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{{short description|Second part of Dante's Divine Comedy}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2024}}
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{{Infobox book
| italic title      = <!--(see above)-->
| name              = Purgatorio
| image             = Firenze, commedia di dante, codice miniato da Simone Camaldolese e aiuti, purgatorio canto I, 1398, tempi 1, c. 32r, 01.JPG
| image_size        = 
| caption           = A page of the Purgatorio at the [[Laurentian Library]]
| author            = [[Dante Alighieri]]
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| country           = [[Italy in the Middle Ages|Italy]]
| language          = [[Italian language|Italian]]
| series            = [[Divine Comedy]]
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| subject           = 
| genre             = [[narrative poem]]
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| pub_date          = {{c.}} 1321
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| wikisource        = Inferno
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{{Divine Comedy}}{{Christian mysticism}}

'''''Purgatorio''''' ({{IPA|it|purɡaˈtɔːrjo|lang}}; Italian for "[[Purgatory]]") is the second part of [[Dante]]'s ''[[Divine Comedy]]'', following the ''[[Inferno (Dante)|Inferno]]'' and preceding the ''[[Paradiso (Dante)|Paradiso]]''; it was written in the early 14th century. It is an [[allegory|allegorical]] telling of the climb of Dante up the Mount of [[Purgatory]], guided by the [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] poet [[Virgil]]—except for the last four cantos, at which point [[Beatrice Portinari|Beatrice]] takes over as Dante's guide. Allegorically, ''Purgatorio'' represents the penitent Christian life.<ref name="DLS7">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto VII.</ref> In describing the climb Dante discusses the nature of sin, examples of vice and virtue, as well as moral issues in politics and in the Church. The poem posits the theory that all sins arise from love—either perverted love directed towards others' harm, or deficient love, or the disordered or excessive love of good things.

== Overview of Purgatory ==
[[Image:Purgatory Plan.png|thumb|upright=1.2|right|Elevation of Mount Purgatory. As with Paradise, the structure is of the form {{nowrap|1=2 + 7 + 1 =}} 10, with one of the ten regions different in nature from the other nine.]]
[[File:Hippolyte Flandrin - Le Dante, conduit par Virgile, offre des consolations aux âmes des Envieux.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|right|''Le Dante, conduit par Virgile, offre des consolations aux âmes des Envieux'' by [[Hippolyte Flandrin]]]]Dante portrays Purgatory as an island-mountain in the [[Southern Hemisphere]]. This realm is divided into three parts. The bottom slopes of Mount Purgatory (''Purgatorio'' I–IX) have been designated as "Ante-Purgatory" by commentators. Purgatory proper consists of seven levels or terraces (''Purgatorio'' X–XXVII) of suffering and spiritual growth, associated with the [[seven deadly sins]]. Finally, the [[Garden of Eden|Earthly Paradise]] is located at the top of the mountain (''Purgatorio'' XXVIII–XXXIII).

=== Passage of time ===
As described in the ''[[Inferno (Dante)|Inferno]]'', the first twenty-four hours of Dante's journey took place on earth and started on the evening of [[Maundy Thursday]], 24 March (or 7 April) 1300 (''Inf.'' I and II), and the next full day ([[Good Friday]]) was spent exploring the depths of Hell with [[Virgil]] as a guide (''Inf.'' III–XXXIV.69). Dante and Virgil spent the next day ascending from Hell to see the stars (''Inf.'' XXXIV.70–139). They arrive at the shore of the Mountain of Purgatory—the only land in the Southern Hemisphere—at 6 am on [[Easter|Easter Sunday]],<ref>Robin Kirkpatrick, ''Purgatorio'', notes on Canto I: "Thus behind all the references that the canto makes to regeneration and rebirth there is the realization that all life and all redemption depends upon Christ's Resurrection from the dead."</ref> which is 6 pm on Sunday in [[Jerusalem]], since the two points are [[antipodes|antipodal]]. Dante describes Hell as existing underneath Jerusalem, having been created by the impact of [[Lucifer]]'s fall; the Mountain of Purgatory was created by a displacement of rock caused by the same event.<ref>''Inferno'', Canto 34, lines 121–126, Mandelbaum translation "This was the side on which he fell from Heaven; / for fear of him, the land that once loomed here / made of the sea a veil and rose into / our hemisphere; and that land which appears / upon this side perhaps to flee from him / left here this hollow space and hurried upward."</ref> The ''Purgatorio'' picks up where the ''Inferno'' left off, describing Dante's three-and-one-quarter-day trip up the mountain that ends with Dante in the [[Purgatorio#The Earthly Paradise|Earthly Paradise]] at the time of noon on Wednesday, 30 March (or 13 April).

=== Prayer ===
Prayer is a dominant theme in ''Purgatorio''. Many of the souls Dante meets are depicted in prayer, with multiple liturgical references to psalms and [[hymn]]s throughout the terraces.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Purgatorio—Major Themes: Prayer |url=https://ahc.leeds.ac.uk/discover-dante/doc/purgatorio/page/8 |access-date=2 January 2022 |website=University of Leeds School of Languages, Cultures, and Societies |publication-place=United Kingdom}}</ref> Prayers by the living on behalf of the souls also play a large role in the cantica, with some souls the pilgrim meets along the way requesting prayers from living relatives and even from the pilgrim himself.<ref name="Vettori">{{Cite book |last=Vettori |first=Alessandro |title=Dante's Prayerful Pilgrimage |publisher=Brill |year=2019 |isbn=9789004405257 |location=Boston, Massachusetts |pages=140–143 |language=En-us}}</ref> Dante learns from [[Manfred, King of Sicily|Manfred of Sicily]] in Ante-Purgatory that, in Purgatory, prayers from others work by shortening the wait that souls have to endure before entering Purgatory proper and by accelerating the rate at which souls ascend Mount Purgatory.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' III.136–145.</ref> One soul, [[Forese Donati]], has gotten through Ante-Purgatory and the majority of the terraces only five years after his death, because of the prayers of his wife, [[Nella Donati|Nella]], on Earth.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XXIII.85–93.</ref> Forese's case, especially when compared to that of [[Statius]], who has spent over 500 years on Mount Purgatory,<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XXI.68.</ref> shows the power of prayer to aid souls after death.<ref name="Vettori" /> Dante receives eleven distinct requests for prayer from individual souls in Purgatory, with most of the requests coming from souls in Ante-Purgatory and with the frequency of requests decreasing as he progresses through Purgatory.<ref name="Vettori" />

==Ante-Purgatory==
Ante-Purgatory is the region below the entrance into Purgatory proper and houses two main categories of souls whose penitent Christian life was delayed or deficient: the [[Excommunication|excommunicate]] and the late-repentant. This transitional space parallels similar sections found in the ''Inferno'' (the space reserved for the lukewarm and the neutral angels found in ''Inferno'' III) and in the ''Paradiso'' (the heavens under the shadow of Earth traversed by the pilgrim in ''Paradiso'' I–IX).

