Purgatorio, Canto 24
Dante Alighieri · Italian original · new English translation and commentary by Text Atlas
Overview
Conversation and movement proceed together as Dante asks Forese about Piccarda and the souls around them. Forese says Piccarda already triumphs in Heaven, then names Bonagiunta da Lucca, Pope Martin IV, Ubaldin dalla Pila, Bonifazio, Messer Marchese, and other gluttonous souls who are glad to be named despite their wasted faces. Dante turns especially to Bonagiunta, who murmurs of Gentucca and prophesies that a woman of Lucca will make that city pleasing to him. Bonagiunta then recognizes Dante as the poet of the new rhymes beginning Donne ch'avete intelletto d'amore, and Dante defines his practice as noting what Love breathes and dictates within. Bonagiunta understands the knot that kept him, the Notary, and Guittone short of the sweet new style. The company hurries on like birds changing formation, while Forese remains behind to ask when he will see Dante again. Dante answers with uncertainty about his life and sorrow for Florence's de-fleshed good. Forese prophesies the violent end of Corso Donati, then leaves because time is precious in Purgatory. Dante remains with Virgil and Statius, the great marshals of the world, and soon sees another living apple tree. Souls reach for it like eager children whose desire is held high to sharpen longing. A hidden voice forbids approach, points higher to the tree bitten by Eve, and names gluttonous examples: the cloud-born Centaurs and Gideon's soft drinkers. After a long silent walk, a sudden voice startles Dante. A radiant red angel directs the poets toward the ascent and peace; the angel's brightness blinds Dante, but a May-like breeze and wing movement touch his forehead with ambrosial fragrance. The beatitude blesses those so illumined by grace that love of taste does not smoke into excessive desire, hungering only as far as is just.
Narrative arc
- Speech and movement continue as Dante asks Forese about Piccarda
- Forese names Bonagiunta, Pope Martin IV, and other gluttonous souls
- Bonagiunta, Gentucca, and the sweet new style
- The gluttons depart and Forese prophesies Corso Donati's fall
- The second tree sharpens desire and warns through gluttony examples
- The silent road, the angel of the pass, and the just-hunger beatitude
Central themes
- hunger
- poetic style
Speech and movement continue as Dante asks Forese about Piccarda XXIV.1–18
1Né ’l dir l’andar, né l’andar lui più lento
facea, ma ragionando andavam forte,
sì come nave pinta da buon vento;
e l’ombre, che parean cose rimorte,
5per le fosse de li occhi ammirazione
traean di me, di mio vivere accorte.
E io, continüando al mio sermone,
dissi: «Ella sen va sù forse più tarda
che non farebbe, per altrui cagione.
10Ma dimmi, se tu sai, dov’ è Piccarda;
dimmi s’io veggio da notar persona
tra questa gente che sì mi riguarda».
«La mia sorella, che tra bella e buona
non so qual fosse più, trïunfa lieta
15ne l’alto Olimpo già di sua corona».
Sì disse prima; e poi: «Qui non si vieta
di nominar ciascun, da ch’è sì munta
nostra sembianza via per la dïeta.
1Neither did speech slow our going, nor going slow speech,
but reasoning together we went on strongly,
like a ship driven by a good wind;
and the shades, who seemed things dead again,
5through the pits of their eyes drew wonder
from me, aware that I was living.
And I, continuing my discourse,
said: "That soul goes upward perhaps more slowly
than it would do, for another's sake.
10But tell me, if you know, where is Piccarda;
tell me whether I see any person to be noted
among these people who gaze at me so."
"My sister, between beautiful and good
I do not know which she was more, triumphs glad
15already in high Olympus with her crown."
So he said first; and then: "Here it is not forbidden
to name each one, since our likeness is so milked
away by the diet.
Commentary
The opening balances speech and walking, Statius's slower ascent for others' sake, and Piccarda's blessedness. The translation keeps the ship image active and leaves Piccarda's future Paradiso recognition as a note rather than explanatory expansion.
XXIV.1–3 The opening balances speech and movement: conversation does not delay ascent, and ascent does not thin the exchange.
XXIV.1–3 The opening balances speech and movement: conversation does not delay ascent, and ascent does not thin the exchange. Line 1: The opening balances speech and movement: conversation does not delay ascent, and ascent does not thin the exchange.
XXIV.1 The opening balances speech and movement: conversation does not delay ascent, and ascent does not thin the exchange. The opening balances speech and movement: conversation does not delay ascent, and ascent does not thin the exchange.
