Dante Alighieri was a renowned Italian poet born in the year 1265 in the famous city of Florence, Italy.
The most recognized work of this author was called “The Divine Comedy”. This work gave way to Renaissance thought and is currently considered one of the best ever written in universal literature.
Considered the father of the Italian language, which until then was called Volgare, Dante wrote during his writing career about politics, philosophy and literature.
He fought in the battle of Campaldino where, as another citizen, he collaborated in the defense of his own city, making his personal opinion very clear about the need for separation between state and religion.
Great phrases and reflections by Dante Alighieri
Below you can enjoy the 80 best phrases by Dante Alighieri with which you will surely discover a lot about him and his literature.
1. The devil is not as black as he is painted.
Many times people are not as evil as others say about them.
2. There is a gentle thought that sometimes makes me feel alive, because it is a thought of you.
Thinking about the person we love always brightens our day.
3. With wine poetry flourishes in the hearts of men.
Alcohol can awaken inspiration in us, but it also may not.
4. For the one who makes my veins and pulse tremble.
That person we love so much will always know how to make us nervous, no matter how hard we try we can’t avoid it.
5. The sad souls of those who lived without faults and without praise.
We all live good moments in life and also bad ones, life is an accumulation of circumstances.
6. We should not be afraid of anything outside of things that have real power to harm others. Everything else is nothing to fear at all.
We must not let fear dominate our lives, but we must also respect what can hurt us.
7. Up, down, here and there it takes them; and no hope comforts them, not of rest, but of less sorrow.
In this quote, Dante tells us about his descent into hell in his work “The Divine Comedy.”
8. The best gift that God has given in his abundance was the autonomy of the will.
We are free to live our lives as we wish, we must take advantage of our time!
9. The arrow of destiny, when expected, travels slowly.
No matter what happens, we will eventually reach our set destination. Do you believe that there is a destiny set for all of us?
10. The truth that seems to be a lie must be kept silent by man while he can, because through no fault of his own, he may be ashamed.
Talking too much can get us into more than one problem, it is better not to say something that could make us look ridiculous.
11. There is no way that heat can be separated from fire or beauty from the eternal.
There are things in the universe that are simply indivisible, they can never be separated.
12. It was the morning hour, when the sun took its place above the stars that shine with it, when the love of God Himself first established the just movement of things.
Sunrise is one of the most beautiful moments of the day, it is always worth experiencing a new dawn.
13. Love is born quickly towards that heart that is gentle.
Gentleness is a quality that enhances any person.
14. I can well see that you nest in your own light, and that you give it off through your eyes, because when you laugh they shine; but not who you are, nor why you find yourself, worthy soul, in the degree of the sphere that other rays hide from men.
This quote refers to when Dante meets the ancient Caesar Justinian, on his journey through hell.
15. Nobody thinks about how much blood it costs.
Certain achievements may not be worth it, as too much must be sacrificed for them.
16. My hope is that we will not be able to see the sky anymore. I have come to guide you to the other shore, to eternal darkness, in fire and in ice.
The descent into hell can be quite torturous, something that no one would undoubtedly like to have to experience.
17. Oh, human race, born to fly, how then can a small breeze of wind make you fall?
Human beings are capable of carrying out great works in our lives, we must always be the best version of ourselves.
18. Open your mind to what I manifest to you and hold it inside; that science is not done without retaining what has been understood.
The important thing about studying something is to be able to understand the concept in its fullness, because this way we will always remember it.
19. But you make a religious of him who was born to wear a sword, and you make a king of him who likes sermons; and so your route goes astray.
We should not get carried away by third parties, they may be wrong. We must always act under our principles.
20. Good is the dominion of love, for it separates the minds of its servants from all vile things.
Love can help us improve our lives to a great extent, a life with love is always led in another way.
21. However, what kind of person are you who dare to judge events that occur a thousand miles away with your vision that only covers a short distance?
We should not judge others, perhaps we are not fully aware of what that person has been through.
22. Enter, but I warn you that whoever looks back will return outside.
In order to reach paradise we must never look back. A place we will all reach one day.
23. Now our minds are like smoke, but soon they will be like fire.
Certain situations can greatly change a person’s mood, even taking them to certain extremes.
24. Your apprehension makes illusions true, which incite desire, and seduce the spirit with pleasure.
Our predisposition to something can trigger a series of events that ultimately turn that something into a reality.