This region is therefore characterised by a lingering attachment to earthly life and affairs, so that the crowds of souls whom Dante and Virgil meet here all marvel at Dante's body in the flesh (''Purgatorio'' II–III). As [[Statius]] will later explain, Ante-Purgatory is also the only area of Mount Purgatory that is subjected to terrestrial [[meteorology]].<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XXI.43–57.</ref>

===Shore of the island (Cantos I–II)===
In ''Purgatorio'' I.4–9, with the sun rising on Easter Sunday, Dante announces his intention to describe Purgatory by invoking the mythical [[Muse]]s, as he did in Canto II of the ''Inferno'':

<blockquote>
Now I shall sing the second kingdom<br />there where the soul of man is cleansed,<br />made worthy to ascend to Heaven.<br />

Here from the dead let poetry rise up,<br />O sacred Muses, since I am yours.<br />Here let [[Calliope]] arise...<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto I, lines 4–9, Hollander translation.</ref>
</blockquote>

At the shores of [[Purgatory]], Dante and [[Virgil]] meet [[Cato the Younger|Cato]], a pagan who was placed by God as the general guardian of the approach to the mountain (his symbolic significance has been much debated). The ''Purgatorio'' demonstrates the medieval knowledge of a [[spherical Earth]],<ref>Richard H. Lansing and Teodolinda Barolini, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=vuW4Z7Y79zYC&pg=PA328 The Dante Encyclopedia]'', Taylor & Francis, 2000, {{ISBN|0-8153-1659-3}}, pp. 328–330 (EARTH, GLOBE).</ref><ref>John Brian Harley and David Woodward, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=uJaP4i7-_MIC&pg=PA321 The History of Cartography]{{Dead link|date=March 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}'', Humana Press, {{ISBN|0-226-31633-5}}, p. 321.</ref> with Dante referencing the different stars visible in the Southern Hemisphere, the altered position of the sun, and the various time zones of the Earth. For instance, at the start of Canto II, the reader learns that it is [[Aurora (mythology)|dawn]] in Purgatory; Dante conveys this concept by explaining that it is [[sunset]] at Jerusalem (antipodal to the Mount of Purgatory), midnight (six hours later) over [[India]] on the [[Ganges|River Ganges]] (with the constellation [[Libra (constellation)|Libra]] overhead there), and noon (six hours earlier) over [[Spain]]. The journey is conceived as taking place during the [[March equinox|vernal equinox]], when the days and nights are of the same length.

<blockquote>
By now the sun was crossing the horizon<br />of the meridian whose highest point<br />covers Jerusalem; and from the Ganges,<br /><br />night, circling opposite the sun, was moving<br />together with the Scales that, when the length<br />of dark defeats the day, desert night's hands;<br /><br />so that, above the shore that I had reached,<br />the fair Aurora's white and scarlet cheeks<br />were, as Aurora aged, becoming orange.<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto II, lines 1–9, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>
</blockquote>

[[File:Pur 02 dore.jpg|thumb|upright|right|''Purgatorio'', Canto II: Christian souls arrive singing, escorted by an angel]]
In marked contrast to [[Charon (mythology)|Charon]]'s ferry across the [[Acheron]] in the ''Inferno'', Christian souls are escorted by an angel pilot from their gathering place somewhere near [[Ostia Antica|Ostia]], the seaport of Rome at the mouth of the [[Tiber]], through the [[Pillars of Hercules]] across the seas to the Mountain of Purgatory. The souls arrive singing ''[[Psalm 114|In exitu Israel de Aegypto]]''.<ref>Psalm 114 (Psalm 113 in the Latin Vulgate): [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%20114&version=NIV "When Israel came out of Egypt" (NIV).]</ref> In his ''Letter to [[Cangrande I della Scala|Cangrande]]'', Dante explains that this reference to Israel leaving Egypt refers both to the [[Redemption (religious)|redemption]] of [[Christ]] and to "the conversion of the soul from the sorrow and misery of sin to the state of grace".<ref>"The Letter to Can Grande," in ''Literary Criticism of Dante Alighieri'', translated and edited by Robert S. Haller (Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1973), p. 99.</ref> Dante recognises his friend [[Casella (Divine Comedy)|Casella]] among the souls there (Canto II).

===The Excommunicate===
The poets begin to climb in the early hours of morning.<ref>{{citation |title=''Purgatorio'', Canto I, "So morning rise to light us" |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/8795/8795-h/8795-h.htm}}.</ref> On the lower slopes, Dante and Virgil first encounter the excommunicate, who are detained at the base of the cliff for a period thirty times as long as their period of [[contumacy]]. The excommunicate include [[Manfred of Sicily]]. Manfred explains that prayer from those currently alive and in the grace of God may reduce the amount of time a soul spends in purgatory.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' III.140–145.</ref> The meeting with Manfred is over by about 9 AM.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' III.15–16.</ref> (Canto III).

===The Late-Repentant===
{{anchor|The Late-Repentant}}
[[File:Stefano Ussi, La Pia de' Tolomei.jpg|thumb|upright|right|[[Pia de' Tolomei]] (La Pia) in a painting by [[Stefano Ussi]], Canto V.]]
[[File:Dante and Virgilio (Trento).JPG|thumb|upright|right|Dante and Virgil meet [[Sordello]], in a sculpture by Cesare Zocchi, Canto VII.]]
The Late-Repentant include (1) those too lazy or too preoccupied to repent (the Indolent), (2) those who repented at the last minute without formally receiving [[Last Rites|last rites]], as a result of violent deaths, and (3) the Negligent Rulers. These souls will be admitted to Purgatory thanks to their genuine repentance, but must wait outside for an amount of time equal to their lives on earth. The lazy include [[Belacqua]] (possibly a deceased friend of Dante), whom Dante is relieved to discover here, rather than in Hell. The meeting with Belacqua is over by noon (Canto IV).

Those not receiving last rites include [[Pia de' Tolomei]] of Siena, who was murdered by her husband, Nello della Pietra of the [[Maremma]] (Canto V):

<blockquote>
"may you remember me, who am La Pia;<br />Siena made, Maremma unmade me:<br />he who, when we were wed, gave me his pledge<br />and then, as nuptial ring, his gem, knows that".<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto V, lines 133–136, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>
</blockquote>

Also in this category is the troubadour [[Sordello]] who, like Virgil, is from [[Mantua]]. When Sordello discovers the great poet's identity, he bows down to him in honour. This helps keep Virgil in the foreground of the poem, since (as a resident of Limbo) Virgil is less qualified as a guide here than he was in Hell.<ref name="DLS7" /> As a resident of Purgatory, Sordello is able to explain the '''Rule of the Mountain''': that after sunset souls are incapable of climbing any further. Allegorically, the sun represents God, meaning that progress in the penitent Christian life can only be made through [[Divine Grace]].<ref name="DLS7" /> Virgil's conversation with Sordello ends as the sun is moving downward, that is, after 3 PM<ref>''Purgatorio,'' VII.43.</ref> (Cantos VI to VII).

It is sunset, so Dante and his companions stop for the night in the beautiful Valley of the Princes where they meet persons whose preoccupation with public and private duties hampered their spiritual progress, particularly deceased monarchs such as [[Rudolph I of Germany|Rudolph]], [[Ottokar II of Bohemia|Ottokar]], [[Philip III of France|Philip the Bold]], and [[Henry III of England|Henry III]] (Cantos VII and VIII). [[John Ciardi]] writes that these Negligent Rulers are "elevated above their negligent subjects because their special duties made it difficult for them to think about the welfare of their own souls".<ref>John Ciardi, ''Purgatorio'', notes on Canto VII, p. 343.</ref> Dante also speaks with the souls of contemporary Italian statesmen [[Conrad Malaspina the Young|Currado Malaspina]] and [[Nino Visconti]], the latter being a personal friend whom Dante rejoices at not having found among the damned.

