Section 21 of 22 - Table of Contents
CANTO XII v. 1. The blessed flame.] Thomas Aquinas v. 12. That voice.] The nymph Echo, transformed into the repercussion of the voice. v. 25. One.] Saint Buonaventura, general of the Franciscan order, in which he effected some reformation, and one of the most profound divines of his age. "He refused the archbishopric of York, which was offered him by Clement IV, but afterwards was prevailed on to accept the bishopric of Albano and a cardinal's hat. He was born at Bagnoregio or Bagnorea, in Tuscany, A.D. 1221, and died in 1274." Dict. Histor. par Chaudon et Delandine. Ed. Lyon. 1804. v. 28. The love.] By an act of mutual courtesy, Buonaventura, a Franciscan, is made to proclaim the praises of St. Dominic, as Thomas Aquinas, a Dominican, has celebrated those of St. Francis. v. 42. In that clime.] Spain. v. 48. Callaroga.] Between Osma and Aranda, in Old Castile, designated by the royal coat of arms. v. 51. The loving minion of the Christian faith.] Dominic was born April 5, 1170, and died August 6, 1221. His birthplace, Callaroga; his father and mother's names, Felix and Joanna, his mother's dream; his name of Dominic, given him in consequence of a vision by a noble matron, who stood sponsor to him, are all told in an anonymous life of the saint, said to be written in the thirteenth century, and published by Quetif and Echard, Scriptores Ordinis Praedicatorum. Par. 1719. fol. t 1. p. 25. These writers deny his having been an inquisitor, and indeed the establishment of the inquisition itself before the fourth Lateran council. Ibid. p. 88. v. 55. In the mother's womb.] His mother, when pregnant with him, is said to have dreamt that she should bring forth a white and black dog, with a lighted torch in its mouth. v. 59. The dame.] His godmother's dream was, that he had one star in his forehead, and another in the nape of his neck, from which he communicated light to the east and the west. v. 73. Felix.] Felix Gusman. v. 75. As men interpret it.] Grace or gift of the Lord. v. 77. Ostiense.] A cardinal, who explained the decretals. v. 77. Taddeo.] A physician, of Florence. v. 82. The see.] "The apostolic see, which no longer continues its wonted liberality towards the indigent and deserving; not indeed through its own fault, as its doctrines are still the same, but through the fault of the pontiff, who is seated in it." v. 85. No dispensation.] Dominic did not ask license to compound for the use of unjust acquisitions, by dedicating a part of them to pious purposes. v. 89. In favour of that seed.] "For that seed of the divine word, from which have sprung up these four-and-twenty plants, that now environ thee." v. 101. But the track.] "But the rule of St. Francis is already deserted and the lees of the wine are turned into mouldiness." v. 110. Tares.] He adverts to the parable of the taxes and the wheat. v. 111. I question not.] "Some indeed might be found, who still observe the rule of the order, but such would come neither from Casale nor Acquasparta:" of the former of which places was Uberto, one master general, by whom the discipline had been relaxed; and of the latter, Matteo, another, who had enforced it with unnecessary rigour. v. 121. -Illuminato here, And Agostino.] Two among the earliest followers of St. Francis. v. 125. Hugues of St. Victor.] A Saxon of the monastery of Saint Victor at Paris, who fed ill 1142 at the age of forty-four. "A man distinguished by the fecundity of his genius, who treated in his writings of all the branches of sacred and profane erudition that were known in his time, and who composed several dissertations that are not destitute of merit." Maclaine's Mosheim, Eccl. Hist. v. iii . cent. xii. p. 2. 2. 23. I have looked into his writings, and found some reason for this high eulogium. v. 125. Piatro Mangiadore.] "Petrus Comestor, or the Eater, born at Troyes, was canon and dean of that church, and afterwards chancellor of the church of Paris. He relinquished these benefices to become a regular canon of St. Victor at Paris, where he died in 1198. Chaudon et Delandine Dict. Hist. Ed. Lyon. 1804. The work by which he is best known, is his Historia Scolastica, which I shall have occasion to cite in the Notes to Canto XXVI. v. 126. He of Spain.] "To Pope Adrian V succeeded John XXI a native of Lisbon a man of great genius and extraordinary acquirements, especially in