XXIV.7–9 The soul is Statius, whose ascent is delayed by remaining with Virgil and Dante.
XXIV.7–9 The soul is Statius, whose ascent is delayed by remaining with Virgil and Dante. Line 8: The soul is Statius, whose ascent is delayed by remaining with Virgil and Dante.
XXIV.8 The soul is Statius, whose ascent is delayed by remaining with Virgil and Dante. The soul is Statius, whose ascent is delayed by remaining with Virgil and Dante.
XXIV.10–12 Piccarda Donati, Forese's sister, will appear in Paradiso III.
XXIV.10–12 Piccarda Donati, Forese's sister, will appear in Paradiso III. Line 10: Piccarda Donati, Forese's sister, will appear in Paradiso III.
XXIV.10 Piccarda Donati, Forese's sister, will appear in Paradiso III. Piccarda Donati, Forese's sister, will appear in Paradiso III.
XXIV.13–15 Forese names Piccarda's blessed state through classical Olympus imagery while the Christian sense is heavenly triumph.
XXIV.13–15 Forese names Piccarda's blessed state through classical Olympus imagery while the Christian sense is heavenly triumph. Line 15: Forese names Piccarda's blessed state through classical Olympus imagery while the Christian sense is heavenly triumph.
XXIV.15 Forese names Piccarda's blessed state through classical Olympus imagery while the Christian sense is heavenly triumph. Forese names Piccarda's blessed state through classical Olympus imagery while the Christian sense is heavenly triumph.
XXIV.16–18 Recognition by appearance is unreliable because the gluttonous souls have been wasted by purgative abstinence.
XXIV.16–18 Recognition by appearance is unreliable because the gluttonous souls have been wasted by purgative abstinence. Line 18: Recognition by appearance is unreliable because the gluttonous souls have been wasted by purgative abstinence.
XXIV.18 Recognition by appearance is unreliable because the gluttonous souls have been wasted by purgative abstinence. Recognition by appearance is unreliable because the gluttonous souls have been wasted by purgative abstinence.
Forese names Bonagiunta, Pope Martin IV, and other gluttonous souls XXIV.19–33
19Questi», e mostrò col dito, «è Bonagiunta,
20Bonagiunta da Lucca; e quella faccia
di là da lui più che l’altre trapunta
ebbe la Santa Chiesa in le sue braccia:
dal Torso fu, e purga per digiuno
l’anguille di Bolsena e la vernaccia».
25Molti altri mi nomò ad uno ad uno;
e del nomar parean tutti contenti,
sì ch’io però non vidi un atto bruno.
Vidi per fame a vòto usar li denti
Ubaldin da la Pila e Bonifazio
30che pasturò col rocco molte genti.
Vidi messer Marchese, ch’ebbe spazio
già di bere a Forlì con men secchezza,
e sì fu tal, che non si sentì sazio.
19This one," and he showed him with his finger, "is Bonagiunta,
20Bonagiunta da Lucca; and that face
beyond him, more pierced thin than the others,
had Holy Church within his arms:
he was from Tours, and purges by fasting
the eels of Bolsena and the Vernaccia."
25Many others he named to me, one by one;
and all seemed content at the naming,
so that I saw no dark gesture there.
I saw, from hunger, using their teeth on emptiness
Ubaldin dalla Pila and Bonifazio,
30who pastured many people with the crozier.
I saw Messer Marchese, who once had room
to drink at Forli with less dryness,
and yet was such that he never felt sated.
Commentary
The passage names gluttonous souls and keeps Martin IV's ecclesial dignity beside the comic concreteness of Bolsena eels and Vernaccia. The translation preserves the cheerful naming without importing additional biographical detail into the line.
XXIV.19–21 Bonagiunta da Lucca is the poetic interlocutor who will recognize Dante's new style. Trapunta is kept sharp and bodily; the line points to the especially wasted Pope Martin IV.
XXIV.19–21 Bonagiunta da Lucca is the poetic interlocutor who will recognize Dante's new style. Line 19: Bonagiunta da Lucca is the poetic interlocutor who will recognize Dante's new style. Line 21: Trapunta is kept sharp and bodily; the line points to the especially wasted Pope Martin IV.
XXIV.19 Bonagiunta da Lucca is the poetic interlocutor who will recognize Dante's new style. Bonagiunta da Lucca is the poetic interlocutor who will recognize Dante's new style.
XXIV.21 Trapunta is kept sharp and bodily; the line points to the especially wasted Pope Martin IV. Trapunta is kept sharp and bodily; the line points to the especially wasted Pope Martin IV.