As night approaches, the souls sing the [[Compline]] hymns ''[[Salve Regina]]'' and ''[[Te lucis ante terminum]]''. Dante's beautiful description of evening in this valley was the inspiration for a similar passage in [[Lord Byron|Byron]]'s ''[[Don Juan (poem)|Don Juan]]'':<ref>[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto VIII.</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! ''Purgatorio'', Canto VIII, 1–6 (Longfellow) !! ''Don Juan'', Canto 3, CVIII, 1–6
|-
| 'twas now the hour that turneth back desire<br />In those who sail the sea, and melts the heart,<br />The day they've said to their sweet friends farewell,<br />And the new pilgrim penetrates with love,<br />If he doth hear from far away a bell<br />That seemeth to deplore the dying day,
| Soft hour! which wakes the wish and melts the heart<br />Of those who sail the seas, on the first day<br />When they from their sweet friends are torn apart;<br />Or fills with love the pilgrim on his way<br />As the far bell of vesper makes him start,<br />Seeming to weep the dying day's decay;
|}

[[File:Blake Dante Purgatory 9.jpg|thumb|upright|right|The Gate of Purgatory, painted by [[William Blake]], Canto 9.]]
Dante falls asleep at 8:30 PM; his dream takes place just before the dawn of [[Easter Monday]], one where a golden eagle sweeps him up into the sky.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' IX.13.</ref> Awakening just after 8 AM,<ref>''Purgatorio,'' IX.44.</ref> Dante finds that he has been carried up to the gate of Purgatory proper. Here there are three steps, representative of the tripartite [[Sacrament of Penance]].<ref name="Senior 1994">{{Cite book|last=Senior|first=Matthew|title=In the Grip of Minos: Confessional Discourse in Dante, Corneille, and Racine|date=1994|publisher=Ohio State University Press|page=49|oclc=625327952}}</ref> The first is of white marble so polished it is reflective like a mirror, representing a candid, self-reflective confession and purity of the penitent's true self. The next step is dark and cracked, representing the sorrow and broken-heartedness of contrition. It has also been noted that the dark colour is the colour of mourning and the crack is in the shape of a [[Christian cross]]. The last step is blood red, symbolising the burning Love that ends a good confession, the blood of Christ, and the restoration of true life.<ref name="DLS9">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto IX.</ref><ref name="RKS9">Robin Kirkpatrick, ''Purgatorio'', notes on Canto IX.</ref><ref name="Senior 1994" /> (Canto IX).

The gate of Purgatory, Peter's Gate, is guarded by an angel bearing a naked sword, his countenance too bright for Dante's sight to sustain. In reply to the angel's challenge, Virgil declares that a lady by the name of [[Saint Lucy|Lucia]] brought them there and directed them to the gate. On Virgil's advice, Dante mounts the steps and pleads humbly for admission by the angel, who uses the point of his sword to draw the letter "P" (signifying ''peccatum'', sin) seven times on Dante's forehead, bidding him "take heed that thou wash / These wounds, when thou shalt be within."<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto IX, lines 113–114, Longfellow translation.</ref> With the passage of each terrace and the corresponding purgation of his soul that the pilgrim receives, one of the "P"s will be erased by the angel granting passage to the next terrace. The angel at Peter's Gate uses [[Keys of Heaven|two keys]], silver (remorse) and gold (reconciliation), to open the gate &ndash; both are necessary for redemption and salvation.<ref name="DLS9" /> As the poets are about to enter, they are warned not to look back.

==Seven terraces of Purgatory==

After passing through the gate of Purgatory proper, Virgil guides the pilgrim Dante through the mountain's seven terraces. These correspond to the [[seven deadly sins]] or "seven roots of sinfulness":<ref name="DLSintro65">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', Introduction, pp. 65–67 (Penguin, 1955).</ref> Pride, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Avarice (and Prodigality), Gluttony, and Lust. The classification of sin here is more psychological than that of the ''Inferno'', being based on motives rather than actions.<ref>[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', Introduction, p. 15 (Penguin, 1955): "Hell is concerned with the fruits, but Purgatory with the roots, of sin."</ref> It is also drawn primarily from Christian theology, rather than from classical sources.<ref>Robin Kirkpatrick, ''Purgatorio'', Introduction, p. xiv (Penguin, 2007).</ref> The core of the classification is based on love: the first three terraces of Purgatory relate to perverted love directed towards actual harm of others, the fourth terrace relates to deficient love (i.e. sloth or [[acedia]]), and the last three terraces relate to excessive or disordered love of good things.<ref name="DLSintro65" /> Each terrace purges a particular sin in an appropriate manner. Those in Purgatory can leave their circle voluntarily, but may only do so when they have corrected the flaw within themselves that led to committing that sin.

The structure of the poetic description of these terraces is more systematic than that of the ''Inferno,'' and associated with each terrace are an appropriate [[prayer]] and [[beatitude]].<ref>[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', Introduction, p. 61 (Penguin, 1955): "it is only to be expected that [Purgatory] should be more highly and more serenely organised than Hell."</ref> Robert Hollander describes the shared features of all the terraces as "(1) description of the physical aspect of the terrace, (2) exemplars of the [[Seven virtues|virtue that counters the sin]] repented here, (3) description of the penitents, (4) recitation of their sins by particular penitents, (5) exemplars of the vice, (6) appearance to Dante of the angel representing the countering virtue".<ref>Robert Hollander, ''Purgatorio'', Introduction, p. xxvii.</ref>

===First terrace (Pride)===
[[File:Joseph Anton Koch, purgatorio, 1825-28, 15.jpg|alt=A painting of a man carrying a large stone with the phrase "Te Deum Lavdamus" carved into it on his back|thumb|The first terrace of Purgatory as depicted by [[Joseph Anton Koch]]]]
The first three terraces of Purgatory relate to sins caused by a perverted love directed towards actual harm of others.

The first of the sins is [[Pride]]. Dante and Virgil begin to ascend this terrace shortly after 9 AM.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' X.14–15.</ref> On the terrace where proud souls purge their sin, Dante and Virgil see beautiful sculptures expressing [[humility]], the opposite virtue. The first example is of the [[Annunciation]] to the [[Virgin Mary]], where she responds to the angel [[Gabriel]] with the words ''Ecce [[ancilla Dei]]'' ("Behold the handmaid of the Lord," Luke 1:38<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bible Gateway passage: Luke 1:38 – King James Version |url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%201%3A38&version=KJV |access-date=2024-03-22 |website=Bible Gateway |language=en}}</ref>). An example of humility from classical history is the Emperor [[Trajan]], who, according to a medieval legend, once stopped his journey to render justice to a poor widow (Canto X).

Also associated with humility is an expanded version of the [[Lord's Prayer]]:

<blockquote>
"Our Father, You who dwell within the heavens<br />but are not circumscribed by them out of<br />Your greater love for Your first works above,<br /><br />Praised be Your name and Your omnipotence,<br />by every creature, just as it is seemly<br />to offer thanks to Your sweet effluence.<br /><br />Your kingdom's peace come unto us, for if<br />it does not come, then though we summon all<br />our force, we cannot reach it of our selves.<br /><br />Just as Your angels, as they sing Hosanna,<br />offer their wills to You as sacrifice,<br />so may men offer up their wills to You.<br /><br />Give unto us this day the daily manna<br />without which he who labours most to move<br />ahead through this harsh wilderness falls back.<br /><br />Even as we forgive all who have done<br />us injury, may You, benevolent,<br />forgive, and do not judge us by our worth.<br /><br />Try not our strength, so easily subdued,<br />against the ancient foe, but set it free<br />from him who goads it to perversity".<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XI, lines 1–21, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> 
</blockquote>

After being introduced to humility, Dante and Virgil meet the souls of the proud, who are bent over by the weight of huge stones on their backs.<ref>{{citation |title=''Purgatorio'', Canto IV, "A huge stone we beheld" |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/8795/8795-h/8795-h.htm#link4}}.</ref> As they walk around the terrace, they are to profit from the sculpted examples of humility. The first of these souls is [[Omberto Aldobrandeschi]], whose pride lies in his descent ("I was Italian, son of a great Tuscan: / my father was Guiglielmo Aldobrandesco"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XI, line 58–59, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>), although he is learning to be more humble<ref name="DLS11">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XI.</ref> ("I / do not know if you have heard his name"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XI, line 59–60, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>). [[Oderisi da Gubbio|Oderisi of Gubbio]] is an example of pride in achievements{{mdash}}he was a noted artist of [[illuminated manuscript]]s.<ref name="DLS11" /> {{ill|Provenzano Salvani|it}}, leader of the Sienese [[Guelphs and Ghibellines|Ghibellines]], is an example of pride in dominating others<ref name="DLS11" /> (Canto XI).