logic and in medicine, as his books, written in the name of Peter of Spain (by which he was known before he became Pope), may testify. His life was not much longer than that of his predecessors, for he was killed at Viterbo, by the falling in of the roof of his chamber, after he had been pontiff only eight months and as many days. A.D. 1277. Mariana, Hist. de Esp. l. xiv. c. 2. v. 128. Chrysostom.] The eloquent patriarch of Constantinople. v. 128. Anselmo.] "Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury, was born at Aosta, about 1034, and studied under Lanfrane at the monastery of Bec, in Normandy, where he afterwards devoted himself to a religious life, in his twenty-seventh year. In three years he was made prior, and then abbot of that monastery! from whence he was taken, in 1093, to succeed to the archbishopric, vacant by the death of Lanfrane. He enjoyed this dignity till his death, in 1109, though it was disturbed by many dissentions with William II and Henry I respecting the immunities and investitures. There is much depth and precisian in his theological works." Tiraboschi, Stor. della Lett. Ital. t. iii. 1. iv. c. 2. Ibid. c. v. "It is an observation made by many modern writers, that the demonstration of the existence of God, taken from the idea of a Supreme Being, of which Des Cartes is thought to be the author, was so many ages back discovered and brought to light by Anselm. Leibnitz himself makes the remark, vol. v. Oper. p. 570. Edit. Genev. 1768." v. 129. Donatus.] Aelius Donatus, the grammarian, in the fourth century, one of the preceptors of St. Jerome. v. 130. Raban.] "Rabanus Maurus, Archbishop of Mentz, is deservedly placed at the head of the Latin writers of this age." Mosheim, v. ii. cent. ix. p. 2 c. 2. 14. v. 131. Joachim.] Abbot of Flora in Calabria; "whom the multitude revered as a person divinely inspired and equal to the most illustrious prophets of ancient times." Ibid. v. iii. cent. xiii. p. 2. c. 2. 33. v. 134. A peer.] St. Dominic. CANTO XIII v. 1. Let him.] "Whoever would conceive the sight that now presented itself to me, must imagine to himself fifteen of the brightest stars in heaven, together with seven stars of Arcturus Major and two of Arcturus Minor, ranged in two circles, one within the other, each resembling the crown of Ariadne, and moving round m opposite directions." v. 21. The Chiava.] See Hell, Canto XXIX. 45. v. 29. That luminary.] Thomas Aquinas. v. 31. One ear.] "Having solved one of thy questions, I proceed to answer the other. Thou thinkest, then, that Adam and Christ were both endued with all the perfection of which the human nature is capable and therefore wonderest at what has been said concerning Solomon" v. 48. That.] "Things corruptible and incorruptible, are only emanations from the archetypal idea residing in the Divine mind." v. 52. His brightness.] The Word: the Son of God. v. 53. His love triune with them.] The Holy Ghost. v. 55. New existences.] Angels and human souls. v. 57. The lowest powers.] Irrational life and brute matter. v. 62. Their wax and that which moulds it.] Matter, and the virtue or energy that acts on it. v. 68. The heav'n.] The influence of the planetary bodies. v. 77. The clay.] Adam. v. 88. Who ask'd.] "He did not desire to know the number of the stars, or to pry into the subtleties of metaphysical and mathematical science: but asked for that wisdom which might fit him for his kingly office." v. 120. --Parmenides Melissus Bryso.] For the singular opinions entertained by the two former of these heathen philosophers, see Diogenes Laertius, 1. ix. and Aristot. de Caelo, 1. iii. c. 1 and Phys. l. i. c. 2. The last is also twice adduced by 2. Aristotle (Anal Post. 1. i. c. 9. and Rhet. 1. iii. c. 2.) as 3. affording instances of false reasoning. v. 123. Sabellius, Arius.] Well-known heretics. v. 124. Scymitars.] A passage in the travels of Bertradon de la Brocquiere, translated by Mr. Johnes, will explain this allusion, which has given some trouble to the commentators. That traveler, who wrote before Dante, informs us, p. 138, that the wandering Arabs used their scymitars as mirrors. v. 126. Let not.] "Let not short-sighted mortals presume to decide on the future doom of any man, from a consideration of his present character and actions." CANTO XIV v. 5. Such was the image.] The voice of Thomas Aquinas proceeding, from the circle to the