Purgatorio

As Dante and Virgil continue on their way, Dante is puzzled by Virgil’s lack of a shadow. Virgil tells Dante that it’s foolish to try to fully grasp God’s doings with one’s rational mind; Dante must content himself with the fact that something is the case, not why it is the case. If humanity had perfect understanding, he goes on, then it would not have been necessary for the Son of God to become Incarnate. Virgil reminds Dante that Plato and Aristotle must spend eternity in Hell with an unsatisfied thirst for knowledge.

Dante and Virgil arrive at the mountain’s base. The mountain is forbiddingly steep. A group of souls, looking like a wandering flock of lost sheep, slowly draws near, and Dante approaches them to ask for advice on the best way to proceed. Among this group, he recognizes a figure named Manfred, with the scar of a sword stroke across his forehead. Manfred asks Dante to find his daughter back on Earth and to let her know how he died. He explains that while it’s true he was excommunicated, there is still hope for his soul—repentant excommunicates must stay in Purgatory for 30 times the span of years that they separated themselves from the Church while living.