Giacomo da Lentini Mentioned in the Purgatory of Dante

Giacomo da Lentini Mentioned in the Purgatory of Dante

Conductor and Alighieri slight

The soul of Giacomo.  One notes that he

Like others had not seen the change to might

That Dante started, offering the key

To wider, deeper understanding of

The realm of passion for a woman, thought

That turns obsession to an Everest love.

Devotion then is not a sweet garotte

Around heart’s throat.  The mania becomes

An atmosphere of spirit and of thrill

Breathed down inside the ribcage.  Lust succumbs.

Chest’s storminess is turned to still, still, still.

  The hurricane is found to have an eye

    Like angels when they first began to fly.

Phillip Whidden