centre and that of Beatrice from the centre to the circle. v. 26. Him.] Literally translated by Chaucer, Troilus and Cresseide. Thou one two, and three eterne on live That raignest aie in three, two and one Uncircumscript, and all maist circonscrive, v. 81. The goodliest light.] Solomon. v. 78. To more lofty bliss.] To the planet Mars. v. 94. The venerable sign.] The cross. v. 125. He.] "He who considers that the eyes of Beatrice became more radiant the higher we ascended, must not wonder that I do not except even them as I had not yet beheld them since our entrance into this planet." CANTO XV v. 24. Our greater Muse.] Virgil Aen. 1. vi. 684. v. 84. I am thy root.] Cacciaguida, father to Alighieri, of whom our Poet was the great-grandson. v. 89. The mountain.] Purgatory. v. 92. Florence.] See G. Villani, l. iii. c. 2. v. 93. Which calls her still.] The public clock being still within the circuit of the ancient walls. v. 98. When.] When the women were not married at too early an age, and did not expect too large a portion. v. 101. Void.] Through the civil wars. v. 102 Sardanapalus.] The luxurious monarch of Assyria Juvenal is here imitated, who uses his name for an instance of effeminacy. Sat. v. 103. Montemalo ] Either an elevated spot between Rome and Viterbo, or Monte Mario, the site of the villa Mellini, commanding a view of Rome. v. 101. Our suburban turret.] Uccellatojo, near Florence, from whence that city was discovered. v. 103. Bellincion Berti.] Hell, Canto XVI. 38. nd Notes. There is a curious description of the simple manner in which the earlier Florentines dressed themselves in G. Villani, 1 vi. c. 71. v. 110. Of Nerli and of Vecchio.] Two of the most opulent families in Florence. v. 113. Each.] "None fearful either of dying in banishment, or of being deserted by her husband on a scheme of battle in France. v. 120. A Salterello and Cianghella.] The latter a shameless woman of the family of Tosa, married to Lito degli Alidosi of Imola: the former Lapo Salterello, a lawyer, with whom Dante was at variance. v. 125. Mary.] The Virgin was involved in the pains of child-birth Purgatory, Canto XX. 21. v. 130 Valdipado.] Cacciaguida's wife, whose family name was Aldighieri; came from Ferrara, called Val di Pado, from its being watered by the Po. v. 131. Conrad.] The Emperor Conrad III who died in 1152. See G. Villani, 1. iv. 34. v. 136. Whose people.] The Mahometans, who were left in possession of the Holy Land, through the supineness of the Pope. CANTO XVI v. 10. With greeting.] The Poet, who had addressed the spirit, not knowing him to be his ancestor, with a plain "Thou," now uses more ceremony, and calls him "You," according to a custom introduced among the Romans in the latter times of the empire. v. 15. Guinever.] Beatrice's smile encouraged him to proceed just as the cough of Ginevra's female servant gave her mistress assurance to admit the freedoms of Lancelot. See Hell, Canto V. 124. v. 23. The fold.] Florence, of which John the Baptist was the patron saint. v. 31. From the day.] From the Incarnation to the birth of Cacciaguida, the planet Mars had returned five hundred and fifty-three times to the constellation of Leo, with which it is supposed to have a congenial influence. His birth may, therefore, be placed about 1106. v. 38. The last.] The city was divided into four compartments. The Elisei, the ancestors of Dante, resided near the entrance of that named from the Porta S. Piero, which was the last reached by the competitor in the annual race at Florence. See G. Villani, 1. iv. c. 10. v. 44. From Mars.] "Both in the times of heathenish and of Christianity." Hell, Canto XIII. 144. v. 48. Campi and Certaldo and Fighine.] Country places near Florence. v. 50. That these people.] That the inhabitants of the above- mentioned places had not been mixed with the citizens: nor the limits of Florence extended beyond Galluzzo and Trespiano." v. 54. Aguglione's hind and Signa's.] Baldo of Aguglione, and Bonifazio of Signa. v. 56. Had not the people.] If Rome had continued in her allegiance to the emperor, and the Guelph and Ghibelline factions had thus been prevented, Florence would not have been polluted by a race of upstarts, nor lost the most respectable of her ancient families. v. 61. Simifonte.] A castle dismantled by the Florentines. G. Villani, 1. v. c. 30. The individual here alluded to is no longer known. v. 