Dante VII Canto XXV Scene I

 Canto XXV

Seventh Terrace; Lust

Scene I

“Lust is defined as immoral because its object or action of affection is improperly ordered according to natural law and/or the appetite for the particular object (eg sexual desire) is governing the person's intellect and will rather than the intellect and will governing the appetite for that object. Whereas passion, regardless of its strength is maintained to be something God-given and moral, because the purpose, actions, and intentions behind it are benevolent and ordered toward creation, while also being governed by the person's intellect and will.” Dante after having rested and was to journey on their last path took to raise the subject matter.

“A primary school of thought on this is Thomism, which speaks on the intellect, will, and appetite, and draws from principles defined by Aristotle. However, the exact definitions assigned to what is morally definite and ordered toward creation depend on the religion. For example, differences between religions based on pantheism and theism will differ what is moral according to the nature of the "God" acknowledged or worshipped.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lust).

“Are you querying me, Dante?” Statius looked at Dante. “And what is Thomism? It’s not in my library.”

“Thomism is the philosophical school that arose as a legacy of the work and thought of Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274), philosopher, theologian, and Doctor of the Church. In philosophy, Aquinas' disputed questions and commentaries on Aristotle are perhaps his best-known works. Like the one who wrote the poems we are reliving here, I ---- I loaned from the thoughts of Thomas Aquinas here. For most of us, lust is sexual in the moral nature but the definition of it covered more than that.” Dante explained.

Dante then turned towards Virgil but the latter was distance apart. It has been since the return of Statius which caught their attention of his. He felt the loss of a friend then.

“Virgil is of his processing on the recent events. He did summon me to assist you.” Statius read Dante’s thoughts. “He may have found you --- contradicting his intentions.”

“I have always advocated free will and Virgil is entitled to his own. As alike myself.” Dante looked up to the sky, and the sun was at its zenith. They have not traveled at night for darkness hid their trail, and it may be perilous.

“It’s late and we have to move on. We are presumably at the last terrace of Purgatory; and its lust that was to be purged. The Bible defines lust as something very different from love. Lust is selfish, and when we give in, we do so with little regard for the consequences. Frequently, lust is a harmful distraction that pulls us away from God. We must gain control of it and pursue instead the type of love that God desires for us.” (https://www.learnreligions.com/bible-verses-about-lust-712095)

“That is what being sinful means, Dante,” Statius stated the facts of belief.

“Yes, it does, and --- it was ingrained into us. Tell me, Statius. You are a creation of man, and man is a creation of God, as named. Tell me of your creation.” Dante asked.

“What has that to be with lust?” Statius questioned back.

“It --- To my thoughts, creation may be the afterthought of lust. I used the concept of lust for it was selfish to own what not be yours but you left yourself in there. Your selfish self takes to combined with the other. You may have left it --- selfish was your nature; you left the self you created to ---pro-create ---” Dante was taken over by Statius.

“I can read your thoughts, Dante. Yes, I am the creation of another of flesh and blood but mine was wiring encased in an inorganic shell. And allowed to move more freely than you in some uncertain means. Let me explain.” Statius looked at Dante. “Let us draw the parable of yours and mine.”

“You are ---pro-created when your father’s sperm combined with your mother’s egg in the womb. Its 101 Reproduction Science.” Statius explained. “I, however, was more that. I do have my creator’s DNA in the form of his programming codes. It all began with one line of code, and then a whole library will be created and then more libraries will be attached before I ---”

“Do you think ---” Statius was stopped by Virgil.

“Reply to his queries, Statius. We are wasting time.” Virgil interrupted. Statius looked at Dante and was to speak when the latter spoke.

“In simpler words, Statius. It was believed that we are the creation of the food consumed. The food goes through four rounds of digestion, the third taking place in the heart. Weird? It was how it was known. When the food goes through its fourth round of digestion, and is taken out of the heart and turned into “perfect blood,” but there will be some leftover blood; not all of it gets transformed. Within the heart, those remnants of blood gain a formative power, they flow down into the genital area.” Dante took to his hand signs to explain the anatomy.

“Very graphic but appropriate.” Statius took no offense to the hand sign.

“Well, the ---you know ---formation.” Dante stammered there.

“I can see your hesitancy; you have not ---do it. Rare but known fact.” Statius cut in.

“Yes, the former blood resides as semen. Yes, they thought this was what happened in the body. It builds up and is occasionally released most appropriately. I won’t elaborate. Or the man may get to do it and the semen flows into the “natural receptacle”.” Dante avoided the correct term. “Here the blood of the man and woman mix—two-thirds of it is “passive”; the woman’s menstrual blood and one-third of it “active”; the male’s semen. When the active blood reaches the passive, the whole mass coagulates and becomes a soul. Mucky terms for I --- never mind to that.”

“Within the newborn soul, the active substance from the male works ----” Dante was cut off.

“Naturally, the man did the heavy task. Oh, you may not know ----self-released is selfish loss. The soul gives its senses and shapes it so that it has limbs. It developed to be a living soul inside what is named a fetus. It’s the initial formation of the living body. It was here when God himself intervenes. He turns to it with joy and breathes into it “new spirit,” which combines with the active substance. Suddenly the soul has self-consciousness; it is now fully human and ready to be born.”

“What was to begin will soon end. After the living body dies, it lands bodiless in Hell or on the shores of Purgatory. Either way, once the soul has landed, that formative power that shaped it in the womb becomes active again and radiates from the soul outward, forming anew the airy semblance of a human body. Now that is the soul.”

“After that, the soul can do whatever humans physically do—speak, laugh, cry, sigh, eat. Those are the five senses. And there is the main link which was the soul. The living body may die but the souls lived on.” (Adapted from https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/purgatorio/summary/purgatory-canto-xxv-the-seventh-terrace-the-lustful).

“And are you different?” Dante asked.