In the first of
these higher spheres, the Sphere of the Sun, the fourth Heaven, Dante
sees the spirits of great theologians and others who loved wisdom--great
teachers of men. Around him and Beatrice, as their center, twelve of
them appear in one circle and twelve in another, while behind those
dazzling splendors of spirits are other vivid lights probably
representing authors whom the poet had not read or comprehended or
symbolizing the men of science, the lovers of wisdom, who in the future
by their discoveries would add to our knowledge of truth. As one of the
basic truths of Revelation is the mystery of the Blessed Trinity, here
in the Heaven of the Doctors the dogma is made prominent by special
frequency of reference and symbolism. The Creation, as an act of the
Three Divine Persons, is mentioned in lines of exquisite grace:
"Looking into His Son with all the Love
Which each of them eternally breathes forth
The primal and unutterable Power
Whate'er before the mind or eye revolves
With so much order made, there can be none
Who thus beholds, without enjoying it."
(X, 1.)
Not only by thought, but by dancing, is the same truth expressed: "those
burning suns round about us whirled themselves three times.
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