In Canto XIII, Dante points out, with "frank self-awareness,"<ref>{{Cite book |last=Raffa |first=Guy P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ndVBh8BVb6UC&pg=PA164 |title=The Complete Danteworlds: A Reader's Guide to the Divine Comedy |date=2009-08-01 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-70287-2 |page=164 |language=en-us}}</ref> that pride is also a serious flaw of his own:

<blockquote>
"I fear much more the punishment below;<br />my soul is anxious, in suspense; already<br />I feel the heavy weights of the first terrace".<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XIII, lines 136–138, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>
</blockquote>

After his conversations with the proud, Dante notes further sculptures on the pavement below, this time illustrating pride itself. The sculptures show [[Satan]] ([[Lucifer]]), the building of the [[Tower of Babel]], King [[Saul]], [[Niobe]], [[Arachne]], and King [[Rehoboam]], amongst others.<ref>{{citation |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/8795/8795-h/8795-h.htm#link12 |title=''Purgatorio'', Canto XII, "O Rehoboam! here thy shape doth seem Louring no more defiance!"}}</ref>

The poets reach the stairway to the second terrace at noon.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XII.81.</ref> As they ascend, the Angel of Humility salutes them and brushes Dante's forehead with his wings, erasing the letter "P" (''peccatum'') corresponding to the sin of pride, and Dante hears the [[beatitude]] ''Beati pauperes spiritu'' ("Blessed are the poor in spirit", Matthew 5:3<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bible Gateway passage: Matthew 5:3 – New International Version |url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A3&version=NIV |access-date=2024-03-22 |website=Bible Gateway |language=en-us}}</ref>) (Canto XII). Dante is surprised to discover that climbing now seems easier than it did before. Virgil tells him that one of the initials has been removed from his forehead by the angel and that the effort will be increasingly lessened as he climbs higher. Dante compares the stairway to the easy ascent from the Rubiconte, a bridge in Florence, up to [[San Miniato al Monte]], overlooking the city.

===Second terrace (Envy)===
Envy is the sin that "looks with grudging hatred upon other men's gifts and good fortune, taking every opportunity to run them down or deprive them of their happiness".<ref name="DLS13"/> (This in contrast to covetousness, the excessive desire to have things like money.)<ref name="DLSintro65"/> As one of the envious souls on this terrace says:

<blockquote>
"My blood was so afire with envy that,<br />when I had seen a man becoming happy,<br />the lividness in me was plain to see".<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XIV, lines 82–84, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>
</blockquote>

On entering the terrace of the envious, Dante and Virgil first hear voices on the air telling stories of generosity, the opposite virtue. There is, as in all the other terraces, an episode from the life of the [[Virgin Mary]]; this time, the scene from the [[Life of the Virgin]] is the [[Wedding at Cana]], in which she expresses her joy for the newly married couple and encourages [[Christ]] to perform his first miracle.<ref>{{citation |title=''Purgatorio'', Canto XIII, "A crying, "Blessed Mary! pray for us" |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/8795/8795-h/8795-h.htm#link13}}.</ref> There is also Jesus' saying "Love your enemies".<ref>{{cite book | url = http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matt%205:44&version=NIV |title= Holy Bible, New International Version | chapter= Matthew 5:44 | publisher = Biblica, Inc. |orig-year = 1973|year= 2011}}</ref> A classical story shows the friendship between [[Orestes]] and [[Pylades]].<ref name="DLS13">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XIII.</ref>

The souls of the envious wear penitential grey cloaks,<ref name="DLS13"/> and their eyes are sewn shut with iron wire, resembling the way a [[Falconry|falconer]] sews shut the eyes of a falcon in order to train it.<ref name="DLS13"/> This results in audible, rather than visual, examples here. Dante and Virgil speak with [[Sapia Salvani]] (Canto XIII).

The souls of the envious include Guido del Duca and Rinieri da Calboli. The former speaks bitterly about the ethics of people in towns along the River [[Arno]]:

<blockquote>
"That river starts its miserable course<br />among foul hogs, more fit for acorns than<br />for food devised to serve the needs of man.<br /><br />Then, as that stream descends, it comes on curs<br />that, though their force is feeble, snap and snarl;<br />scornful of them, it swerves its snout away.<br /><br />And, downward, it flows on; and when that ditch,<br />ill-fated and accursed, grows wider, it<br />finds, more and more, the dogs becoming wolves.<br /><br />Descending then through many dark ravines,<br />it comes on foxes so full of deceit<br />there is no trap that they cannot defeat".<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XIV, lines 43–54, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>
</blockquote>

The voices on the air also include examples of envy. The classical example is [[Aglaulus, daughter of Cecrops|Aglauros]], who, according to [[Ovid]], was turned to stone because she was jealous of [[Hermes]]' love for her older sister [[Herse of Athens|Herse]]. The Biblical example is [[Cain]],<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XIV, line 133, Mandelbaum translation: "Whoever captures me will slaughter me," cf [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis%204:14&version=NIV Genesis 4:14 (NIV)]: "whoever finds me will kill me."</ref> mentioned here not for his act of fratricide, but for the jealousy of his younger brother [[Abel]] that led to it (Canto XIV).

It is middle afternoon and the poets are walking westward along the terrace with the sun in their faces. A dazzling brightness suddenly smites Dante on the brow, which he supposes is caused by the sun; but when he shades his eyes from it, the new brightness persists, and he is forced to close his eyes. Virgil reminds him that the approach of an angel is still too powerful for his earthly senses but says that this will not always be so. The Angel of Charity, having brushed away another "P" from Dante's brow, invites him to mount to the next terrace. As he is leaving the terrace, the dazzling light of the terrace's angel causes Dante to reveal his scientific knowledge, observing that [[Reflection (physics)|the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection]]<ref>Robin Kirkpatrick, ''Purgatorio'', notes on Canto XV.</ref> "as theory and experiment will show"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XV, line 21, [[Dorothy L. Sayers]] translation, 1955.</ref> (Canto XV).

===Third terrace (Wrath)===
On the terrace of the [[wrath]]ful, which the poets reach at 3 PM,<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XV.1–6.</ref> examples of meekness (the opposite virtue) are given to Dante as visions in his mind. The scene from the Life of the Virgin in this terrace of purgation is the [[Finding in the Temple]]. Whereas most parents would be angry at their child for worrying them, Mary is loving and understanding of Christ's motives behind his three-day disappearance. In a classical example, the wife of [[Peisistratos]] wanted a young man executed for embracing their daughter, to which Peisistratos responded: "What shall we do to one who'd injure us / if one who loves us earns our condemnation?"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XV, lines 104–105, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> [[Saint Stephen]] provides a Biblical example, drawn from [[Acts of the Apostles|Acts]] 7:54–60<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bible Gateway passage: Acts 7:54-60 – New International Version |url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%207%3A54-60&version=NIV |access-date=2024-03-22 |website=Bible Gateway |language=en}}</ref> (Canto XV):

<blockquote>
Next I saw people whom the fire of wrath<br />had kindled, as they stoned a youth and kept<br />on shouting loudly to each other: "Kill!"<br /><br />"Kill!" "Kill!" I saw him now, weighed down by death,<br />sink to the ground, although his eyes were bent<br />always on Heaven – they were Heaven's gates –<br /><br />Praying to his high Lord, despite the torture,<br />to pardon those who were his persecutors;<br />his look was such that it unlocked compassion.<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XV, lines 106–114, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>
</blockquote>

The souls of the wrathful walk around in blinding acrid smoke, which symbolises the blinding effect of anger:<ref name="DLS16">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XVI.</ref>

<blockquote>
Darkness of Hell and of a night deprived<br />of every planet, under meager skies,<br />as overcast by clouds as sky can be,<br /><br />had never served to veil my eyes so thickly<br />nor covered them with such rough-textured stuff<br />as smoke that wrapped us there in Purgatory;<br /><br />my eyes could not endure remaining open ...<ref>Purgatorio'', Canto XVI, lines 1–7, Mandelbaum translation.''</ref>
</blockquote>

The prayer for this terrace is the ''[[Agnus Dei]]'': ''Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis ... dona nobis pacem'' ("Lamb of God, you who take away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us ... grant us peace").
[[File:Doré Marco Lombardo.jpg|alt=A black and white illustration of Dante and Virgil's conversation with Marco Lombardo|thumb|upright=1.2|Dante and Virgil talking with [[Marco Lombardo]] as depicted by [[Gustave Doré]]]]
[[Marco Lombardo]] discourses with Dante on [[free will]]–a relevant topic, since there is no point being angry with someone who has no choice over his actions<ref name="DLS16"/> (Canto XVI). Dante also sees visions with examples of wrath, such as [[Procne]], [[Haman (Bible)|Haman]] and [[Lavinia]].<ref>{{citation |title=''Purgatorio'', Canto XXVII, "Not to lose Lavinia, desp'rate thou hast slain thyself" |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/8795/8795-h/8795-h.htm#link27}}.</ref> When the visions have passed, the Angel of Peace appears to greet them. Again the brightness overpowers Dante's sight, but he hears the angel's invitation to mount to the next terrace and feels a wing brush his forehead, erasing the third "P". Then follows the pronouncing of the beatitude ''Beati pacifici'' ("Blessed are the peacemakers"). The poets leave the third terrace just after nightfall<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XVII.70–72.</ref> (Canto XVII).

While staying on the fourth terrace, Virgil is able to explain to Dante the organisation of Purgatory and its relationship to perverted, deficient, or misdirected love. The three terraces they have seen so far have purged the proud ("he who, through abasement of another, / hopes for supremacy"),<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XVII, lines 115–116, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> the envious ("one who, when he is outdone, / fears his own loss of fame, power, honour, favour; / his sadness loves misfortune for his neighbor".<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XVII, lines 118–120, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>), and the wrathful ("he who, over injury / received, resentful, for revenge grows greedy / and, angrily, seeks out another's harm").<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XVII, lines 121–123, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> Deficient and misdirected loves are about to follow. Virgil's discourse on love concludes at midnight<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XVIII.76–78.</ref> (Cantos XVII and XVIII).

===Fourth terrace (Sloth)===
On the fourth terrace we find souls whose sin was that of deficient love–that is, sloth or [[acedia]]. Since they had failed in life to act in pursuit of love, here they are engaged in ceaseless activity. The examples of sloth and of zeal, its opposite virtue, are called out by these souls as they run around the terrace. A scene from the life of the Virgin outlined in this terrace is [[Visitation (Christianity)|the Visitation]], with Mary going "in haste" to visit her cousin [[Elizabeth (biblical figure)|Elizabeth]]. These examples also include episodes from the lives of [[Julius Caesar]] and [[Aeneas]].<ref>{{citation |title=''Purgatorio'', Canto XVIII, "And they, who with Aeneas to the end, endur'd not suffering" |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/8795/8795-h/8795-h.htm#link18}}.</ref> This activity also replaces a verbal prayer for this terrace. Since the formerly slothful are now too busy to converse at length, this section of the poem is a short one.

Allegorically, spiritual laziness and lack of caring lead to sadness,<ref>[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Cantos XVIII and XIX.</ref> and so the [[beatitude]] for this terrace is ''Beati qui lugent'' ("Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted," Matthew 5:4)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bible Gateway passage: Matthew 5:4 – New International Version |url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A4&version=NIV |access-date=2024-03-22 |website=Bible Gateway |language=en}}</ref> (Canto XVIII and XIX).

Dante's second night's sleep occurs while the poets are on this terrace, and Dante dreams shortly before Tuesday's dawn<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XIX.1–6.</ref> of a [[Siren (mythology)|Siren]], symbol of disordered or excessive love represented by [[greed]], [[gluttony]] and [[lust]]. Upon awakening from the dream in the light of the sun, Dante is visited by the Angel of Zeal, who removes another "P" from his brow, and the two poets climb toward the fifth terrace<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XIX.38–39.</ref> (Canto XIX).

===Fifth terrace (Avarice)===
[[File:Pur 19 avari.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.2|Dante speaks to the shade of Pope Adrian V, Canto 19]]
On the last three terraces are those who sinned by loving good things, but loving them in an excessive or disordered way.

On the fifth terrace, excessive concern for earthly goods–whether in the form of greed, ambition or extravagance–is punished and purified. The [[Avarice|avaricious]] and prodigal lie face-down on the ground, reciting the psalm ''Adhaesit pavimento anima mea'', taken from [[Psalm]] 119:25 ("My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word"<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+119:25&version=KJV Psalm 119:25, KJV.] In the [[Vulgate]], this is Psalm 118:25.</ref>), which is a prayer expressing the desire to follow God's law. Dante meets the shade of [[Pope Adrian V]], an exemplar of desire for ecclesiastical power and prestige, who directs the poets on their way (Canto XIX).

The scene from the Life of the Virgin, used here to counter the sin of avarice, is the humble [[Virgin birth of Jesus|birth of Christ]]. Further down the terrace, [[Hugh Capet]] personifies greed for worldly wealth and possessions. He bemoans the way that, in contrast, avarice has motivated the actions of his successors, and "prophesies" events which occurred after the date in which the poem is set, but before the poem was written:

<blockquote>
"The other, who once left his ship as prisoner<br />I see him sell his daughter, bargaining<br />as pirates haggle over female slaves.<br /><br />O Avarice, my house is now your captive:<br />it traffics in the flesh of its own children<br />what more is left for you to do to us?<br /><br />That past and future evil may seem less,<br />I see the fleur-de-lis enter Anagni<br />and, in His vicar, Christ made prisoner.<br /><br />I see Him mocked a second time; I see<br />the vinegar and gall renewed and He<br />is slain between two thieves who're still alive.<br /><br />And I see the new Pilate, one so cruel<br />that, still not sated, he, without decree,<br />carries his greedy sails into the Temple".<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XX, lines 79–93, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>
</blockquote>

These events include [[Charles II of Naples]] selling his daughter into marriage to an elderly and disreputable man,<ref name="DLS20">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XX.</ref> and [[Philip IV of France]] ("the fleur-de-lis") arresting [[Pope Boniface VIII]] in 1303 (a pope destined for Hell, according to the ''Inferno'', but still, in Dante's view, the [[Vicar of Christ]]<ref name="DLS20"/>). Dante also refers to the suppression of the [[Knights Templar]] at Philip's instigation in 1307, which freed Philip from debts he owed to the order. Following the exemplars of avarice (these are [[Pygmalion of Tyre|Pygmalion]], [[Midas]], [[Achan (biblical figure)|Achan]], [[Ananias and Sapphira]], [[Heliodorus (minister)|Heliodorus]], [[Polymestor]], and [[Marcus Licinius Crassus|Crassus]]), there is a sudden earthquake accompanied by the shouting of ''[[Gloria in excelsis Deo]]''. Dante desires to understand the cause of the earthquake, but he does not question Virgil about it (Canto XX).