XXIV.22–24 The soul is Pope Martin IV, pope from 1281 to 1285. Dante's concrete food and wine details preserve the comic specificity of gluttonous appetite.
XXIV.22–24 The soul is Pope Martin IV, pope from 1281 to 1285. Line 22: The soul is Pope Martin IV, pope from 1281 to 1285. Line 24: Dante's concrete food and wine details preserve the comic specificity of gluttonous appetite.
XXIV.22 The soul is Pope Martin IV, pope from 1281 to 1285. The soul is Pope Martin IV, pope from 1281 to 1285.
XXIV.24 Dante's concrete food and wine details preserve the comic specificity of gluttonous appetite. Dante's concrete food and wine details preserve the comic specificity of gluttonous appetite.
XXIV.28–30 Bonifazio is usually identified as Bonifazio Fieschi, Archbishop of Ravenna; rocco carries the pastoral staff/crozier image.
XXIV.28–30 Bonifazio is usually identified as Bonifazio Fieschi, Archbishop of Ravenna; rocco carries the pastoral staff/crozier image. Line 30: Bonifazio is usually identified as Bonifazio Fieschi, Archbishop of Ravenna; rocco carries the pastoral staff/crozier image.
XXIV.30 Bonifazio is usually identified as Bonifazio Fieschi, Archbishop of Ravenna; rocco carries the pastoral staff/crozier image. Bonifazio is usually identified as Bonifazio Fieschi, Archbishop of Ravenna; rocco carries the pastoral staff/crozier image.
Bonagiunta, Gentucca, and the sweet new style XXIV.34–63
34Ma come fa chi guarda e poi s’apprezza
35più d’un che d’altro, fei a quel da Lucca,
che più parea di me aver contezza.
El mormorava; e non so che «Gentucca»
sentiv’ io là, ov’ el sentia la piaga
de la giustizia che sì li pilucca.
40«O anima», diss’ io, «che par sì vaga
di parlar meco, fa sì ch’io t’intenda,
e te e me col tuo parlare appaga».
«Femmina è nata, e non porta ancor benda»,
cominciò el, «che ti farà piacere
45la mia città, come ch’om la riprenda.
Tu te n’andrai con questo antivedere:
se nel mio mormorar prendesti errore,
dichiareranti ancor le cose vere.
Ma dì s’i’ veggio qui colui che fore
50trasse le nove rime, cominciando
‘Donne ch’avete intelletto d’amore’».
E io a lui: «I’ mi son un che, quando
Amor mi spira, noto, e a quel modo
ch’e’ ditta dentro vo significando».
55«O frate, issa vegg’ io», diss’ elli, «il nodo
che ’l Notaro e Guittone e me ritenne
di qua dal dolce stil novo ch’i’ odo!
Io veggio ben come le vostre penne
di retro al dittator sen vanno strette,
60che de le nostre certo non avvenne;
e qual più a gradire oltre si mette,
non vede più da l’uno a l’altro stilo»;
e, quasi contentato, si tacette.
34But as one does who looks, and then prizes
35one more than another, so I did with the man from Lucca,
who seemed to have more knowledge of me.
He was murmuring; and I heard something of "Gentucca"
there, where he felt the wound
of justice that so picks him bare.
40"O soul," I said, "who seem so eager
to speak with me, make it so that I understand you,
and satisfy both yourself and me with your speaking."
"A woman is born, and does not yet wear the veil,"
he began, "who will make pleasing to you
45my city, however one may blame it.
You will go on with this foresight:
if in my murmuring you took error,
true things will yet make it clear to you.
But say whether I see here the one who brought forth
50the new rhymes, beginning
`Ladies who have intellect of love.'"
And I to him: "I am one who, when
Love breathes in me, take note, and in the way
he dictates within, I go setting it forth."
55"O brother, now I see," he said, "the knot
that held the Notary, Guittone, and me
short of the sweet new style that I hear!
I see clearly how your pens
go close behind the dictator,
60which certainly did not happen with ours;
and whoever sets himself to go farther in pleasing,
sees no more from one style to the other";
and, as if satisfied, he fell silent.
Commentary
The passage gives the Gentucca prophecy and the central dolce stil novo exchange. The translation keeps Love as an interior dictator and treats Dante's poetic practice as receptive notation rather than autonomous cleverness.
XXIV.37–39 Gentucca is an otherwise obscure woman of Lucca connected with Dante's later exile tradition. Pilucca keeps the plucking/picking action of justice on the emaciated body.