25. It is known that the burning flame of love does not last long in a woman, when looks and hands are incapable of constantly fanning it.
Time and distance can cool any love relationship. This is something we all discover at some point in life.
26. Love insists that love return from the beloved.
Forgetting a person you once loved can be really complicated.
27. Beauty is loved for delight, and virtue for sovereign highness.
The search for beauty has been a constant objective in the history of human beings themselves.
28. We are not going to talk about them; rather look and move on.
We must know when we should speak and when we should remain silent, in certain matters it is better not to get involved.
29. Everything about her was always so brilliant that no one, sighing sweetly, will be able to forget her enchanting grace.
Certain people are simply impossible to forget, they will remain in our memory forever.
30. We are lost and have only been half punished.
There can always be a new situation that is worse than the current one, we should be grateful for what we have.
31. Speak briefly and clearly.
Without a doubt this is the best way to explain something to someone.
32. The human race reaches its best state the more freedom it has.
Freedom is an inalienable right of the human being, we cannot live in any other way.
33. High fantasy lacks strength; But now my will and my desire were spinning like wheels driven by the one who moves the sun and the stars.
Imagination can allow us to travel wherever we want, perhaps our fantasies can have no limits.
34. I am the way to the city of affliction, I am the way to eternal pain, I am the way to follow among the lost.
We all have our own path in life, but it will be up to us where it takes us.
35. Your fortune reserves so much honor for you, that both parties will be hungry for you.
When our life smiles upon us, everyone around us will want to be part of it.
36. Love, which does not absolve anyone loved from loving, grabbed me so tightly with its charm that, as you see, it has not left me yet.
Love is a feeling that can accompany us throughout our lives, even if this love is not reciprocal.
37. In the center of the Universe, at the furthest point from God, among the ice that surrounds the shadows, is Lucifer, emperor of the kingdom of pain, taking half his body out of the glacial surface.
The place that Dante tells us about in this quote is undoubtedly hell itself.
38. There is nothing to fear, nothing can deprive us of our destiny, it is a gift.
We will all reach our own destiny, no matter what happens, since destiny for certain people, including Dante, is considered immovable.
39. They long for what they fear.
What we fear so much may be one of our most recurring thoughts.
40. My route has been established over an unexplored sea.
Traveling across the seas and oceans was, in the past, quite an odyssey.
41. All hope is abandoned by those who enter here.
When we cross the gates of hell, as Dante tells us, hope is something that abandons us.
42. I shed no tears, my heart was made of stone.
Those who have been through a lot in life are much more reluctant to share their emotions with others.
43. The rigid justice that hurts me uses the place where I sinned, so that I put more sighs to flight.
Our memories can severely torment us, we will never forget certain things that we should not have done.
44. My lady looks so honest and so gentle, when she delivers her greeting, that she makes all tongues tremble and remain silent, and not even eyes dare to look at her.
The sight of a person whom we love or whose beauty captivates us can leave us speechless on more than one occasion.
45. The wheels of heaven above display their eternal glories for you, however your eyes continue to rest on the earth.
Many times we are not really aware of everything we have, but when we lose it we realize how lucky we were.
46. He who listens well, takes notes.
If we pay attention to what is happening around us, we can learn many things that will be useful to us in the future.
47. You will know from experience how salty other people’s bread is, and how sad it is to go up and down the stairs in a foreign apartment.
We must learn to respect others, as they may be experiencing difficult situations in their lives.
48. Art, to the extent of its possibilities, follows nature, just as a pupil imitates his teacher; That’s how your art should be. Granddaughter of God.
Art was born because people tried to capture in it everything they experienced, not in vain in prehistory man reflected in his art, especially hunting and animals.
49. Through me, you will visit the city of tears, through me, you will enter eternal pain, through me, you will walk among the lost people.
As Dante tells us, this is an inscription found at the very gates of hell.
50. You were not created to live like beasts, but to pursue virtue and wisdom.
Human beings are undoubtedly a unique species within the animal kingdom, there is no other like us.
51. Beauty awakens the acts of the soul.
Beauty is something that Dante, like all of us, loved to be able to contemplate.
52. That precious fruit for which men undertake an anxious search in different partners, will be given today to your hungry soul.
Love is something that human beings look for all our lives, we feel the need to love and be loved.