69. The blind bull.] So Chaucer, Troilus and Cresseide. b. 2. For swifter course cometh thing that is of wight When it descendeth than done things light. Compare Aristotle, Ethic. Nic. l. vi. c. 13. [GREEK HERE] v. 72. Luni, Urbisaglia.] Cities formerly of importance, but then fallen to decay. v. 74. Chiusi and Sinigaglia.] The same. v. 80. As the moon.] "The fortune of us, that are the moon's men doth ebb and flow like the sea." Shakespeare, 1 Henry IV. a. i. s. 2. v. 86. The Ughi.] Whoever is curious to know the habitations of these and the other ancient Florentines, may consult G. Villani, l. iv. v. 91. At the poop.] Many editions read porta, "gate." -The same metaphor is found in Aeschylus, Supp. 356, and is there also scarce understood by the critics. [GREEK HERE] Respect these wreaths, that crown your city's poop. v. 99. The gilded hilt and pommel.] The symbols of knighthood v. 100. The column cloth'd with verrey.] The arms of the Pigli. v. 103. With them.] Either the Chiaramontesi, or the Tosinghi one of which had committed a fraud in measuring out the wheat from the public granary. See Purgatory, Canto XII. 99 v. 109. The bullets of bright gold.] The arms of the Abbati, as it is conjectured. v. 110. The sires of those.] "Of the Visdomini, the Tosinghi and the Cortigiani, who, being sprung from the founders of the bishopric of Florence are the curators of its revenues, which they do not spare, whenever it becomes vacant." v. 113. Th' o'erweening brood.] The Adimari. This family was so little esteemed, that Ubertino Donato, who had married a daughter of Bellincion Berti, himself indeed derived from the same stock (see Note to Hell Canto XVI. 38.) was offended with his father-in-law, for giving another of his daughters in marriage to one of them. v. 124. The gateway.] Landino refers this to the smallness of the city: Vellutello, with less probability, to the simplicity of the people in naming one of the gates after a private family. v. 127. The great baron.] The Marchese Ugo, who resided at Florence as lieutenant of the Emperor Otho III, gave many of the chief families license to bear his arms. See G. Villani, 1. iv. c. 2., where the vision is related, in consequence of which he sold all his possessions in Germany, and founded seven abbeys, in one whereof his memory was celebrated at Florence on St. Thomas's day. v. 130. One.] Giano della Bella, belonging to one of the families thus distinguished, who no longer retained his place among the nobility, and had yet added to his arms a bordure or. See Macchiavelli, 1st. Fior. 1. ii. p. 86. Ediz. Giolito. v. 132. -Gualterotti dwelt And Importuni.] Two families in the compartment of the city called Borgo. v. 135. The house.] Of Amidei. See Notes to Canto XXVIII. of Hell. v. 102. v. 142. To Ema.] "It had been well for the city, if thy ancestor had been drowned in the Ema, when he crossed that stream on his way from Montebuono to Florence." v. 144. On that maim'd stone.] See Hell, Canto XIII. 144. Near the remains of the statue of Mars. Buondelmonti was slain, as if he had been a victim to the god; and Florence had not since known the blessing of peace. v. 150. The lily.] "The arms of Florence had never hung reversed on the spear of her enemies, in token of her defeat; nor been changed from argent to gules;" as they afterwards were, when the Guelfi gained the predominance. CANTO XVII v. 1. The youth.] Phaeton, who came to his mother Clymene, to inquire of her if he were indeed the son of Apollo. See Ovid, Met. 1. i. ad finem. v. 6. That saintly lamp.] Cacciaguida. v. 12. To own thy thirst.] "That thou mayst obtain from others a solution of any doubt that may occur to thee." v. 15. Thou seest as clear.] "Thou beholdest future events, with the same clearness of evidence, that we discern the simplest mathematical demonstrations." v. 19. The point.] The divine nature. v. 27. The arrow.] Nam praevisa minus laedere tela solent. Ovid. Che piaga antiveduta assai men duole. Petrarca, Trionfo del Tempo v. 38. Contingency.] "The evidence with which we see the future portrayed in the source of all truth, no more necessitates that future than does the image, reflected in the sight by a ship sailing down a stream, necessitate the motion of the vessel." v. 43. From thence.] "From the eternal sight; the view of the Deity. v. 49. There.] At Rome, where the expulsion of Dante's party from Florence