XXIV.37–39 Gentucca is an otherwise obscure woman of Lucca connected with Dante's later exile tradition. Line 37: Gentucca is an otherwise obscure woman of Lucca connected with Dante's later exile tradition. Line 39: Pilucca keeps the plucking/picking action of justice on the emaciated body.
XXIV.37 Gentucca is an otherwise obscure woman of Lucca connected with Dante's later exile tradition. Gentucca is an otherwise obscure woman of Lucca connected with Dante's later exile tradition.
XXIV.39 Pilucca keeps the plucking/picking action of justice on the emaciated body. Pilucca keeps the plucking/picking action of justice on the emaciated body.
XXIV.43–45 Benda marks the veil or head covering of a married woman; Bonagiunta says Gentucca is not yet married.
XXIV.43–45 Benda marks the veil or head covering of a married woman; Bonagiunta says Gentucca is not yet married. Line 43: Benda marks the veil or head covering of a married woman; Bonagiunta says Gentucca is not yet married.
XXIV.43 Benda marks the veil or head covering of a married woman; Bonagiunta says Gentucca is not yet married. Benda marks the veil or head covering of a married woman; Bonagiunta says Gentucca is not yet married.
XXIV.49–51 Nove rime points to the new poetic practice associated with Dante's Vita nuova and the dolce stil novo. The quoted incipit is Dante's canzone from the Vita nuova; the translation keeps the title-like force witho.
XXIV.49–51 Nove rime points to the new poetic practice associated with Dante's Vita nuova and the dolce stil novo. Line 50: Nove rime points to the new poetic practice associated with Dante's Vita nuova and the dolce stil novo. Line 51: The quoted incipit is Dante's canzone from the Vita nuova; the translation keeps the title-like force without expanding it.
XXIV.50 Nove rime points to the new poetic practice associated with Dante's Vita nuova and the dolce stil novo. Nove rime points to the new poetic practice associated with Dante's Vita nuova and the dolce stil novo.
XXIV.51 The quoted incipit is Dante's canzone from the Vita nuova; the translation keeps the title-like force without expanding it. The quoted incipit is Dante's canzone from the Vita nuova; the translation keeps the title-like force without expanding it.
XXIV.52–54 Love is personified as the source of inward dictation; Dante presents poetic making as disciplined reception.
XXIV.52–54 Love is personified as the source of inward dictation; Dante presents poetic making as disciplined reception. Line 53: Love is personified as the source of inward dictation; Dante presents poetic making as disciplined reception.
XXIV.53 Love is personified as the source of inward dictation; Dante presents poetic making as disciplined reception. Love is personified as the source of inward dictation; Dante presents poetic making as disciplined reception.
XXIV.55–57 Issa preserves Bonagiunta's Luccan speech in the Italian; the English keeps the sense as direct recognition. The Notary is Jacopo da Lentini; Guittone is Guittone d'Arezzo. Both mark earlier poetic practice. The translation.
XXIV.55–57 Issa preserves Bonagiunta's Luccan speech in the Italian; the English keeps the sense as direct recognition. Line 55: Issa preserves Bonagiunta's Luccan speech in the Italian; the English keeps the sense as direct recognition. Line 56: The Notary is Jacopo da Lentini; Guittone is Guittone d'Arezzo. Both mark earlier poetic practice. Line 57: The translation uses "sweet new style" for dolce stil novo, retaining the technical phrase's sweetness and novelty.
XXIV.55 Issa preserves Bonagiunta's Luccan speech in the Italian; the English keeps the sense as direct recognition. Issa preserves Bonagiunta's Luccan speech in the Italian; the English keeps the sense as direct recognition.
XXIV.56 The Notary is Jacopo da Lentini; Guittone is Guittone d'Arezzo. The Notary is Jacopo da Lentini; Guittone is Guittone d'Arezzo. Both mark earlier poetic practice.
XXIV.57 The translation uses "sweet new style" for dolce stil novo, retaining the technical phrase's sweetness and novelty. The translation uses "sweet new style" for dolce stil novo, retaining the technical phrase's sweetness and novelty.
XXIV.58–60 The dittator is Love dictating inwardly, not a political ruler.
XXIV.58–60 The dittator is Love dictating inwardly, not a political ruler. Line 59: The dittator is Love dictating inwardly, not a political ruler.
XXIV.59 The dittator is Love dictating inwardly, not a political ruler. The dittator is Love dictating inwardly, not a political ruler.
XXIV.61–63 The line is syntactically compressed; the translation treats it as a warning that seeking an additional external criterion misses the real distinction.
