ Sola sedeasi in su la terra vera,
⁹⁵ come guardia lasciata lì del plaustro
⁹⁶ che legar vidi a la biforme fera.

The seven nymphs encircled her as garland,
and in their hands they held the lamps that can
not be extinguished by the north or south winds.

⁹⁷ In cerchio le facevan di sé claustro
⁹⁸ le sette ninfe, con quei lumi in mano
⁹⁹ che son sicuri d’Aquilone e d’Austro.

“Here you shall be - awhile - a visitor;
but you shall be with me - and without end - Rome’s citizen, the Rome in which Christ is

¹⁰⁰  «Qui sarai tu poco tempo silvano;
¹⁰¹  e sarai meco sanza fine cive
¹⁰²  di quella Roma onde Cristo è romano.

Roman; and thus, to profit that world which
lives badly, watch the chariot steadfastly
and, when you have returned beyond, transcribe

¹⁰³  Però, in pro del mondo che mal vive,
¹⁰⁴  al carro tieni or li occhi, e quel che vedi,
¹⁰⁵  ritornato di là, fa che tu scrive».

what you have seen.” Thus, Beatrice; and I,
devoutly, at the feet of her commandments,
set mind and eyes where she had wished me to.

¹⁰⁶  Così Beatrice; e io, che tutto ai piedi
¹⁰⁷  d’i suoi comandamenti era divoto,
¹⁰⁸  la mente e li occhi ov’ ella volle diedi.

Never has lightning fallen with such swift
motion from a thick cloud, when it descends
from the most distant limit in the heavens,

¹⁰⁹  Non scese mai con sì veloce moto
¹¹⁰  foco di spessa nube, quando piove
¹¹¹  da quel confine che più va remoto,

THE EAGLE - Persecution by the

early Roman Emperors

as did the bird of Jove that I saw swoop
down through the tree, tearing the bark as well
as the new leaves and the new flowering.

¹¹²  com’ io vidi calar l’uccel di Giove
¹¹³  per l’alber giù, rompendo de la scorza,
¹¹⁴  non che d’i fiori e de le foglie nove;

It struck the chariot with all its force;
the chariot twisted, like a ship that’s crossed
by seas that now storm starboard and now port.

¹¹⁵  e ferì ’l carro di tutta sua forza;
¹¹⁶  ond’ el piegò come nave in fortuna,
¹¹⁷  vinta da l’onda, or da poggia, or da orza.

THE FOX - Early Heresies such as

Gnosticism and Arianism

I then saw, as it leaped into the body
of that triumphal chariot, a fox
that seemed to lack all honest nourishment:

¹¹⁸  Poscia vidi avventarsi ne la cuna
¹¹⁹  del trïunfal veiculo una volpe
¹²⁰  che d’ogne pasto buon parea digiuna;

but, as she railed against its squalid sins,
my lady forced that fox to flight as quick
as, stripped of flesh, its bones permitted it.

¹²¹  ma, riprendendo lei di laide colpe,
¹²²  la donna mia la volse in tanta futa
¹²³  quanto sofferser l’ossa sanza polpe.