The Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri: The Inferno

"Inferno" is the first part of the 14th-century epic poem «Divine Comedy,» written by the Italian writer Dante Alighieri. This part preceded the other two – Purgatorio and Paradiso. In the poem, Dante makes a journey through Hell, guided by the ancient Roman poet Virgil. There he sees the sufferings of those who have rejected spiritual values. Hell is depicted as nine concentric circles of torment located within the Earth, with every next circle marked by growing severity of suffering, which also corresponds to the severity of sin undertaken by a soul. The spiritual message of the poem is about the recognition and rejection of sin.