XXIV.61–63 The line is syntactically compressed; the translation treats it as a warning that seeking an additional external criterion misses the real distinction. Line 61: The line is syntactically compressed; the translation treats it as a warning that seeking an additional external criterion misses the real distinction.
XXIV.61 The line is syntactically compressed; the translation treats it as a warning that seeking an additional external criterion misses the real distinction. The line is syntactically compressed; the translation treats it as a warning that seeking an additional external criterion misses the real distinction.
The gluttons depart and Forese prophesies Corso Donati's fall XXIV.64–99
64Come li augei che vernan lungo ’l Nilo,
65alcuna volta in aere fanno schiera,
poi volan più a fretta e vanno in filo,
così tutta la gente che lì era,
volgendo ’l viso, raffrettò suo passo,
e per magrezza e per voler leggera.
70E come l’uom che di trottare è lasso,
lascia andar li compagni, e sì passeggia
fin che si sfoghi l’affollar del casso,
sì lasciò trapassar la santa greggia
Forese, e dietro meco sen veniva,
75dicendo: «Quando fia ch’io ti riveggia?».
«Non so», rispuos’ io lui, «quant’ io mi viva;
ma già non fïa il tornar mio tantosto,
ch’io non sia col voler prima a la riva;
però che ’l loco u’ fui a viver posto,
80di giorno in giorno più di ben si spolpa,
e a trista ruina par disposto».
«Or va», diss’ el; «che quei che più n’ha colpa,
vegg’ ïo a coda d’una bestia tratto
inver’ la valle ove mai non si scolpa.
85La bestia ad ogne passo va più ratto,
crescendo sempre, fin ch’ella il percuote,
e lascia il corpo vilmente disfatto.
Non hanno molto a volger quelle ruote»,
e drizzò li occhi al ciel, «che ti fia chiaro
90ciò che ’l mio dir più dichiarar non puote.
Tu ti rimani omai; ché ’l tempo è caro
in questo regno, sì ch’io perdo troppo
venendo teco sì a paro a paro».
Qual esce alcuna volta di gualoppo
95lo cavalier di schiera che cavalchi,
e va per farsi onor del primo intoppo,
tal si partì da noi con maggior valchi;
e io rimasi in via con esso i due
che fuor del mondo sì gran marescalchi.
64As the birds that winter along the Nile
65sometimes make a formation in the air,
then fly more hurriedly and go in file,
so all the people who were there,
turning their faces, quickened their pace,
light both through leanness and through will.
70And as a man who is weary of trotting
lets his companions go on, and walks
until the crowding in his chest vents itself,
so Forese let the holy flock pass by
and came along behind with me,
75saying: "When will it be that I see you again?"
"I do not know," I answered him, "how long I may live;
but my return will not be so soon
that I will not first be at the shore in will;
because the place where I was set to live
80from day to day is more de-fleshed of good,
and seems disposed toward sad ruin."
"Now go," he said; "for the one most to blame for it
I see dragged at the tail of a beast
toward the valley where one never clears guilt.
85The beast at every step goes faster,
always increasing, until it strikes him
and leaves the body vilely undone.
Those wheels have not much farther to turn,"
and he raised his eyes to Heaven, "before it will be clear to you
90what my speech cannot make more plain.
Now you remain behind; for time is dear
in this realm, so that I lose too much
coming with you thus side by side."
As sometimes a knight comes out at a gallop
95from a troop that rides in rank,
and goes to win honor from the first encounter,
so he parted from us with longer strides;
and I remained on the way with those two
who outside the world were such great marshals.
Commentary
The passage gives the Nile-bird simile, Forese's delayed farewell, Dante's Florence diagnosis, and Forese's veiled prophecy of Corso Donati's death. The translation keeps ruina, exculpation, wheels, and costly time visible.
XXIV.67–69 The souls' lightness is bodily and volitional: purgation has thinned them, and their will moves them forward.
XXIV.67–69 The souls' lightness is bodily and volitional: purgation has thinned them, and their will moves them forward. Line 69: The souls' lightness is bodily and volitional: purgation has thinned them, and their will moves them forward.
XXIV.69 The souls' lightness is bodily and volitional: purgation has thinned them, and their will moves them forward. The souls' lightness is bodily and volitional: purgation has thinned them, and their will moves them forward.
XXIV.76–78 Dante's desire reaches the purgatorial shore before his living return can do so.
XXIV.76–78 Dante's desire reaches the purgatorial shore before his living return can do so. Line 78: Dante's desire reaches the purgatorial shore before his living return can do so.
