The Divine Comedy Paradiso

463 Pages·1610·11.6 MB·English

THE
D I V I N E C O M E D Y
OF
DANTE A L IG H IE R I
TRANSLA TED BY
HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW
I follow here the footing of thy fecte
That with thy meaning so I may the rather meete
Spenser.
B O S T O N
T I C K N O R A N D F I E L D S
1867
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1867, by
HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW,
the Clerk’s Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts.
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University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co.,
Cambridge.
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■ i
C O N T E N T S
OF VOL. III.
P A R A D I S O.
CANTO I.
Page
The Ascent to the First Heaven...................................................................................i
CANTO II.
The First Heaven, or that of the Moon, in which are seen the Spirits of those
who, having taken Monastic Vows, were forced to violate them . . . 8
CANTO III.
Piccarda and Constance.............................................................................................15
CANTO IV.
Questionings of the Soul and of Broken V o w s.......................................................21
CANTO V.
Compensations. Ascent to the Second Heaven, or that of Mercury, where are
seen the Spirits of those who for the Love of Fame achieved great Deeds. 28
CANTO VI.
Justinian. — The Roman Eagle. — R o m e o .......................................................34
CANTO VII.
Beatrice’s Discourse of the Incarnation, the Immortality of the Soul, and the
Resurrection of the B o d y ...................................................................................41
iv Contents
CANTO VIII.
Ascent to the Third Heaven, or that of Venus, where are ^seen the Spirits of
Lovers. — Charles M a r te l...................................................................................48
CANTO IX.
Cunizza, Folco of Marseilles, and R ahab.................................................................55
CANTO X.
The Fourth Heaven, or that of the Sun, where are seen the Spirits of Theolo­
gians and Fathers of the Church. — St. Thomas Aquinas . . . .6 2
CANTO XI.
St. Thomas Aquinas recounts the Life of St. Francis..............................................69
C A N T O XII.
St. Buonaventura recounts the Life of St. Dom inic..............................................75
CANTO XIII.
Of the Wisdom of Solomon............................................................................................82
CANTO XIV.
The Fifth Heaven, or that of Mars, where are seen the Spirits of Martyrs, and
of Crusaders who died fighting for the true Faith. — The Celestial Cross . 89
CANTO XV.
Cacciaguida. — Florence in the Olden T im e ........................................................95
CANTO XVI.
Cacciaguida’s Discourse of the Great Florentines..............................................102
CANTO XVII.
Cacciaguida’s Prophecy of Dante’s Banishment........................................................109
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Contents
V
C AN TO XVIII.
The Sixth Heaven, or that of Jupiter, where are seen the Spirits of Righteous
Kings and Rulers. — The Celestial Eagle....................................................... 116
CANTO XIX.
The Eagle discourses of Salvation by Faith . . . . . 122
CANTO XX.
129
The Eagle praises the Righteous Kings of old.......................................................
CANTO XXI.
The Seventh Heaven, or that of Saturn, where are seen the Spirits of the
Contemplative. — The Celestial Stairway. — St. Peter Damiano. — His
136
Invectives against the Luxury of the Prelates..............................................
C A N T O XXII.
St. Benedict. — His Lamentation over the Corruption of the Monks. — The
Eighth Heaven, or that of the Fixed Stars....................................................... 143
CAN TO XXIII.
The Triumph of C h rist............................................................................................ ISO
C A N T O XXIV.
St. Peter examines Dante upon F a it h ....................................................... 156
C A N T O XXV.
St. James examines Dante upon H o p e ................................................................ 163
C A N T O XXVI.
St. John examines Dante upon C harity................................................................. 169
C A N T O XXVII.
St. Peter’s reproof of bad Popes. — The Ascent to the Ninth Heaven, or the
176
Pritnwn Mobile..............................................
Contents
VI
CANTO XXVIII.
God and the Celestial Hierarchies..........................................................................183
C A N T O XXIX.
Beatrice’s Discourse of the Creation of the Angels, and of the Fall of Lucifer.
— Her Reproof of the Ignorance and Avarice of Preachers, and the Sale
of Indulgences.....................................................................................................189
C A N T O XXX.
The Tenth Heaven, or Empyrean. — The River of Light. — The Two Courts
of Heaven. — The White Rose of Paradise..............................................196
C A N T O XXXI.
The Glory of Paradise. — St. B ernard.................................................................203
C A N T O XXXII.
St. Bernard points out the Saints in the White R o s e .....................................210
C A N TO X XXIII.
Prayer to the Virgin. — The Threefold Circle of the Trinity. — Mystery of the
Divine and Human Nature...................................................................................217
NOTES . . . . . . ........................................................225
ILLUSTRATIONS.
Le D an te...............................................................................................................387
La Divine Comédie............................................................................................389
Notes sur le D a n te ............................................................................................393
La Comédie Divine............................................................................................394
La Philosophie Italienne...................................................................................403
La Divine Comédie............................................................................................407
Dante, Imitateur et Créateur..........................................................................411
C abala................................................................................................................420
IN D E X ........................................................................................................................425
I LIFT mine eyes, and all the windows blaze
With forms of Saints and holy men who died,
Here martyred and hereafter glorified ;
And the great Rose upon its leaves displays
Christ’s Triumph, and the angelic roundelays,
With splendor upon splendor multiplied
-,
And Beatrice again at Dante’s side
No more rebukes, but smiles her words of praise.
And then the organ sounds, and unseen choirs
Sing the old Latin hymns of peace and love
And benedictions of the Holy Ghost ;
And the melodious bells among the spires
O’er all the house-tops and through heaven above
Proclaim the elevation of the Host !
STAR of morning and of liberty !
O bringer of the light, whose splendor shines
Above the darkness of the Apennines,
Forerunner of the day that is to be !
The voices of the city and the sea,
The voices of the mountains and the pines,
Repeat thy song, till the familiar lines
Are footpaths for the thought of Italy !
Thy fame is blown abroad from all the heights,
Through all the nations, and a sound is heard,
As of a mighty wind, and men devout,
Strangers of Rome, and the new proselytes,
In their own language hear thy wondrous word,
And many are amazed and many doubt.
P A R A D I S O