Dante Book 1 Canto 1 Scene 3

 

Scene 3

 

“Oh God, how can you ask of me what others more spiritual than I had failed even to grasp it?” Dante spoke out soon after he entered the dark tunnel. Initially, the tunnel was dark without any illumination, that Dante had to use his torch to light the way ahead. What he saw then were hands that were seen on the walls reaching out with their fingers toward him.

“Stay in the middle of the trail. And avoid the hands.” Virgil told him.

It was easier for the orb which could hover out of reach but for Dante, it was a tight squeeze trying to avoid the grabbing. He felt the fingers at his clothes and had to pull himself clear.

“What happens if I am caught by…” Dante asked.

“I don’t know. You may be like them I could conclude.” Virgil replied. “I think one of the others in the task was taken in by the hands.”

“That’s not assuring at all, Virgil,” Dante turned his body to avoid the grabbing hands.

“It's Hell and you expect answers I am not able to tell you. So, make haste and we will pass the tunnel.”

Soon, they stepped past the tunnel and arrived in a huge cavern that needed no illumination. It was lit up by the multi-shades of quartz deposits that lined the wall there. There were no more tunnels but descending steps in the middle of the cavern to the bottom. It was a dark abyss.

Darkness represents the unknown when one’s sight was not to comprehend what was there.

“Welcome to the front porch of …Hell, I guess,” Virgil spoke out. “My creator spent some time here to examine the quartz and was amazed at the results. It’s the composition of the living organism; the mineral contents embedded into the wall.”

“You mean blood and whatever that …” Dante was startled in his words.

“Yes, you are going to Hell and all it needed was your sinful soul, not the baggage,” Virgil concluded. “It was a satisfying conclusion then.”

“I am leaving.” Dante had a change of mind. “I am not dead yet.”

“You need to return the same tunnel we took. And from my previous ascent, it was not easy for the elevation was steeper than when we descended. I guess it's Hell passage of rites; you cannot return.” Virgil said to Dante.

“Then we are doomed.” Dante sighed.

“The sign did say that; All hope abandon ye who enter here,” Virgil added to Dante’s’ woes. “Do you know that there were others that had taken the trail through Hell and lived to recount it in the annals of words.”

“I know. It was Saint Paul who recorded that in his letters soon enclosed in the Book, and …”

“Aeneas, Dante. The namesake of my creator. My creator had his name changed to Aeneas to emulate the great feat of the Trojan who had taken the same journey we are to do.”

“Virgil, Aeneas is a fable. The Trojan War was a fable made to be read by scholars.” Dante cut in.

“As the existence of Hell or Heaven. You did indicate that in your words, not only at the Forum but later on in your preaching. Was Saint Paul real?”

“He was according to the Book,” Dante replied. “There some disputes on his latter letters that was in Book.”

Fourteen of the twenty-seven books in the New Testament have traditionally been attributed to Paul. Seven of the Pauline epistles are undisputed by scholars as being authentic, with varying degrees of argument about the remainder. It was almost unquestioningly accepted from the 5th to the 16th centuries that Paul was the author of Hebrews, but that view is now almost universally rejected by scholars. The other six are believed by some scholars to have come from followers writing in his name, using material from Paul's surviving letters and letters written by him that no longer survive.

“No, I am referring to his journey in Hell,” Virgil said.

“It was called the Apocalypse of Paul. It was a detailed account of a vision of Heaven and Hell experienced by Paul the Apostle. It was the interpretation of the beliefs of ordinary Christians concerning the afterlife" Dante added on. “It contains a prologue describing all of the creation appealing to God against the sin of man, framing the reasons for the visits to heaven and hell as the witnessing of the death and judgment of one wicked man and one righteous man.”

“Did you believe in it?” Virgil asked.

“What was there not to believe?” Dante retorted back.

“What about Aeneas voyage after the fall of Troy?” Virgil asked. “There was a tale on that.”

“Aeneas upon the defeat of Troy took a voyage and one of his tasks was to visit his dead father, at the realm named as Dis. This was the pre-Christian influence, and yes, the words there included sacrifices. Aeneas did go there when he retrieved the golden bough that gave him the passage there. He saw dead souls there and even met Charon, the river master who delivers the dead souls to the Underworld.”

“And he saw many other levels of Hell, including dead heroes of the war that he was in. he soon met his father, Anchises who told him of the Underworld. And more including the glimpse into the future; the rise of Rome and the emergence of Caesar. Soon, Aeneas left the Underworld.”

“And what of Homer when he introduced Odyssey?”

“Homer portrayed the After Life as he calls it, as individuals are reduced to lifeless forms inhabiting Erebus, the personification of darkness. Once we are there, nothing we own or hold will matter, it all equalizes to nothing.”

“And Plato much later in the passing of the centuries, introduce the complex view of the afterlife with the concept of punishment and reward, and even a second passage called reincarnation. The ones that remained were on either the good or bad side like you in this war. You claimed to battle for the good side and victory will be for the good but is it that simple? Had this personification framed our thoughts of good and evil and its aftermath? If yes, then we were led to it by one living person’s thoughts and not of God.” Virgil questioned back.

“I am baffled. What has that to do with my task here?” Dante asked.

“You are a learned person with many readings, which may have framed your thoughts. Shed them all top hold a new outlook at it. I need an open mind to explore the realms I am to take you. You may find yourself in confusion at times but above all, keep the mind of yours free of any restraints.” Virgil looked at Dante. “Do that and we will proceed. If you have any doubts, you will be doomed to wander here forever.”

Dante stared into the dark abyss that there. He was hesitant and yet a part of him told him to proceed. Finally, he said these few words.

“For Beatrice.”

“L'amour vainc tout. (Love conquérez all in French). It's amazing that how much love can reinforce courage in living beings. A bear will protect its young from danger without fear of its survival.” Virgil beamed up again in its light. “I am not displaying emotions of such but there was a part of my program that allowed me to express my… delight.”

“Welcome, Dante to the Underworld. Or shall I say to Hell we will go?”