XXIV.78 Dante's desire reaches the purgatorial shore before his living return can do so. Dante's desire reaches the purgatorial shore before his living return can do so.
XXIV.79–81 Spolpa makes Florence's loss of good a bodily stripping image.
XXIV.79–81 Spolpa makes Florence's loss of good a bodily stripping image. Line 80: Spolpa makes Florence's loss of good a bodily stripping image.
XXIV.80 Spolpa makes Florence's loss of good a bodily stripping image. Spolpa makes Florence's loss of good a bodily stripping image.
XXIV.82–84 The one most blamed is Corso Donati, a leader of the Black Guelphs and Forese's brother. The valley is Hell, where excuses and purgatorial cleansing no longer avail.
XXIV.82–84 The one most blamed is Corso Donati, a leader of the Black Guelphs and Forese's brother. Line 82: The one most blamed is Corso Donati, a leader of the Black Guelphs and Forese's brother. Line 84: The valley is Hell, where excuses and purgatorial cleansing no longer avail.
XXIV.82 The one most blamed is Corso Donati, a leader of the Black Guelphs and Forese's brother. The one most blamed is Corso Donati, a leader of the Black Guelphs and Forese's brother.
XXIV.84 The valley is Hell, where excuses and purgatorial cleansing no longer avail. The valley is Hell, where excuses and purgatorial cleansing no longer avail.
XXIV.88–90 The wheels point upward to the heavens and to the short time before Corso's death becomes clear.
XXIV.88–90 The wheels point upward to the heavens and to the short time before Corso's death becomes clear. Line 88: The wheels point upward to the heavens and to the short time before Corso's death becomes clear.
XXIV.88 The wheels point upward to the heavens and to the short time before Corso's death becomes clear. The wheels point upward to the heavens and to the short time before Corso's death becomes clear.
XXIV.91–93 Purgatorial time is precious because the will is oriented toward completion and ascent.
XXIV.91–93 Purgatorial time is precious because the will is oriented toward completion and ascent. Line 93: Purgatorial time is precious because the will is oriented toward completion and ascent.
XXIV.93 Purgatorial time is precious because the will is oriented toward completion and ascent. Purgatorial time is precious because the will is oriented toward completion and ascent.
XXIV.97–99 Virgil and Statius are great marshals through poetry, moral instruction, and civil-cultural authority.
XXIV.97–99 Virgil and Statius are great marshals through poetry, moral instruction, and civil-cultural authority. Line 99: Virgil and Statius are great marshals through poetry, moral instruction, and civil-cultural authority.
XXIV.99 Virgil and Statius are great marshals through poetry, moral instruction, and civil-cultural authority. Virgil and Statius are great marshals through poetry, moral instruction, and civil-cultural authority.
The second tree sharpens desire and warns through gluttony examples XXIV.100–126
100E quando innanzi a noi intrato fue,
che li occhi miei si fero a lui seguaci,
come la mente a le parole sue,
parvermi i rami gravidi e vivaci
d’un altro pomo, e non molto lontani
105per esser pur allora vòlto in laci.
Vidi gente sott’ esso alzar le mani
e gridar non so che verso le fronde,
quasi bramosi fantolini e vani
che pregano, e ’l pregato non risponde,
110ma, per fare esser ben la voglia acuta,
tien alto lor disio e nol nasconde.
Poi si partì sì come ricreduta;
e noi venimmo al grande arbore adesso,
che tanti prieghi e lagrime rifiuta.
115«Trapassate oltre sanza farvi presso:
legno è più sù che fu morso da Eva,
e questa pianta si levò da esso».
Sì tra le frasche non so chi diceva;
per che Virgilio e Stazio e io, ristretti,
120oltre andavam dal lato che si leva.
«Ricordivi», dicea, «d’i maladetti
nei nuvoli formati, che, satolli,
Tesëo combatter co’ doppi petti;
e de li Ebrei ch’al ber si mostrar molli,
125per che no i volle Gedeon compagni,
quando inver’ Madïan discese i colli».
100And when he had entered so far ahead of us
that my eyes became followers after him,
as my mind was after his words,
there appeared to me branches heavy and alive
with another apple, and not very far away,
105because only then I had turned that way.
I saw people under it lifting their hands
and crying I know not what toward the leaves,
like eager little children, empty of what they want,
who beg, and the one begged does not answer,
110but, to make the longing keen indeed,
holds their desire high and does not hide it.
Then they departed as if disabused;
and we came now to the great tree
that refuses so many prayers and tears.