was then plotting, in 1300. v. 65. Theirs.] "They shall be ashamed of the part they have taken aga'nst thee." v. 69. The great Lombard.] Either Alberto della Scala, or Bartolommeo his eldest son. Their coat of arms was a ladder and an eagle. v. 75. That mortal.] Can Grande della Scala, born under the influence of Mars, but at this time only nine years old v. 80. The Gascon.] Pope Clement V. v. 80. Great Harry.] The Emperor Henry VII. v. 127. The cry thou raisest.] "Thou shalt stigmatize the faults of those who are most eminent and powerful." CANTO XVIII v. 3. Temp'ring the sweet with bitter.] Chewing the end of sweet and bitter fancy. Shakespeare, As you Like it, a. 3. s. 3. v. 26. On this fifth lodgment of the tree.] Mars, the fifth ot the @ v. 37. The great Maccabee.] Judas Maccabeus. v. 39. Charlemagne.] L. Pulci commends Dante for placing Charlemagne and Orlando here: Io mi confido ancor molto qui a Dante Che non sanza cagion nel ciel su misse Carlo ed Orlando in quelle croci sante, Che come diligente intese e scrisse. Morg. Magg. c. 28. v. 43. William and Renard.] Probably not, as the commentators have imagined, William II of Orange, and his kinsman Raimbaud, two of the crusaders under Godfrey of Bouillon, (Maimbourg, Hist. des Croisades, ed. Par. 1682. 12mo. t. i. p. 96.) but rather the two more celebrated heroes in the age of Charlemagne. The former, William l. of Orange, supposed to have been the founder of the present illustrious family of that name, died about 808, according to Joseph de la Piser, Tableau de l'Hist. des Princes et Principante d'Orange. Our countryman, Ordericus Vitalis, professes to give his true life, which had been misrepresented in the songs of the itinerant bards." Vulgo canitur a joculatoribus de illo, cantilena; sed jure praeferenda est relatio authentica." Eccl. Hist. in Duchesne, Hist. Normann Script. p. 508. The latter is better known by having been celebrated by Ariosto, under the name of Rinaldo. v. 43. Duke Godfey.] Godfrey of Bouillon. v. 46. Robert Guiscard.] See Hell, Canto XXVIII. v. 12. v. 81. The characters.] Diligite justitiam qui judicatis terrarm. "Love righteousness, ye that be judges of the earth " Wisdom of Solomon, c. i. 1. v. 116. That once more.] "That he may again drive out those who buy and sell in the temple." v. 124. Taking the bread away.] "Excommunication, or the interdiction of the Eucharist, is now employed as a weapon of warfare." v. 126. That writest but to cancel.] "And thou, Pope Boniface, who writest thy ecclesiastical censures for no other purpose than to be paid for revoking them." v. 130. To him.] The coin of Florence was stamped with the impression of John the Baptist. CANTO XIX v. 38. Who turn'd his compass.] Compare Proverbs, c. viii. 27. And Milton, P. L. b. vii 224. v. 42. The Word] "The divine nature still remained incomprehensible. Of this Lucifer was a proof; for had he thoroughly comprehended it, he would not have fallen." v. 108. The Ethiop.] Matt. c. xii. 41. v. 112. That volume.] Rev. c. xx. 12. v. 114. Albert.] Purgatory, Canto VI. v. 98. v. 116. Prague.] The eagle predicts the devastation of Bohemia by Albert, which happened soon after this time, when that Emperor obtained the kingdom for his eldest son Rodolph. See Coxe's House of Austria, 4to. ed. v. i. part 1. p. 87 v. 117. He.] Philip IV of France, after the battle of Courtrai, 1302, in which the French were defeated by the Flemings, raised the nominal value of the coin. This king died in consequence of his horse being thrown to the ground by a wild boar, in 1314 v. 121. The English and Scot.] He adverts to the disputes between John Baliol and Edward I, the latter of whom is commended in the Purgatory, Canto VII. v. 130. v. 122. The Spaniard's luxury.] The commentators refer this to Alonzo X of Spain. It seems probable that the allusion is to Ferdinand IV who came to the crown in 1295, and died in 1312, at the age of twenty four, in consequence, as it was supposed, of his extreme intemperance. See Mariana, Hist I. xv. c. 11. v. 123. The Bohemian.] Winceslaus II. Purgatory, Canto VII. v. v. 125. The halter of Jerusalem.] Charles II of Naples and Jerusalem who was lame. See note to Purgatory, Canto VII. v. 122, and XX. v. 78. v. 127. He.] Frederick of Sicily son of Peter III of Arragon. Purgatory, Canto VII. v. 117. The isle of fire is Sicily, where was the tomb of Anchises. v. 133. His