53. In the middle of our life’s path, I found myself on a piece of wood, lost off the straight path.
Life can take many turns and on certain occasions we can even get lost.
54. It is so bitter, and death is a little more so.
Death is something no one wants to have to go through.
55. The weapons of divine justice lose their edge when faced with the confession and regret of the criminal.
Feeling sorry is the first step to being able to one day earn forgiveness.
56. Open your mind to what I am going to reveal to you, and retain it inside: he who listens, but does not retain what he has heard, learns nothing.
We must make our own all those other people’s thoughts from which we can learn.
57. Maintain the firmness of the tower, whose top does not tremble due to storms or winds.
Showing ourselves to be strong in life is something that can sometimes be complicated, but we must do it if we want to be victorious.
58. There was a time when we used to be men, although now we have become trees.
In the Divine Comedy, spendthrifts suffer the curse of ending up turned into trees.
59. The most perfect things are also the most susceptible to receiving both appreciation and abuse.
A great quote that brings us a great metaphor, the nail that sticks out is hit more times.
60. A powerful fire is just the continuation of a small spark.
The smallest actions can trigger very complicated situations. Something commonly called the butterfly effect.
61. Pride, envy and greed. These are the sparks that have set fire to the hearts of all men.
Without a doubt three qualities that can cloud anyone’s judgment and that we should not get carried away with.
62. The path that leads to Paradise begins in Hell.
In order to reach the top we must always start from the bottom, life can be compared to climbing a mountain.
63. If you, free as you are, have remained here below; It is unlikely that even a living flame continues to burn above.
We are all responsible for where we are in life and aware of where we would like to be.
64. You are subject to greater strength and better free nature; and she raises your mind, in which heaven can do nothing.
Freedom is something that human beings need to fully develop their lives. We are born to be free by nature.
65. Without you having uttered it, I have understood your desire better than you have understood anything true; because I see it in the true mirror that reflects itself in other things, but the others are not reflected in it.
The truth is something that must prevail in our lives, with it we can go very far. As they say, lies have very short legs.
66. After your damage will come the tears caused by the just punishment.
In hell, as we all know, sinners are punished for all eternity.
67. He who knows pain, knows everything.
When we have suffered a lot in life, few things will surprise us.
68. At the peak moment, the skill that gives me the ability to describe fails.
Descriptions are something that any writer must master, but on the contrary they can also be somewhat complicated on certain occasions.
69. In his will lies our peace.
For all believers, peace in the world is because of God’s will.
70. Old fame in the world calls blind people, people are greedy, envious and arrogant: always free yourself from their customs.
Although other people have inappropriate behaviors, we should not fall into the same habits.
71. Aristotle is the teacher of all those who know.
Aristotle was a genius in ancient times and teacher of Alexander the Great himself.
72. Lust can occupy a place that is possible to forgive when you are on the path of learning to love.
Lust can sometimes lead us to perform acts that we are not proud of. Over time we will learn not to get carried away by it.
73. Don’t stop fear, because no matter how much it might, it won’t stop you from going down this rock.
We must put aside fear to be able to be completely efficient in what we do.
74. Your fame is like the flower, which as soon as it sprouts, dies, and is withered by the same sun that caused it to be born from the ungrateful land.
Fame can be something ephemeral, we can have it today, but maybe not tomorrow.
75. To whom much is given, much is expected of him.
The one who is continually awarded is usually the one who is most expected when the time comes.
76. Now you, you know how much my love for you burns deep within me, when forgetting our emptiness, I face shadows and solid things.
Love can lead us to perform those acts of which we did not believe ourselves capable. Love is a very great incentive in anyone’s life.
77. Overcome laziness with a spirit that overcomes any fight, if a serious body does not prevent it.
Laziness is, according to the Old Testament, a Capital Sin. We should not be lazy in our life.
78. In the depth of such sorrow, the tongue moves in vain; The language of our memory and our senses lacks its own vocabulary for such pain.
Certain emotional pains may not be able to be explained with simple words, since there may not be words that can faithfully describe them.
79. Whoever paints there has no one to guide him, but rather he guides, and from him originates the virtue that gives the nests their shape.
We must set an example with our own way of acting, in this way we will be able to make the world a better place.
80. The wiser you become, the more annoying it is to waste time.
Our time in life is a really very limited commodity, we should not waste our time.