And, in believing, kindled to such fire Of genuine love, that at the second death A fountain wells that never hath the eye Of any creature reached its primal wave, Set all his love below on righteousness; Wherefore from grace to grace did God unclose His eye to our redemption yet to be, Whence he believed therein, and suffered not From that day forth the stench of paganism, And he reproved therefor the folk perverse. Those Maidens three, whom at the right-hand wheel Thou didst behold, were unto him for baptism More than a thousand years before baptizing. O thou predestination, how remote And Thy root is from the aspect of all those And sweet to us is such a deprivation, Because our good in this good is made perfect, 115 120 125 130 135 After this manner by that shape divine, To make clear in me my short-sightedness, Accompanies with vibrations of the chords, So, while it spake, do I remember me That I beheld both of those blessed lights, Even as the winking of the eyes concords, Moving unto the words their little flames. 140 145 Again were fastened, and with these my mind, And from all other purpose was withdrawn; And she smiled not; but "If I were to smile,” She unto me began, "thou wouldst become Of the eternal palace more enkindles, That all thy mortal power in its effulgence We are uplifted to the seventh splendor, That underneath the burning Lion's breast 5 ΤΟ Now radiates downward mingled with his power. 15 Fix in direction of thine eyes the mind, And make of them a mirror for the figure That in this mirror shall appear to thee." He who could know what was the pasturage My sight had in that blessed countenance, When I transferred me to another care, - Obedience unto my celestial escort, Revolving, bears the name of its dear leader, So many splendors, that I thought each light The rooks together at the break of day Then some of them fly off without return, Others come back to where they started from, And others, wheeling round, still keep at home; Such fashion it appeared to me was there Within the sparkling that together came, As soon as on a certain step it struck, 20 25 30 35 40 And that which nearest unto us remained Became so clear, that in my thought I said, She thereupon, who saw my silentness In the sight of Him who seeth everything, Said unto me, "Let loose thy warm desire." And I began: "No merit of my own Renders me worthy of response from thee; But for her sake who granteth me the asking, Thou blessed life that dost remain concealed In thy beatitude, make known to me The cause which draweth thee so near my side; And tell me why is silent in this wheel The dulcet symphony of Paradise, 45 50 55 That through the rest below sounds so devoutly." 60 "Thou hast thy hearing mortal as thy sight," It answer made to me; "they sing not here, For the same cause that Beatrice has not smiled. Thus far adown the holy stairway's steps Have I descended but to give thee welcome With words, and with the light that mantles me; 65 |