Canto I

Now the small vessel of my spirit hoists its sails

over calmer waters, leaving behind

that cruel sea of suffering.

I will sing of that second realm

where human souls purge themselves clean

and become worthy of heaven's ascent.

Let poetry rise from the dead here,

sacred Muses, for I am yours—

and you, Calliope, lift up my song

with that divine music

which once struck down the boastful daughters

of Pierus, crushing their hope of pardon.

The sweet color of oriental sapphire

gathered in the serene face

of pure air, clear to the horizon,

brought joy flooding back to my eyes

as soon as I emerged from that dead atmosphere

which had filled my heart and sight with grief.

Venus, that beautiful planet that kindles love,

made the whole eastern sky laugh with light,

veiling the constellation Pisces in her train.

I turned to my right and fixed my attention

on the southern pole, where I saw four stars

never glimpsed except by the first humans.

The heavens seemed to rejoice in their flames.

O northern hemisphere, you widowed region,

how deprived you are, unable to see these lights!

When I turned away from gazing at them,

shifting slightly toward the other pole

where the Great Bear had already vanished,

I saw beside me a solitary old man

whose appearance commanded such reverence

that no son could owe a father more.

His beard was long, streaked with white hair

that mirrored the locks flowing

in twin streams down his chest.

The rays of those four sacred stars

illuminated his face with such radiance

that I saw him as clearly as if the sun shone on him.

"Who are you," he said, stirring those venerable whiskers,

"who have fled the eternal prison

against the current of that blind river?

Are the laws of the abyss broken?

Has some new decree been passed in heaven

that allows the damned to reach my shores?"

My guide placed his hands on me,

and with words, gestures, and signs

made me bow my knees and head in reverence.

Then he answered: "I did not come of my own will.

A lady descended from heaven, and at her request

I joined this man as his companion.

But since you wish to know more

about our true condition,

I cannot refuse to tell you.

This man has never seen his final evening,

but through his folly came so close to it

that very little time remained to turn back.

As I said, I was sent to rescue him—

there was no other way

than this path I have taken.

I have shown him all the lost souls,

and now I intend to show him those spirits

who purify themselves under your guardianship.

How I brought him here would take too long to tell.

A power from on high assists me

in leading him to see and hear you.

Now may it please you to welcome his coming.

He seeks liberty, which is so precious—

as anyone knows who dies for her sake.

You know this well, for death in Utica

was not bitter to you for her sake,

where you left behind the flesh that will shine so bright on judgment day.

We do not break the eternal laws:

this man still lives, and Minos does not bind me.

I come from that circle where dwell

the chaste eyes of your Marcia,

who still seems to plead with you

in her gaze, O holy soul, to hold her as your own.

For love of her, then, be gracious to us.

Allow us passage through your seven realms.

I will carry news of this kindness back to her,

if you care to be remembered there below."

"Marcia was so pleasing to my eyes

while I lived on earth," he replied,

"that I granted her every wish.

Now that she dwells beyond the river of evil,

she can no longer move me—such is the law

established when I departed from there.

But if a lady from heaven moves and guides you,

as you say, no flattery is needed.

Let it be enough that you ask in her name.

Go then, and bind this man

with a smooth reed, and wash his face

to cleanse away every stain,

for it would not be fitting for eyes

clouded by any mist to appear

before the first angel of paradise.

This small island, all around its base

down there where the waves beat against it,

grows rushes in its marshy mud.

No other plant that puts forth leaves

or hardens into wood can survive there,

because it cannot yield to the pounding surf.

Do not return by this same path afterward—

the sun now rising will show you

an easier way up the mountain."

With these words he vanished, and I rose

without speaking, drawing close

to my guide and turning my eyes to him.

"Son," he began, "follow my steps.

Let us turn back, for the plain slopes down

to its lower boundaries on this side."

Dawn was conquering the morning hour

that fled before it, and from far off

I could see the sea's surface trembling.

We walked along the lonely plain

like someone returning to a lost road

who seems to wander uselessly until finding it.

When we reached the place where dew

battles the sun, and being in shadow

evaporates slowly,

my master gently spread

both hands on the grass.

Understanding his intention,

I extended my tear-stained cheeks to him,

and there he completely restored

the natural color that hell had obscured in me.

Then we came down to the deserted shore

whose waters have never been sailed

by anyone who knew the way back.

There he bound me with the reed as instructed.

O miracle! The moment he plucked

the humble plant, it sprang up again

instantly in the very spot where he uprooted it.