Dante's Paradiso: A Guide to the Nine Heavens and Divine Comedy's Final Canticle
The article provides a comprehensive guide to Dante Alighieri's Paradiso, the third canticle of the Divine Comedy. It explains the structure of Paradise as nine concentric celestial spheres plus the Empyrean, based on Ptolemaic cosmology. Beatrice Portinari replaces Virgil as Dante's guide, representing divine love and theology. Key encounters include Piccarda Donati, Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, Cacciaguida, St. Thomas Aquinas, Adam, and St. Bernard of Clairvaux. The journey explores themes of unity and diversity, divine order, and the mystery of the Trinity. Dante's vision culminates in the Empyrean, where he sees God as three circles and experiences the 'Love that moves the sun and the other stars.' The article also contextualizes the work within medieval Scholasticism, Dante's exile, and Florentine politics.
Key facts
- Dante's Paradiso is the third canticle of the Divine Comedy, following Inferno and Purgatorio.
- Beatrice Portinari guides Dante through Paradise, replacing Virgil.
- Paradise consists of nine heavens (Moon, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Fixed Stars, Primum Mobile) and the Empyrean.
- The cosmology is Ptolemaic, with Earth at the center.
- Key figures encountered include Piccarda Donati, Justinian I, Cacciaguida, St. Thomas Aquinas, Adam, and St. Bernard of Clairvaux.
- Dante's vision of God is described as three circles representing the Trinity.
- The poem addresses themes of divine order, unity and diversity, and political commentary on Florence and the Holy Roman Empire.
- Dante was exiled from Florence in 1302 by the Black Guelphs.
Entities
Artists
- Dante Alighieri
- Beatrice Portinari
- Virgil
- Piccarda Donati
- Justinian I
- Cacciaguida
- St. Thomas Aquinas
- Adam
- St. Bernard of Clairvaux
- Henry VII
- Corso Donati
- Forense Donati
- Gustave Doré
- Sandro Botticelli
- Dante Gabriel Rossetti
- Henry Holiday
- Philipp Veit
- John Flaxman Jr.
- Petar Milošević
- Bill Anders
Institutions
- The Collector
- TATE
- Walker Art Gallery
- University of Leeds
- National Library of Poland
- Polona Digital Library
- Bibliothèque nationale de France
- Bibliothèque et fondation Martin Bodmer
- Casino Massimo
- Basilica San Vitale
- Cornell University Library
- NASA
- Apollo 8
Locations
- Florence
- Italy
- Rome
- Ravenna
- Liverpool
- Switzerland
- Poland
- France