Dante's Lenten Journey

In Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy, the author journeys not only through the infamous Inferno and is miraculously allowed to enter into Paradiso, but Dante also travels through the realms of Purgatorio, a transitional place quite accepted by the medieval church which allows the souls not destined for eternal damnation to be purged and cleansed before entering celestial Paradise. In this vital section of the Comedy, Dante is himself transformed and enlightened. He does not exit Purgatory as the same man who entered. What happened to Dante during his trek up Mount Purgatory and what can we garner from his experience as we head into the season of Lent?

First of all, it’s important to note that Dante’s journey began on Good Friday with Christ’s crucifixion. He finds himself in the Inferno and is confronted by humanity’s worst sins and sinners. He is often frightened and horrified by what he sees and feels. On Holy Saturday, when Christ descended to the lower regions (the Harrowing of Hell) Dante finds himself in Purgatorio; and on Easter Sunday Christ is raised from the dead (the Resurrection) and Dante ascends to Paradiso. This journey through the afterlife is Dante’s own journey to salvation. It can be likened to his own confessions; he spares readers no detail as he embarks on this supernatural journey. Of himself he says, “my sins were horrible…” (Purg. 3.121) In the Divine Comedy, Dante is still very much alive, and he is certainly not dreaming - he is sharing a vision with the world. As he writes this epic poem, Dante is a man who in real life has lost everything - the woman he loved (Beatrice), his career, his money, his lifestyle - and his beloved Florence. For political reasons he has been exiled. At this moment all that he feels is left to him is his immortal soul - he does not want to lose that as well.

When we encounter Dante at the entrance to Purgatory, he has just traveled from the outskirts through the very depths of hell (the Inferno). He was shocked down to the core of his being at what he saw, felt, and experienced in the nine circles of hell. In modern language we would say, he’d been “traumatized.” Traumatize comes from the Greek word traumat, which means the stem of the trauma - a wound, a hurt or defeat. From this we can examine the question: what is sin? By the time Dante exits the Inferno, he is shaken, not only with regard to the sins of others, but by the effects of sin on his own soul. With the fear of the Inferno in mind, he enters Purgatory.

It is here that he begins to encounter sinners who are on their way to heaven, and it is here that Dante cannot look away from his own sinfulness. An angel with a sword approaches Dante and marks his forehead with seven P’s (peccatum - sins) for each of the seven deadly sins - Lust, Gluttony, Avarice, Sloth, Wrath, Envy, Pride. By acknowledging this in his poem, Dante is declaring that he is guilty of all seven types of sin. He isn’t just pointing the finger at others as one might suggest by reading the Inferno, he is pointing the finger directly at himself. He is telling the world of his own time and for the last 700 years, that he is guilty of all the same sins as those he witnessed in hell. It can be likened to standing up in an AA meeting and acknowledging your addiction. Upon this declaration, Dante must climb a shocking set of stairs that carry him through the experience of penance. The first step is gleaming white and reflective - this step has a mirror-like quality of reflecting one’s soul, not body. Dante sees everything he has ever done. He experiences true regret and remorse for the ways in which he has hurt others. This sorrowfulness is part of his ascent to the next step - it is a rough, crumbling, broken step which symbolizes the soul’s contrition. Dante feels the full force of his sorrow for his sins. On the third step, the blood-red step, Dante is reminded of Christ’s suffering for our salvation. Though Jesus died on the cross for our sins, it is our response to this redemptive suffering that turns our hearts to God and toward heaven. As Dante atones for each of his sins, the angel removes one of the P’s from his forehead. At the end of his penitential journey, Dante must pass through a wall of fire to be purged from the effects of sins; he then passes through the waters (stream of Lethe and River Eunoe) symbolizing the cleansing waters of Baptism so that he may enter Paradise on Easter morning - the day of the Resurrection. He is finally prepared to present himself before the Divine.

The Lenten season is much like Dante’s journey through Purgatory. If we enter into this penitential season with the goal of the resurrection in mind, we can follow in Dante’s carefully detailed footsteps. We know that our sins have wounded us or others. If we are honest with ourselves we can see our sinfulness in the shiny mirror that reflects our soul by taking a careful look at the areas where our behavior has caused us or others pain and suffering. In our deepest desire to make amends we scale the crumbling step of remorse and regret for our actions. In Dante’s case, he broke down and cried bitterly. And finally, on the last blood-red step we accept Christ’s passion and death as our final step to salvation. We follow Christ to the cross, we receive his absolution through the sacrament of Reconciliation, and we make a resolution to avoid these sins in the future. Earth, temptation, and life being what it is, this process is not necessarily a one-shot deal - we experience it time and again. That is the beauty of Lent and the wonderful opportunities the sacraments afford us each time we turn away from sin and turn toward God. Dante’s journey through Purgatory is a mindful lesson in humility, virtue, and love. It’s not about fire and damnation - it’s about the grace that leads us to eternal life. Reading Dante’s Purgatorio during Lent can be an eye-opening experience. Dante’s tangible atonement for sins transcended our human experience. It went beyond abstinence and fasting for two of the forty days. The requirement of penitential Purgatorio is a powerful reminder of our journey toward heaven. On Earth, there is much to distract us from our heavenly goal, but in purgatory there are no distractions - the souls are completely focused on becoming saints. Dante’s Purgatorio is a profound lesson in saint-building. It is worth reading during Lent, but even moreso, it is worth the experience.