Paradiso -- Canto XXXII
The Rose of Heaven
Lovingly absorbed in his Delight,
The contemplative took up the teacher’s part
Spontaneously, and said these holy words:
"The wound that Mary closed and healed with ointment
5 Had been opened and pierced through by the person
Who sits, so beautiful, there at her feet.
"Then in the third row of the circling seats
Below her, as you witness for yourself,
Rachel in her throne sits next to Beatrice.
10 "Sarah and Rebecca, there, with Judith
And Ruth, the great-grandmother of the singer
Who in remorse cried, ‘Lord, have mercy on me!’:
"These you may see ranked downward tier by tier
As I called out the names of each of them
15 From petal down to petal through the rose.
"And from the seventh row on down, right up
To the end, Hebrew women form a line
By parting all the tresses of the flower:
"For by the way that faith once looked to Christ,
20 These women are the wall of that partition
Which separates in two the sacred stairway.
"On one side, where the flower is full blown
With all its petals, seated on their thrones
Are all those who had faith that Christ would come.
25 "On the other side, where you see semicircles
Pocked by empty spaces, sit all those
Who turned their faces to Christ who had come.
"And as, on this side, the high throne of glory
Of heaven’s Lady, with the other seats
30 Below it, forms so vast a parting line,
"So, facing her, the seat of the great John
Who, always saintly, suffered wilderness
And martyrdom, and then hell for two years,
"Forms the same line with those assigned below him:
35 Francis, Benedict, Augustine, and others
All the way here from circle down through circle.
"Now wonder at the depth of providence,
For each of these two aspects of the faith
With equal portions shall fill up this garden.
40 "And know as well that, downward from the row
Which cuts in half the two dividing lines,
These souls are seated not for their own merits,
"But for some others’, under set conditions,
Since all of these are spirits who were freed
45 Before they had the power of true choice.
"You can observe it clearly in their faces
And in their children’s voices, if you look
Carefully at them and listen to them.
"You are confused now, and in your confusion
50 Keep still, but I will loosen the hard knots
In which your subtle thoughts have tied you up.
"Within the spacious compass of this kingdom
No particle of chance can have a place,
No more than sorrow can, or thirst or hunger,
55 "Because whatever you see is established
By everlasting law, so that the match
Fits the ring to the finger perfectly.
"And so this group of children, hurried to
True life, is not without good reason ranked
60 Higher or lower here among themselves.
"The King, through whom this kingdom comes to rest
In so much love and in so much delight
That no one’s will would dare to demand more,
"Creating all minds in his joyous sight,
65 Endows each differently with grace, at pleasure
To himself — and here let that fact suffice.
"And Holy Scripture plainly and expressly
Declares this fact for you in the twin sons
Whose anger roused them in their mother’s womb.
70 "The highest light must crown them, then, with halos
According to the color of their hair
(That is, the worth of such grace as they have).
"Without the merit of their own works, therefore,
These infant souls are placed at different steps
75 By differing only in original gifts.
"In early times, the faith of their own parents
Alone, together with their innocence,
Was found to be enough for their salvation.
"After that first period was completed,
80 Then circumcision was prescribed for males
To impart power to their innocent wings.
"But after the new age of grace arrived,
Then, lacking perfect baptism in Christ,
Such innocents were held back there below.
85 "Look now upon the face most like to Christ
Because its brightness all alone possesses
The power to prepare you to see Christ."
I saw rain down upon her face such joy —
Joy carried by those pure intelligences
90 Created to soar through that altitude —
That whatever wonders I had seen before
Had not held me suspended in such awe
Nor showed me such an image like to God.
And that same Love who first flew down to her,
95 Singing there, "Hail Mary, full of grace,"
Now spread his wings out wide in front of her.
From every side the blessed court responded
So warmly to the canticle of heaven
That with the song each face grew more serene.
100 "O holy father, for my sake enduring
To be down here and leaving the sweet spot
Where by eternal lot you sit enthroned,
"Who is that angel who with such pure joy
Looks into the eyes of our own Queen,
105 So full of love that he seems all aflame?"
So once more I returned to the instruction
Of him who drew his beauty down from Mary,
Just as the morning star draws from the sun,
And he told me, "Braveheartedness and charm,
110 As much as soul or angel can possess them,
Are all in him, and we want it that way,
"Because he is the one who brought the palm
Downward to Mary, when the Son of God
Willed to take up the burden of our flesh.
115 "But let your eyes now come while I walk on
Talking, and take note of the mighty peers
Of this most just and reverential empire.
"Those two who sit above there, happiest
In being seated nearest to the Empress,
120 Are, in a way, the two roots of this rose.
"The one who sits beside her on the left
Is the same father through whose reckless tasting
The human race tastes so much bitterness.
"On the right side you see the ancient father
125 Of holy church, to whom Christ gave in trust
The keys to this fair incandescent flower.
"And that saint who, before his death, saw all
The times of hardship of the lovely bride
Who was won with the spear and with the nails
130 "Sits by his side. And by the first father
That leader rests whose people lived on manna,
A stubborn, fickle, and ungrateful flock.
"Across from Peter you see Anna sitting,
So happy to be gazing on her daughter
135 She does not lift her eyes to sing Hosannah.
"And opposite the eldest family father
Lucia sits, who stirred your lady when
Your head was nodding downward, to your ruin.
"But since the time when you would slumber flies,
140 We will stop here — just like a skillful tailor
Who cuts the coat according to his cloth —
"And we will turn our eyes to the First Love,
That, gazing toward Him, you may penetrate
As far as possible through His refulgence.
145 "But to prevent the chance you may fall backward,
Flapping your wings while thinking to fly forward,
You now need to acquire grace through prayer:
"Grace from her hands who has the power to help you.
And you shall follow me so with your love
150 That your heart will not wander from my words."
And he began to say this holy prayer:
