thoughts which had already floated in his own mind, but dimly, as in a dream. He compares himself to one who, seeking silver, should light (not without Divine guidance) on a treasure of gold; for he found not only relief from his tears, but a door into a new world of literature, philosophy, and science. Henceforth, he tells us, he eagerly frequented the schools of the religious orders and the discussions of the philosophers; and how extensive and thorough was his learning we can see in his writings. In them we find a reflection of thirteenth-century thought in every field of intellectual research.
Among all his studies was one which evidently had a great attraction for him, even in the early days of the Vita Nuova, before learning had become a passion. Astronomy appealed to many sides of his nature. The beauty of the skies stirred his imagination; their suggestive symbolism touched his religious sense; the harmony of the celestial movements and the accuracy with which they can be foretold delighted his instinct for order and precision. He must have read, and perhaps possessed, some of the best textbooks then available, and he grasped with singular clearness the phenomena observed and the theories taught in his day. His works are full of allusions to astronomy. In the Vita Nuova he finds pleasure in connecting the story of his lady with the revolutions of the spheres; in the Convivio he teaches the elements of the science; in the Vision of the Divine Comedy he journeys through the universe as it was depicted by mediæval astronomers; and throughout his works are scattered similes drawn from celestial phenomena and descriptions of "le belle cose che porta il ciel."[1]
- ↑ "The fair things that Heaven holds." Inferno XXXIV. 137, 138.