In a scene that Dante links to the episode where Jesus meets two disciples on the road to [[Emmaus]],<ref name="DLS21">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XXI.</ref> Dante and Virgil are overtaken by a shade who eventually reveals himself as the Roman poet [[Statius]], author of the ''[[Thebaid (Latin poem)|Thebaid]]''.<ref>{{citation |title=''Purgatorio'', Canto XXI, "A myrtle garland to inwreathe my brow. Statius they name me still" |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/8795/8795-h/8795-h.htm#link21}}.</ref> Statius explains the cause of the earthquake: there is a tremor when a soul knows that it is ready to ascend to heaven, which he has just experienced. Dante presents Statius, without obvious or understandable basis, as a convert to Christianity; as a Christian, his guidance will supplement Virgil's.<ref name="DLS21"/> Statius is overjoyed to find himself in the company of Virgil, whose ''Aeneid'' he so greatly admired (Canto XXI).

The Angel of Moderation directs the poets to the passage leading to the next region after brushing another "P" from Dante's forehead. Virgil and Statius converse as they ascend toward the next ledge. Statius explains that he was not avaricious but prodigal, but that he "converted" from prodigality by reading Virgil, which directed him to poetry and to God. Statius explains how he was [[Baptism|baptized]], but he remained a secret Christian–this is the cause of his purgation of Sloth on the previous terrace. Statius asks Virgil to name his fellow poets and figures in Limbo, which he does<ref>Robert Hollander, ''Purgatorio'', outline of Canto XXII.</ref> (Canto XXII).

===Sixth terrace (Gluttony)===
It is between 10 and 11 AM,<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XXII.115–126.</ref> and the three poets begin to circle the sixth terrace where the [[Gluttony|gluttonous]] are purged, and more generally, those who over-emphasised food, drink, and bodily comforts.<ref name="DLS22">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XXII.</ref> In a scene reminiscent of the punishment of [[Tantalus]], they are starved in the presence of trees whose fruit is forever out of reach.<ref name="DLS22"/> The examples here are given by voices in the trees. The Virgin Mary, who shared her Son's gifts with others at the [[Wedding at Cana]], and [[John the Baptist]], who only lived on [[locust]]s and [[honey]] (Matthew 3:4<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bible Gateway passage: Matthew 3:4 – New International Version |url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%203%3A4&version=NIV |access-date=2024-03-22 |website=Bible Gateway |language=en}}</ref>), is an example of the virtue of [[Temperance (virtue)|temperance]].<ref name="DLS22"/> A classical example of the opposite vice of gluttony is the drunkenness of the [[Centaur]]s that led to the [[Lapith|Battle of Centaurs and Lapiths]].<ref name="DLS22"/>

The prayer for this terrace is ''Labia mea Domine'' (Psalm 51:15: "O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise"<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+51:15&version=NIV Psalm 51:15, NIV.] In the [[Vulgate]], this is Psalm 50:17.</ref>). These are the opening words from the daily [[Liturgy of the Hours]],<ref>Peter M. J. Stravinskas, Catholic Dictionary, 2nd ed., Our Sunday Visitor Publishing, 2002, p. 415, {{ISBN|0-87973-390-X}}.</ref> which is also the source of prayers for the fifth and seventh terraces (Cantos XXII through XXIV).

Here Dante also meets his friend [[Forese Donati]] and his poetic predecessor [[Bonagiunta Orbicciani]]. Bonagiunta has kind words for Dante's earlier work ''[[La Vita Nuova]]'', describing its technique as the ''dolce stil novo'' ("[[Dolce Stil Novo|sweet new style]]").<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIV, line 57, Longfellow translation.</ref> He quotes the line "Ladies that have intelligence of love,"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIV, line 51, Longfellow translation.</ref> written in praise of [[Beatrice Portinari|Beatrice]], whom he will meet later in the ''Purgatorio'':

<blockquote>
Ladies that have intelligence of Love,<br />I of my lady wish with you to speak;<br />Not that I can believe to end her praise,<br />But to discourse that I may ease my mind.<br />I say that when I think upon her worth,<br />So sweet doth Love make himself feel to me,<br />That if I then should lose not hardihood,<br />Speaking, I should enamour all mankind.<ref>''[[La Vita Nuova]]'', Section XIX, lines 1–8, translated by Charles Eliot Norton.[http://www.elfinspell.com/DanteNewLife2.html]</ref>
</blockquote>

Dante is now greeted by the Angel of Temperance, whose brightness is like the red glow of molten metal or glass. Showing the passage up the mountain, the angel removes another "P" from Dante's brow with a puff of his wing, and he pronounces the beatitude in paraphrase: "Blessed are they who are so illumined by grace that the love of food does not kindle their desires beyond what is fitting" (Canto XXIV). It is 2:00 PM when the three poets leave the sixth terrace and begin their ascent to the seventh terrace, meaning that they have spent four hours among the Gluttonous.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XXV.1–3.</ref> During the climb, Dante wonders how it is possible for bodiless souls to have the gaunt appearance of the souls being starved here. In explaining, Statius discourses on the nature of the soul and its relationship to the body (Canto XXV).

===Seventh terrace (Lust)===
[[File:Pur 25.jpg|thumb|upright|right|Virgil, Dante, and Statius besides the flames of the seventh terrace, Canto 25]]The terrace of [[lust]], the final terrace of Purgatory and the final vice of excessive love, has an immense wall of flame through which every soul must pass (Canto XXV). As a prayer, they sing the hymn ''Summae Deus clementiae'' ("God of Supreme Clemency") from the [[Liturgy of the Hours]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Summae Deus clementiae|url=http://www.preces-latinae.org/thesaurus/Hymni/SummaeDeus.html|access-date=2021-12-16|website=www.preces-latinae.org}}</ref> Souls repenting of misdirected sexual desire call out in praise of [[chastity]], such as [[Diana (mythology)|Diana]]'s, and of marital fidelity.

Two groups of souls run through the flames calling out examples of lust ([[Sodom and Gomorrah]] by the [[Homosexuality|homosexual]] and [[Pasiphaë]] by the [[Heterosexuality|heterosexual]]). The homosexuals run counter to the sun, from west to east, symbolising their sins against nature and God, while the heterosexuals run from east to west, with the sun.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal|last=STOWELL|first=STEVEN|date=2008|title=Visualizing the Sodomites in Dante's ''Commedia''|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20787324|journal=Dante Studies, with the Annual Report of the Dante Society|issue=126|pages=143–174|jstor=20787324 |issn=0070-2862}}</ref> Dante's depiction of homosexuals as souls capable of salvation is particularly lenient for the time period and is often omitted from later illustrations of ''Purgatorio''.<ref name=":02" /> In addition, this depiction is a marked massive departure from ''[[Inferno (Dante)|Inferno]]'', where Dante represents [[sodomy]] as a sin of violence instead of one of excessive love.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Pequigney|first=Joseph|date=1991-10-01|title=Sodomy in Dante's ''Inferno'' and ''Purgatorio''|url=https://online.ucpress.edu/representations/article/doi/10.2307/2928630/82379/Sodomy-in-Dante-s-Inferno-and-Purgatorio|journal=Representations|language=en|volume=36|issue=36 |pages=22–42|doi=10.2307/2928630|jstor=2928630 |issn=0734-6018|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

When they meet, the two groups exchange a brief kiss of greeting and a sign of peace before the homosexuals continue and the heterosexuals approach the pilgrim.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' Canto XXVI, lines 31–48, Durling translation.</ref> The pilgrim prays for both groups' ascent into [[heaven]] and stops to speak to [[Guido Guinizelli]], who explains the nature of the vice purged on this terrace and calls the sodomites those who "committed the offense for which Caesar ... once heard himself reproached as 'Queen{{'"}}, alluding to [[Julius Caesar]]'s alleged same-sex relationships.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' Canto XXVI, lines 61–93, Durling translation.</ref>

