The Nature of Divine Love

The exploration of love as the fundamental force of the universe, from human passion to divine charity.

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Francesca's Love and Its Consequences

The Misguided Love The Power of Passion Francesca's story shows how love, when misdirected, leads to sin and damnation. Her love for Paolo was overwhelming but adulterous. Dante's Pity Dante's swoon indicates his sympathy, but the poem makes clear that such love, without reason and virtue, is destructive.

Virgil's Discourse on Love

The Theory of Love Natural and Spiritual Love Virgil explains that all creatures have natural love (which is always right) and spiritual love (which can err). Love is the seed of all virtue and vice. The Threefold Error Love can err by loving evil (pride, envy, wrath), by loving good too little (sloth), or by loving temporal goods too much (avarice, gluttony, lust).

Beatrice on the Love of God

The Supreme Love The Will of God Beatrice teaches that all souls in Paradise are content because their will is one with God's. 'In His will is our peace.' The Hierarchy of Love The different degrees of beatitude correspond to the capacity for love. The more one loves God, the more one receives of His light.

The Love that Moves the Sun and Stars

The Final Vision The Cosmic Love Dante's final vision reveals that God is love, and this love moves all things. The universe is held together by love. The Personal Union Dante's own will and desire are turned by this love, achieving perfect union with God. The poem ends with this sublime image.

The Love of the Angels

The Angelic Hierarchies The Nine Orders Beatrice explains the nine orders of angels, from Seraphim to Angels, each reflecting God's love in different ways. Their love is the motor of the spheres. The Fall of Lucifer The fall of Lucifer was due to pride, a perversion of love. The faithful angels remain in eternal contemplation of God.

In the second circle of Hell

On the fourth terrace of Purgatory

In the Heaven of the Moon and throughout Paradise

At the end of the poem, in the Empyrean

In the Heaven of Saturn and the Primum Mobile