115"Pass beyond without drawing near:
the tree that was bitten by Eve is higher up,
and this plant rose from that one."
Thus among the branches someone, I know not who, was speaking;
therefore Virgil and Statius and I, pressed close,
120went on beyond by the side that rises.
"Remember," it was saying, "the accursed ones
formed in the clouds, who, when sated,
fought Theseus with their double breasts;
and the Hebrews who showed themselves soft at drinking,
125wherefore Gideon did not want them as companions
when he descended the hills toward Midian."
Commentary
The second tree is a discipline of sharpened desire, with the examples of the Centaurs and Gideon's rejected drinkers. The translation keeps desire held high, not hidden, because the terrace trains appetite rather than merely denying it.
XXIV.103–105 This is the second gluttony tree, paired with the first tree from Purgatorio XXII-XXIII.
XXIV.103–105 This is the second gluttony tree, paired with the first tree from Purgatorio XXII-XXIII. Line 103: This is the second gluttony tree, paired with the first tree from Purgatorio XXII-XXIII.
XXIV.103 This is the second gluttony tree, paired with the first tree from Purgatorio XXII-XXIII. This is the second gluttony tree, paired with the first tree from Purgatorio XXII-XXIII.
XXIV.109–111 The tree sharpens rather than conceals desire; purgation trains appetite by keeping the good visible and withheld.
XXIV.109–111 The tree sharpens rather than conceals desire; purgation trains appetite by keeping the good visible and withheld. Line 111: The tree sharpens rather than conceals desire; purgation trains appetite by keeping the good visible and withheld.
XXIV.111 The tree sharpens rather than conceals desire; purgation trains appetite by keeping the good visible and withheld. The tree sharpens rather than conceals desire; purgation trains appetite by keeping the good visible and withheld.
XXIV.115–117 The voice points to the tree of knowledge in the Earthly Paradise.
XXIV.115–117 The voice points to the tree of knowledge in the Earthly Paradise. Line 116: The voice points to the tree of knowledge in the Earthly Paradise.
XXIV.116 The voice points to the tree of knowledge in the Earthly Paradise. The voice points to the tree of knowledge in the Earthly Paradise.
XXIV.118–120 The side that rises is the inner, mountain-side edge of the ledge.
XXIV.118–120 The side that rises is the inner, mountain-side edge of the ledge. Line 120: The side that rises is the inner, mountain-side edge of the ledge.
XXIV.120 The side that rises is the inner, mountain-side edge of the ledge. The side that rises is the inner, mountain-side edge of the ledge.
XXIV.121–123 The cloud-born beings are the Centaurs, whose drunken violence at the Lapith wedding is an anti-temperance example.
XXIV.121–123 The cloud-born beings are the Centaurs, whose drunken violence at the Lapith wedding is an anti-temperance example. Line 122: The cloud-born beings are the Centaurs, whose drunken violence at the Lapith wedding is an anti-temperance example.
XXIV.122 The cloud-born beings are the Centaurs, whose drunken violence at the Lapith wedding is an anti-temperance example. The cloud-born beings are the Centaurs, whose drunken violence at the Lapith wedding is an anti-temperance example.
XXIV.124–126 The allusion is to Gideon's test in Judges 7, where those who drank incautiously were not chosen.
XXIV.124–126 The allusion is to Gideon's test in Judges 7, where those who drank incautiously were not chosen. Line 124: The allusion is to Gideon's test in Judges 7, where those who drank incautiously were not chosen.
XXIV.124 The allusion is to Gideon's test in Judges 7, where those who drank incautiously were not chosen. The allusion is to Gideon's test in Judges 7, where those who drank incautiously were not chosen.
The silent road, the angel of the pass, and the just-hunger beatitude XXIV.127–154
127Sì accostati a l’un d’i due vivagni
passammo, udendo colpe de la gola
seguite già da miseri guadagni.
130Poi, rallargati per la strada sola,
ben mille passi e più ci portar oltre,
contemplando ciascun sanza parola.
«Che andate pensando sì voi sol tre?».
sùbita voce disse; ond’ io mi scossi
135come fan bestie spaventate e poltre.
Drizzai la testa per veder chi fossi;
e già mai non si videro in fornace
vetri o metalli sì lucenti e rossi,
com’ io vidi un che dicea: «S’a voi piace
140montare in sù, qui si convien dar volta;
quinci si va chi vuole andar per pace».
L’aspetto suo m’avea la vista tolta;
per ch’io mi volsi dietro a’ miei dottori,
com’ om che va secondo ch’elli ascolta.
145E quale, annunziatrice de li albori,
l’aura di maggio movesi e olezza,
tutta impregnata da l’erba e da’ fiori;
tal mi senti’ un vento dar per mezza
la fronte, e ben senti’ mover la piuma,
150che fé sentir d’ambrosïa l’orezza.
E senti’ dir: «Beati cui alluma
tanto di grazia, che l’amor del gusto
nel petto lor troppo disir non fuma,
esurïendo sempre quanto è giusto!».
127Thus, close against one of the two edges,
we passed, hearing faults of the throat
once followed by miserable gains.
130Then, widened out along the lonely road,
a full thousand steps and more carried us onward,
each contemplating without a word.
"What are you three alone thinking so deeply?"
a sudden voice said; whereupon I shook
135as frightened and timid beasts do.
I raised my head to see who it might be;
and never were seen in a furnace
glass or metals so lucent and red,
as I saw one who said: "If it pleases you
140to mount upward, here one must turn;
this way goes whoever wishes to go for peace."
His aspect had taken my sight from me;
wherefore I turned behind my teachers,
like a man who goes according to what he hears.
145And as, announcer of the dawns,
the breeze of May moves and gives fragrance,
all impregnated by grass and flowers;
so I felt a wind strike me through the middle
of the forehead, and clearly felt the feather move,
150which made the breeze smell of ambrosia.
And I heard said: "Blessed are those whom grace illumines
so much that the love of taste
does not fume into too much desire in their breast,
always hungering as far as is just!"
Commentary
The passage gives the silent thousand-step transition, the dazzling angel, the turn toward peace, the wing-fanned forehead, and the modified hunger-and-thirst beatitude. The translation keeps love of taste and just hunger as the terrace exit's governing terms.
XXIV.127–129 Gola remains "throat" here to keep gluttony bodily and appetite-based.
XXIV.127–129 Gola remains "throat" here to keep gluttony bodily and appetite-based. Line 128: Gola remains "throat" here to keep gluttony bodily and appetite-based.
XXIV.128 Gola remains "throat" here to keep gluttony bodily and appetite-based. Gola remains "throat" here to keep gluttony bodily and appetite-based.
XXIV.139–141 The radiant figure is the angel who marks the exit from the sixth terrace.
XXIV.139–141 The radiant figure is the angel who marks the exit from the sixth terrace. Line 139: The radiant figure is the angel who marks the exit from the sixth terrace.
XXIV.139 The radiant figure is the angel who marks the exit from the sixth terrace. The radiant figure is the angel who marks the exit from the sixth terrace.
XXIV.142–144 Dante must follow by hearing because angelic brightness has overwhelmed his sight.
XXIV.142–144 Dante must follow by hearing because angelic brightness has overwhelmed his sight. Line 144: Dante must follow by hearing because angelic brightness has overwhelmed his sight.
XXIV.144 Dante must follow by hearing because angelic brightness has overwhelmed his sight. Dante must follow by hearing because angelic brightness has overwhelmed his sight.
XXIV.148–150 The wing touches Dante's forehead as part of the terrace-exit purification.
XXIV.148–150 The wing touches Dante's forehead as part of the terrace-exit purification. Line 149: The wing touches Dante's forehead as part of the terrace-exit purification.
XXIV.149 The wing touches Dante's forehead as part of the terrace-exit purification. The wing touches Dante's forehead as part of the terrace-exit purification.
XXIV.151–153 The beatitude adapts Matthew 5:6 to the exit from the terrace of gluttony. The translation keeps the smoke/fume image for desire, tying appetite to inner heat without turning it into a modern abstraction.
XXIV.151–153 The beatitude adapts Matthew 5:6 to the exit from the terrace of gluttony. Line 151: The beatitude adapts Matthew 5:6 to the exit from the terrace of gluttony. Line 153: The translation keeps the smoke/fume image for desire, tying appetite to inner heat without turning it into a modern abstraction.
XXIV.151 The beatitude adapts Matthew 5:6 to the exit from the terrace of gluttony. The beatitude adapts Matthew 5:6 to the exit from the terrace of gluttony.
XXIV.153 The translation keeps the smoke/fume image for desire, tying appetite to inner heat without turning it into a modern abstraction. The translation keeps the smoke/fume image for desire, tying appetite to inner heat without turning it into a modern abstraction.
XXIV.154 The final line keeps hunger as rightly measured desire, not the erasure of appetite. The final line keeps hunger as rightly measured desire, not the erasure of appetite.