[[File:Pur 27.jpg|thumb|upright|right|Dante dreams of [[Leah]] picking flowers, symbol of the active (non-monastic) Christian life, Canto 27]]
Shortly before sunset, the poets are greeted by the Angel of Chastity, who instructs them to pass through the wall of fire. By reminding Dante that Beatrice can be found in the Earthly Paradise on the other side, Virgil finally persuades Dante to pass through the intense fire. After the poets pass through the flame, the sun sets and they lie down to sleep on the steps between the final terrace and the Earthly Paradise.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XXVII.61–68.</ref> On these steps, just before the dawn of Wednesday morning, Dante has his third dream: a vision of [[Leah]] and [[Rachel]]. They are symbols of the active ([[Laity|lay]], or secular) and contemplative ([[monasticism|monastic]]) Christian lives, both important.<ref>[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XXVII.</ref>

<blockquote>
... in my dream, I seemed to see a woman<br />both young and fair; along a plain she gathered<br />flowers, and even as she sang, she said:<br /><br />"Whoever asks my name, know that I'm Leah,<br />and I apply my lovely hands to fashion<br />a garland of the flowers I have gathered.<br /><br />To find delight within this mirror I<br />adorn myself; whereas my sister Rachel<br />never deserts her mirror; there she sits<br /><br />all day; she longs to see her fair eyes gazing,<br />as I, to see my hands adorning, long:<br />she is content with seeing, I with labour".<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXVII, lines 97–108, Mandelbaum translation.</ref>
</blockquote>

Dante awakens with the dawn,<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XXVII.109.</ref> and the poets continue up the rest of the ascent until they come in sight of the Earthly Paradise (Canto XXVII).

==Earthly Paradise==
[[File:Beatrice Addressing Dante (by William Blake).jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|''Beatrice Addressing Dante'', by [[William Blake]], showing the "chariot triumphal" bearing Beatrice and drawn by the Griffin, with four of the ladies representing virtues, Canto 29]]

At the summit of Mount Purgatory is the Earthly Paradise or [[Garden of Eden]].<ref name="DLS28">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XXVIII.</ref> Allegorically, it represents the state of innocence that existed before [[Adam]] and [[Eve]] fell from grace–the state which Dante's journey up Mount Purgatory has recaptured.<ref name="DLS28" />

=== The Heavenly Pageant ===
Here Dante meets [[Matelda|Matilda]], a woman whose literal and allegorical identity "is perhaps the most tantalising problem in the ''Comedy''".<ref name="DLS28" /> Critics up to the early twentieth century tended to connect her with the historical [[Matilda of Tuscany]],<ref>{{cite book |last=Binyon |first=Lawrence |author-link=Laurence Binyon |url=https://archive.org/details/portabledante00dant |title=The portable Dante |publisher=Penguin |year=1978 |isbn=0140150323 |editor=Milano |editor-first=Paolo |edition=Revised |location=Harmondsworth |language=en |article="Argument", Canto XXVIII |url-access=registration}}</ref> but more recently some have suggested a connection with the dream of [[Leah]] in Canto XXVII.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/portabledante00dant_0 |title=The portable Dante |publisher=Penguin Books |year=1995 |isbn=0140231145 |editor=Musa |editor-first=Mark |location=New York |language=en-us |url-access=registration}}</ref> Be that as it may, Matilda clearly prepares Dante for his meeting with [[Beatrice Portinari|Beatrice]],<ref name="DLS28" /> the woman to whom (historically) Dante dedicated his previous poetry, the woman at whose request (in the story) Virgil was commissioned to bring Dante on his journey,<ref>[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Hell'', notes on Canto II.</ref> and the woman who (allegorically) symbolises the path to God<ref name="DLS30">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XXX.</ref> (Canto XXVIII).

With Matilda, Dante witnesses a procession which forms an allegory within the allegory, somewhat like [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]]'s [[play within a play]]. It has a very different style from the ''Purgatorio'' as a whole, having the form of a [[masque]], where the characters are walking symbols rather than real people. The procession consists of (Canto XXIX):

* "Twenty-four elders"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, line 83, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> (a reference to Revelation 4:4<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bible Gateway passage: Revelation 4:4 – New International Version |url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%204%3A4&version=NIV |access-date=2024-03-22 |website=Bible Gateway |language=en}}</ref>), representing the 24 books of the [[Hebrew Bible]], as classified by [[Jerome]]<ref name="DLS29">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XXIX.</ref>
* "[[Four living creatures|Four animals]]" with "six wings as plumage"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, lines 92–105, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> (a reference to Revelation 4:6–8<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bible Gateway passage: Revelation 4:6-8 – New International Version |url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%204%3A6-8&version=NIV |access-date=2024-03-22 |website=Bible Gateway |language=en}}</ref>), a traditional representation of the [[four Evangelists]]<ref name="DLS29"/>
* "A chariot triumphal on two wheels,"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, line 107, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> bearing Beatrice, which is drawn by…
* A [[griffin]],<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, lines 108–114, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> representing the conjoined divinity and humanity of [[Christ]]<ref name="DLS29"/>
* "Three circling women" coloured red, green, and white,<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, lines 121–129, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> representing the three [[theological virtues]]: [[Charity (virtue)|Love]], [[Hope (virtue)|Hope]], and [[Faith in Christianity|Faith]], respectively<ref name="DLS29"/>
* "Four other women"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, line 130, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> dressed in purple,<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, line 131, Longfellow translation.</ref> representing the four [[cardinal virtues]]: [[Prudence]], [[Justice (virtue)|Justice]], [[Temperance (virtue)|Temperance]], and [[Courage|Fortitude]]<ref name="DLS29"/>
* "Two elders, different in their dress,"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, lines 134–141, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> representing the [[Acts of the Apostles]] and the [[Pauline epistles]]<ref name="DLS29"/>
* "Four of humble aspect,"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, line 142, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> representing the [[general epistles]]<ref name="DLS29"/>
* "When all the rest had passed, a lone old man,"<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXIX, lines 143–144, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> representing the [[Book of Revelation]]<ref name="DLS29"/>

[[File:John William Waterhouse - Dante and Matilda.jpg|thumb|''Dante and Matilda'' (formerly called ''Dante and Beatrice'') by [[John William Waterhouse]], 1915]]

=== Beatrice's arrival ===
Canto XXX portrays the transition between Virgil's departure and Beatrice's arrival. Now that the pilgrim has completed his training in desire and reached the limits of human reason, Virgil can no longer serve as his guide: he has nothing more to teach Dante, because human reason cannot explain or understand divine grace.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9780203834473|title=Dante Encyclopedia|date=2010-09-13|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-84972-5|editor-last=Lansing|editor-first=Richard|page=682|doi=10.4324/9780203834473 }}</ref> Beatrice, by contrast, is capable of teaching Dante the meaning of that grace, because she is Christian, and endowed with understanding by God.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9780203834473|title=Dante Encyclopedia|date=2010-09-13|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-84972-5|editor-last=Lansing|editor-first=Richard|page=89|doi=10.4324/9780203834473 }}</ref>

Even as Virgil departs, however, his influence on the poem remains strong. Dante's farewell to Virgil, with the threefold repetition of Virgil's name, echoes a passage from Virgil's ''[[Georgics]]'', wherein Orpheus calls out to Eurydice after he has turned around and condemned her to eternity in the land of the dead.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Lectura Dantis: Purgatorio |date=2008 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-94052-9 |editor1-last=Mandelbaum |editor1-first=Allen |location=Berkeley, California |language=en-us |oclc=193827830 |editor2-last=Oldcorn |editor2-first=Anthony |editor3-last=Ross |editor3-first=Charles}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=December 2021}}