uncle.] James, king of Majorca and Minorca, brother to Peter III. v. 133. His brother.] James II of Arragon, who died in 1327. See Purgatory, Canto VII. v. 117. v. 135. Of Portugal.] In the time of Dante, Dionysius was king of Portugal. He died in 1328, after a reign of near forty-six years, and does not seem to have deserved the stigma here fastened on him. See Mariana. and 1. xv. c. 18. Perhaps the rebellious son of Dionysius may be alluded to. v. 136. Norway.] Haquin, king of Norway, is probably meant; who, having given refuge to the murderers of Eric VII king of Denmark, A D. 1288, commenced a war against his successor, Erie VIII, "which continued for nine years, almost to the utter ruin and destruction of both kingdoms." Modern Univ. Hist. v. xxxii p. 215. v. 136. -Him Of Ratza.] One of the dynasty of the house of Nemagna, which ruled the kingdom of Rassia, or Ratza, in Sclavonia, from 1161 to 1371, and whose history may be found in Mauro Orbino, Regno degli Slavi, Ediz. Pesaro. 1601. Uladislaus appears to have been the sovereign in Dante's time, but the disgraceful forgery adverted to in the text, is not recorded by the historian v. 138. Hungary.] The kingdom of Hungary was about this time disputed by Carobert, son of Charles Martel, and Winceslaus, prince of Bohemia, son of Winceslaus II. See Coxe's House of Austria, vol. i. p. 1. p. 86. 4to edit. v. 140. Navarre.] Navarre was now under the yoke of France. It soon after (in 1328) followed the advice of Dante and had a monarch of its own. Mariana, 1. xv. c. 19. v. 141. Mountainous girdle.] The Pyrenees. v. 143. -Famagosta's streets And Nicosia's.] Cities in the kingdom of Cyprus, at that time ruled by Henry II a pusillanimous prince. Vertot. Hist. des Chev. de Malte, 1. iii. iv. The meaning appears to be, that the complaints made by those cities of their weak and worthless governor, may be regarded as an earnest of his condemnation at the last doom. CANTO XX v. 6. Wherein one shines.] The light of the sun, whence he supposes the other celestial bodies to derive their light v. 8. The great sign.] The eagle, the Imperial ensign. v. 34. Who.] David. v. 39. He.] Trajan. See Purgatory, Canto X. 68. v. 44. He next.] Hezekiah. v. 50. 'The other following.] Constantine. There is no passage in which Dante's opinion of the evil; that had arisen from the mixture of the civil with the ecclesiastical power, is more unequivocally declared. v. 57. William.] William II, king of Sicily, at the latter part of the twelfth century He was of the Norman line of sovereigns, and obtained the appellation of "the Good" and, as the poet says his loss was as much the subject of regret in his dominions, as the presence of Charles I of Anjou and Frederick of Arragon, was of sorrow and complaint. v. 62. Trojan Ripheus.] Ripheus, justissimus unus Qui fuit in Teneris, et servantissimus aequi. Virg. Aen. 1. ii. 4--. v. 97. This.] Ripheus. v. 98. That.] Trajan. v. 103. The prayers,] The prayers of St. Gregory v. 119. The three nymphs.] Faith, Hope, and Charity. Purgatory, Canto XXIX. 116. v. 138. The pair.] Ripheus and Trajan. CANTO XXI v. 12. The seventh splendour.] The planet Saturn v. 13. The burning lion's breast.] The constellation Leo. v. 21. In equal balance.] "My pleasure was as great in complying with her will as in beholding her countenance." v. 24. Of that lov'd monarch.] Saturn. Compare Hell, Canto XIV. 91. v. 56. What forbade the smile.] "Because it would have overcome thee." v. 61. There aloft.] Where the other souls were. v. 97. A stony ridge.] The Apennine. v. 112. Pietro Damiano.] "S. Pietro Damiano obtained a great and well-merited reputation, by the pains he took to correct the abuses among the clergy. Ravenna is supposed to have been the place of his birth, about 1007. He was employed in several important missions, and rewarded by Stephen IX with the dignity of cardinal, and the bishopric of Ostia, to which, however, he preferred his former retreat in the monastery of Fonte Aveliana, and prevailed on Alexander II to permit him to retire thither. Yet he did not long continue in this seclusion, before he was sent on other embassies. He died at Faenza in 1072. His letters throw much light on the obscure history of these times. Besides them, he has left several treatises on sacred and ecclesiastical subjects. His eloquence is worthy of a better age." Tiraboschi, Storia della Lett Ital. t. iii. 1. iv. c. 2. v. 114. Beside the Adriatic.] At Ravenna. Some editions have FU instead of FUI, according to which reading, Pietro distinguishes himself from another Pietro, who was termed "Peccator," the sinner. v. 117. The hat.] The cardinal's hat. v. 118. Cephas.] St. Peter. v. 119 The Holy Spirit's vessel.] St. Paul. See Hell, Canto II. 30. v. 130. Round this.] Round the spirit of Pietro Damiano. CANTO XXII v. 14. The vengeance.] Beatrice, it is supposed, intimates the approaching fate of Boniface VIII. See Purgatory, Canto XX. 86. v. 36. Cassino.] A castle in the Terra di Lavoro. v. 38. I it was.] "A new order of monks, which in a manner absorbed all the others that were established in the west, was instituted, A.D. 529, by Benedict of Nursis, a man of piety and reputation for the age he lived in." Maclaine's Mosheim, Eccles. Hist. v. ii. cent. vi. p. 2. ch. 2 - 6. v. 48. Macarius.] There are two of this name enumerated by Mosheim among the Greek theologians of the fourth century, v. i. cent. iv p. 11 ch. 2 - 9. In the following chapter, 10, it is said, "Macarius, an Egyptian monk, undoubtedly deserves the first rank among the practical matters of this time, as his works displayed, some few things excepted, the brightest and most lovely portraiture of sanctity and virtue." v. 48. Romoaldo.] S. Romoaldo, a native of Ravenna, and the founder of the order of Camaldoli, died in 1027. He was the author of a commentary on the Psalms. v. 70. The patriarch Jacob.] So Milton, P. L. b. iii. 510: The stairs were such, as whereon Jacob saw Angels ascending and descending, bands Of guardians bright. v. 107. The sign.] The constellation of Gemini. v. 130. This globe.] So Chaucer, Troilus and Cresseide, b. v, And down from thence fast he gan avise This little spot of earth, that with the sea Embraced is, and fully gan despite This wretched world. Compare Cicero, Somn. Scip. "Jam ipsa terra ita mihi parva visa est." &c. Lucan, Phar 1. ix. 11; and Tasso, G. L. c. xiv. st, 9, 10, 11. v. 140. Maia and Dione.] The planets Mercury and Venus. CANTO XXIII v. 11. That region.] Towards the south, where the course of the sun appears less rapid, than, when he is in the east or the west. v. 26. Trivia.] A name of Diana. v. 26. Th' eternal nymphs.] The stars. v. 36. The Might.] Our Saviour v. 71. The rose.] The Virgin Mary. v. 73. The lilies.] The apostles. v. 84. Thou didst exalt thy glory.] The diving light retired upwards, to render the eyes of Dante more capable of enduring the spectacle which now presented itself. v. 86. The name of that fair flower.] The name of the Virgin. v. 92. A cresset.] The angel Gabriel. v. 98. That lyre.] By synecdoche, the lyre is put for the angel v. 99. The goodliest sapphire.] The Virgin v. 126. Those rich-laden coffers.] Those spirits who, having sown the seed of good works on earth, now contain the fruit of their pious endeavours. v. 129. In the Babylonian exile.] During their abode in this world. v. 133. He.] St. Peter, with the other holy men of the Old and New testament. CANTO XXIV v. 28. Such folds.] Pindar has the same bold image: [GREEK HERE?] On which Hayne strangely remarks: Ad ambitus stropharum vldetur v. 65. Faith.] Hebrews, c. xi. 1. So Marino, in one of his sonnets, which calls Divozioni: Fede e sustanza di sperate cose, E delle non visioili argomento. v. 82. Current.] "The answer thou hast made is right; but let me know if thy inward persuasion is conformable to thy profession." v. 91. The ancient bond and new.] The Old and New Testament. v. 114. That Worthy.] Quel Baron. In the next Canto, St. James is called "Barone." So in Boccaccio, G. vi. N. 10, we find "Baron Messer Santo Antonio." v. 124. As to outstrip.] Venturi insists that the Poet has here, "made a slip;" for that John came first to the sepulchre, though Peter was the first to enter it. But let Dante have leave to explain his own meaning, in a passage from his third book De Monarchia: "Dicit etiam Johannes ipsum (scilicet Petrum) introiisse SUBITO, cum venit in monumentum, videns allum discipulum cunctantem ad ostium." Opere de Dante, Ven. 1793. T. ii. P. 146. CANTO XXV v. 6. The fair sheep-fold.] Florence, whence he was banished. v. 13. For its sake.] For the sake of that faith. v. 20. Galicia throng'd with visitants.] See Mariana, Hist. 1. xi. v. 13. "En el tiempo," &c. "At the time that the sepulchre of the apostle St. James was