Inferno: Canto Ix
INFERNO: CANTO IX
When I saw my Guide was turning back,
The blood completely drained from my face,
Which made his own color return quickly.
He stopped attentive, like a man listening intently,
Because he could not see very far
Through the black air, and through the heavy fog.
"Still it behooves us to win this fight,"
He began; "Or else. . .No, we were offered help. . .
O how I wish that some would arrive!"
I understood and knew what he had started to say,
Though he quickly tried to cover it up,
But his last words were very different from his first;
Nonetheless, I was afraid of what he said,
Because I finished the sentence in my head,
Perhaps to a worse meaning than he had meant.
"Has anyone ever descended from the first circle
To the bottom of this miserable canyon
In which the primary punishment is having all hope cut off?"
He answered me:
"It is very rare that one of us
Makes the journey upon which we go now.
It is true, I was here once before
Conjured by that heartless witch Erictho,
Who summons back the spirits into their bodies.
Soon after I left my body on the Earth above,
She sent me through these very walls,
To bring a spirit from the circle of Judas;
That is the lowest region and the darkest,
And farthest from the heaven which circles everything.
I know this way very well; therefore be reassured.
This swamp, which carries such a prodigious stench,
Encompasses the city of misery,
That we cannot enter without a fight."
I know that he said more, but I can't remember it;
Because my eyes were drawn
To the high tower with the red-flaming summit,
Where I saw, flying fast and reckless,
The three infernal Furies, stained with blood,
Who had the bodies and mannerisms of women,
Around their waists they wore green hydras;
Small snakes and serpents made up their hair,
Completely entwining their savage temples.
And he, who knew well these handmaids of the Queen
Of Everlasting Lamentation,
Said to me: "There they are, the fierce Furies.
This is Megaera, on the left;
The one weeping on the right is Alecto;
Tisiphone is in the middle;" And then he said nothing.
Each was clawing at her breasts with her nails;
They beat them with their palms, and cried so loud,
That I pressed close unto the Poet out of fear.
"Medusa come, so that we can change him into stone!"
They all shouted looking down; "At this moment, we can
Now avenge ourselves for allowing Theseus to escape!"
"Turn around, and keep your eyes closed shut,
For if the Gorgon, Medusa, does appear, and you see her,
You would never be able to return upward."
This the Master said; and he turned me around
Himself, and not trusting my own hands,
He covered my eyes with his own.
For those of you who are educated, understand the hidden meaning
Of the strange words that follow! Suddenly, across the putrid Waves, a blast of sound shot through the air,
Shaking the ground all around us; it sounded like
A violent wind, clashing like the savage heat,
That attacks a burning forest, and, without restraint,
Rips the branches, beats them down, and carries them away;
Pressing forward, laden with dust, it goes unyielding,
And sends the wild beasts and the shepherds running.
He moved his hands, and said: "Look there,
Along the ancient foam,
There where that smoke is most intense."
Even as frogs when seeing the hostile serpent
Across the water scatter everywhere,
Until each one is safely hidden in the earth.
I saw more than a thousand ruined souls,
Thus fleeing a divine spirit
Who walked across the river Styx.
He fanned the putrid air away from his face,
Waving his left hand often in front of him,
And that was the only effort he made.
I knew that he was sent from Heaven,
And I turned to the Maser; but he raised his hand
So I would be silent, and bow before this spirit.
Ah! How scornful the spirit appeared to be!
He reached the gate, and with a small rod
He opened it, with no resistance.
"You cowards, who were banished from Heaven!"
He began as he stood on that horrid threshold;
"Where is the arrogance that you had before?
Think twice before you defy the commands,
From those who can never be kept out,
And who has the power to increase your pains many times.
What good does it do you to butt against such power?
Cerberus tried, if you remember, and for that
Both his chin and throat were peeled clean of their skin."
Then he returned along the murky road,
And said no word to us, but had the look
Of one who was distracted by other thoughts
Rather than those who were in his presence at this time;
So we walked towards the city,
Confident, now that those holy words were spoken.
We entered without any fight or protest;
And I was curious to see
What sufferings this fortress would hold,
As soon as I was inside, I looked around,
And saw graves and tombs everywhere across a massive plain,
Filled with suffering and distress and terrible torment.
Even as at Arles, where the Rhone grows stagnant,
Even as at Pola near to the Quarnaro,
That shuts in Italy and bathes its borders,
The tombs make the ground jagged and uneven;
This is how it was everywhere along this plain,
Except here, they had a crueller purpose;
The flames between the tombs were scattered,
And burned so intensely hot,
That melted iron could not be hotter.
All of the tombs were uncovered and open,
And from them you could hear dire laments,
So that I knew the wretched souls were being tormented.
And I said: "My Master, Who are those people
Lying in those tombs,
Who scream their miserable cries?"
And he said to me: "Here are the Heretics,
With their disciples of all sects,
And much more than you think is held in those tombs.
Here similar people are buried together;
And the graves burn more or less accordingly."
And then as he turned to the right, we walked
Between the tormented souls and high walls.