After Virgil's departure, Beatrice begins to admonish Dante, accusing him of straying from the path of virtue she had laid before him after her departure from life on earth. She demands a confession from the pilgrim—his first personal confession in the whole ''Comedy'':

<blockquote>
"O you who are beyond the sacred river,"<br />turning toward me the point of her speech, whose<br />mere edge had seemed sharp to me,<br />she began again, continuing without delay: "say,<br />say if this is true: to so great an accusation your<br />confession must be joined".<ref>{{Cite book|last=Durling|first=Robert|title=The Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri|volume=2|date=2010|publisher=Oxford University Press, USA|isbn=978-0-19-972335-5|page=531|oclc=700700176}}</ref>
</blockquote>

It is not until after more admonitions from Beatrice and a heartfelt confession from Dante that Dante is washed in the River [[Lethe]], which erases the memory of past sin (Canto XXXI),<ref>[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', Introduction, p. 68 (Penguin, 1955).</ref> and sees an allegory of Biblical and Church history. This allegory includes a denunciation of the corrupt [[Pope|papacy]] of the time: a [[wikt:harlot|harlot]] (the papacy) is dragged away with the chariot (the Church) by a giant (the French monarchy, which under King Philip IV engineered the move of the [[Avignon Papacy|Papal Seat to Avignon]] in 1309)<ref name="DLS32">[[Dorothy L. Sayers]], ''Purgatory'', notes on Canto XXXII.</ref> (Canto XXXII):

<blockquote>
Just like a fortress set on a steep slope,<br />securely seated there, ungirt, a whore,<br />whose eyes were quick to rove, appeared to me;<br /><br />and I saw at her side, erect, a giant,<br />who seemed to serve as her custodian;<br />and they again, again embraced each other.<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXXII, lines 148–153, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> 
</blockquote>

It is noon as the events observed in the Earthly Paradise come to a close.<ref>''Purgatorio,'' XXXIII.103–105.</ref> Finally, Dante drinks from the River [[Eunoe|Eunoë]], which restores good memories, and prepares him for his ascent to Heaven (described in the ''[[Paradiso (Dante)|Paradiso]]'', the final ''cantica''). As with the other two parts of the ''Divine Comedy'', the ''Purgatorio'' ends on the word "stars" (Canto XXXIII):

<blockquote>
From that most holy wave I now returned<br />to Beatrice; remade, as new trees are<br />renewed when they bring forth new boughs, I was<br />pure and prepared to climb unto the stars.<ref>''Purgatorio'', Canto XXXIII, lines 142–145, Mandelbaum translation.</ref> 
</blockquote>{{Further|Paradiso (Dante)}}

== Location, shape, and size ==
Scholars have long debated the location, shape, and size of various geographic features in the ''Divine Comedy'' using astronomical and geometric calculations.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wright |first=John Kirtland |title=Human Nature in Geography |date=1966 |publisher=Harvard University Press |pages=143 |author-link=John Kirtland Wright}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wright |first=Chris |date=January 9, 2011 |title=Measuring hell: Was modern physics born in the Inferno? |url=https://archive.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2011/01/09/measuring_hell/ |access-date=2024-03-03 |work=[[The Boston Globe]]}}</ref>

Dante tells us that Mount Purgatory is at the [[antipodes]] of Jerusalem, in the South Pacific.<ref name=":0" />

In the Renaissance, [[Antonio Manetti]] and [[Alessandro Vellutello]] proposed models which [[Galileo Galilei]] refuted in his ''[[On the Shape, Location, and Size of Dante's Inferno]]''. In the 20th century, [[Rodolfo Benini]]<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Benini |first=Rodolfo |date=19 November 1916 |title=Origine, sito, forma e dimensioni del monte del Purgatorio e dall'Inferno datesco |trans-title=Origin, site, size and shape of Mount Purgatory and of Dante‘s Inferno |journal=Rendiconti della Reale Accademia dei Lincei, Classe di Scienze Morali Ecc. |language=it |volume=25 |issue=11 |pages=293–315}}</ref> and Ideale Capasso,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Capasso |first=Ideale |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d18YMwEACAAJ |title=L'Astronomia nella Divina Commedia |date=1965 |publisher=Domus Galilaeana |language=it |trans-title=Astronomy in the Divine Comedy}}</ref> and in the 21st, Claudio Facciolo<ref>{{Cite book |last=Facciolo |first=Claudio |title=Il lungo viaggio della Croce del Sud |publisher=Edizioni il Frangente |year=2010 |isbn=978-88-87297-62-1 |location=Verona |language=it |trans-title=The Long Voyage of the Southern Cross}}</ref> contributed to the debate. The calculations result in an area between 115.6 and 1243&nbsp;km² and a height between 11.4 and 192&nbsp;km high. The slope would have been between 23° and 37°.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Magnaghi-Delfino |first1=Paoloa |last2=Norando |first2=Tullia |date=2015 |title=The Size and Shape of Dante's Mount Purgatory |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281900574 |journal=Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage |volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=123–134|doi=10.3724/SP.J.1440-2807.2015.02.02 |hdl=11311/964116 |s2cid=207810033 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

==In the arts==
{{commons category}}
{{Main article|Dante and his Divine Comedy in popular culture}}

The ''Divine Comedy'' has been a source of inspiration for numerous artists for over seven centuries. While references to the ''[[Inferno (Dante)|Inferno]]'' are the most common, there are also references to the ''Purgatorio''. [[Franz Liszt]]'s ''[[Dante Symphony|Symphony to Dante's Divina Commedia]]'' (1856) has a "Purgatorio" movement, as does [[Robert W. Smith (musician)|Robert W. Smith]]'s ''[[The Divine Comedy (Smith)|The Divine Comedy]]'' (2006). [[Geoffrey Chaucer|Chaucer]] and others have referenced the ''Purgatorio'' in their writing. Many visual artists have depicted scenes from the ''Purgatorio'', including [[Gustave Doré]], [[John Flaxman]], [[Dante Gabriel Rossetti]], [[John William Waterhouse]], and [[William Blake]].

==See also==
*''[[Divine Comedy]]''
*''[[Inferno (Dante)|Inferno]]''
*''[[Paradiso (Dante)|Paradiso]]''
*[[Allegory in the Middle Ages]]
*[[List of cultural references in the Divine Comedy|List of cultural references in the ''Divine Comedy'']]
*[[Rupes Nigra]], a mountain or magnetic rock believed to exist on the North Pole during medieval times

==Footnotes==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{wikisource|Purgatorio (Dante)}}
*[http://www.worldofdante.org/ ''World of Dante''], multimedia website with text, translation, maps, and searchable database for students and teachers, at [[University of Virginia]]
*[http://etcweb.princeton.edu/dante/index.html ''Princeton Dante Project''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090603094521/http://etcweb.princeton.edu/dante/index.html |date=2009-06-03 }}, website with complete text of Dante's works in Italian and English, including audio, at [[Princeton University]]
*[http://dante.dartmouth.edu/ ''Dante Dartmouth Project''], text of more than 70 Italian, Latin, and English commentaries on the ''Commedia'', from 1322 ([[Jacopo Alighieri|Iacopo Alighieri]]) to the 2000s (Robert Hollander)
*[[gutenberg:8800|Cary's translation, with Doré's illustrations]], at [[Project Gutenberg]]
*[http://www.tsoules.com/Dante/Concordance/ On-line Concordance to the ''Divine Comedy'']
*[http://danteworlds.laits.utexas.edu ''Danteworlds''], multimedia presentation of the ''Divine Comedy'' by Guy Raffa of the [[University of Texas]]

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