discovered, the devotion for that place extended itself not only over all Spain, but even round about to foreign nations. Multitudes from all parts of the world came to visit it. Many others were deterred by the difficulty for the journey, by the roughness and barrenness of those parts, and by the incursions of the Moors, who made captives many of the pilgrims. The canons of St. Eloy afterwards (the precise time is not known), with a desire of remedying these evils, built, in many places, along the whole read, which reached as far as to France, hospitals for the reception of the pilgrims." v. 31. Who.] The Epistle of St. James is here attributed to the elder apostle of that name, whose shrine was at Compostella, in Galicia. Which of the two was the author of it is yet doubtful. The learned and candid Michaelis contends very forcibly for its having been written by James the Elder. Lardner rejects that opinion as absurd; while Benson argues against it, but is well answered by Michaelis, who after all, is obliged to leave the question undecided. See his Introduction to the New Testament, translated by Dr. Marsh, ed. Cambridge, 1793. V. iv. c. 26. - 1, 2, 3. v. 35. As Jesus.] In the transfiguration on Mount Tabor. v. 39. The second flame.] St. James. v. 40. I lifted up.] "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help." Ps. Cxxi. 1. v. 59. From Egypt to Jerusalem.] From the lower world to heaven. v. 67. Hope.] This is from the Sentences of Petrus Lombardus. "Est autem spes virtus, qua spiritualia et aeterna bona speratam, id est, beatitudinem aeternam. Sine meritis enim aliquid sperare non spes, sed praesumptio, dici potest." Pet. Lomb. Sent. 1. Iii. Dist. 26. Ed. Bas. 1486. Fol. v. 74. His anthem.] Psalm ix. 10. v. 90. Isaias ] Chap. lxi. 10. v. 94. Thy brother.] St. John in the Revelation, c. vii. 9. v. 101. Winter's month.] "If a luminary, like that which now appeared, were to shine throughout the month following the winter solstice during which the constellation Cancer appears in the east at the setting of the sun, there would be no interruption to the light, but the whole month would be as a single day." v. 112. This.] St. John, who reclined on the bosom of our Saviour, and to whose charge Jesus recommended his mother. v. 121. So I.] He looked so earnestly, to descry whether St. John were present there in body, or in spirit only, having had his doubts raised by that saying of our Saviour's: "If I will, that he tarry till I come what is that to thee." v. 127. The two.] Christ and Mary, whom he has described, in the last Canto but one, as rising above his sight CANTO XXVI v. 2. The beamy flame.] St. John. v. 13. Ananias' hand.] Who, by putting his hand on St. Paul, restored his sight. Acts, c. ix. 17. v. 36. From him.] Some suppose that Plato is here meant, who, in his Banquet, makes Phaedrus say: "Love is confessedly amongst the eldest of beings, and, being the eldest, is the cause to us of the greatest goods " Plat. Op. t. x. p. 177. Bip. ed. Others have understood it of Aristotle, and others, of the writer who goes by the name of Dionysius the Areopagite, referred to in the twenty-eighth Canto. v. 40. I will make.] Exodus, c. xxxiii. 19. v. 42. At the outset.] John, c. i. 1. &c. v. 51. The eagle of our Lord.] St. John v. 62. The leaves.] Created beings. v. 82. The first living soul.] Adam. v. 107. Parhelion.] Who enlightens and comprehends all things; but is himself enlightened and comprehended by none. v. 117. Whence.] That is, from Limbo. See Hell, Canto II. 53. Adam says that 5232 years elapsed from his creation to the time of his deliverance, which followed the death of Christ. v. 133. EL] Some read UN, "One," instead of EL: but the latter of these readings is confirmed by a passage from Dante's Treatise De Vulg. Eloq. 1. i. cap. 4. "Quod prius vox primi loquentis sonaverit, viro sanae mentis in promptu esse non dubito ipsum fuisse quod Deus est, videlicet El." St. Isidore in the Origines, 1. vii. c. 1. had said, "Primum apud Hebraeos Dei nomen El dicitur." v. 135. Use.] From Horace, Ars. Poet. 62. v. 138. All my life.] "I remained in the terrestrial Paradise only tothe seventh hour." In the Historia Scolastica of Petrus Comestor, it is said of our first parents: Quidam tradunt eos fuisse in Paradiso septem horae." I. 9. ed. Par. 1513. 4to.Prev Next All
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