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[[File:Dante Gabriel Rossetti - Beata Beatrix, 1864-1870.jpg|thumb|250px|[[w:Dante Gabriel Rossetti|Dante Gabriel Rossetti]]: ''Beata Beatrix'' ("Blessed Beatrice", between 1864 and 1870).
[[File:Dante Gabriel Rossetti - Beata Beatrix, 1864-1870.jpg|thumb|250px|[[w:Dante Gabriel Rossetti|Dante Gabriel Rossetti]]: ''Beata Beatrix'' ("Blessed Beatrice", between 1864 and 1870).
Rossetti understood the painting "not as a representation of Beatrice's death, but as an ideal of the subject, symbolised by a trance or sudden spiritual transfiguration. Beatrice rises visibly rapt to heaven, which she sees as through her closed eyelids [...] and in a sign of supreme transformation the radiant bird, a messenger of death, drops the white poppy between her open hands."<ref>Rossetti writes in a letter to William Graham of 3 March 1873 that his painting was intended
Rossetti understood the painting "not as a representation of Beatrice's death, but as an ideal of the subject, symbolised by a trance or sudden spiritual transfiguration. Beatrice rises visibly rapt to heaven, which she sees as through her closed eyelids [...] and in a sign of supreme transformation the radiant bird, a messenger of death, drops the white poppy between her open hands."<ref>Rossetti writes in a letter to William Graham of 3 March 1873 that his painting was intended
:„not as a representation of the incident of the death of Beatrice, but as an ideal of the sub- ject, symbolized by a trance or sudden spiritual transfiguration. Beatrice is rapt visibly into Heaven, seeing as it were through her shut lids (as Dante says at the close of the Vita Nuova): "Him who is Blessed throughout all ages"; and in sign of the supreme change, the radiant bird, a messenger of death, drops the white poppy between her open hands. In the background is the City which, as Dante says: "sat solitary" in mourning for her death; and through whose street Dante himself is seen to pass gazing towards the figure of Love opposite, in whose hand the waning life of his lady flickers as a flame. On the sundial at her side the shadow falls on the hour of nine, which number Dante connects mystically in many ways with her and with her death. The date below the predella (3ist March 1300) is that of Dante's meeting Beatrice in the Garden of Eden. [The date 9 June 1290 heading the main panel represents the date of Beatrice's death.] The words, "Veni, Sponsa De Libano" are sung at the meeting by the women in the train of Beatrice.“ (zit. nach Lady Frances Horner: ''Time Remembered'', W. Heinemann, London 1933 [http://www.victorianweb.org/painting/dgr/paintings/6.html]</ref> In the background is the city of Florence, mourning her death, and on the right Dante, gazing at the red-robed figure of Love (left), who holds Beatrice's waning life as a flickering flame. The shadow of the sundial next to her falls on the number nine, which Dante mystically associates with Beatrice and her death.]]
:„not as a representation of the incident of the death of Beatrice, but as an ideal of the sub- ject, symbolized by a trance or sudden spiritual transfiguration. Beatrice is rapt visibly into Heaven, seeing as it were through her shut lids (as Dante says at the close of the Vita Nuova): "Him who is Blessed throughout all ages"; and in sign of the supreme change, the radiant bird, a messenger of death, drops the white poppy between her open hands. In the background is the City which, as Dante says: "sat solitary" in mourning for her death; and through whose street Dante himself is seen to pass gazing towards the figure of Love opposite, in whose hand the waning life of his lady flickers as a flame. On the sundial at her side the shadow falls on the hour of nine, which number Dante connects mystically in many ways with her and with her death. The date below the predella (31st March 1300) is that of Dante's meeting Beatrice in the Garden of Eden. [The date 9 June 1290 heading the main panel represents the date of Beatrice's death.] The words, "Veni, Sponsa De Libano" are sung at the meeting by the women in the train of Beatrice.“ (zit. nach Lady Frances Horner: ''Time Remembered'', W. Heinemann, London 1933 [http://www.victorianweb.org/painting/dgr/paintings/6.html]</ref> In the background is the city of Florence, mourning her death, and on the right Dante, gazing at the red-robed figure of Love (left), who holds Beatrice's waning life as a flickering flame. The shadow of the sundial next to her falls on the number nine, which Dante mystically associates with Beatrice and her death.]]


'''Beatrice''' (from Occitan: "the Beatifying"; {{Latin}}: ''Beatrix'') is a central figure in works by [[Dante Alighieri]] (1265-1321). In Dante's imagery, she is a symbol of the purified [[astral body]] transformed into the [[spirit self]], which in [[Christian]] terminology is also called the [[Virgin Sophia]]. As a symbol of the [[vita contemplativa]], she embodies the true Christian faith, the true "theologia", which Dante interprets entirely in terms of [[Templar esotericism]].
'''Beatrice''' (from Occitan: "the Beatifying"; {{Latin}}: ''Beatrix'') is a central figure in works by [[Dante Alighieri]] (1265-1321). In Dante's imagery, she is a symbol of the purified [[astral body]] transformed into the [[spirit self]], which in [[Christian]] terminology is also called the [[Virgin Sophia]]. As a symbol of the [[vita contemplativa]], she embodies the true Christian faith, the true "theologia", which Dante interprets entirely in terms of [[Templar esotericism]].

Revision as of 16:34, 12 August 2021

Dante Gabriel Rossetti: Beata Beatrix ("Blessed Beatrice", between 1864 and 1870). Rossetti understood the painting "not as a representation of Beatrice's death, but as an ideal of the subject, symbolised by a trance or sudden spiritual transfiguration. Beatrice rises visibly rapt to heaven, which she sees as through her closed eyelids [...] and in a sign of supreme transformation the radiant bird, a messenger of death, drops the white poppy between her open hands."[1] In the background is the city of Florence, mourning her death, and on the right Dante, gazing at the red-robed figure of Love (left), who holds Beatrice's waning life as a flickering flame. The shadow of the sundial next to her falls on the number nine, which Dante mystically associates with Beatrice and her death.

Beatrice (from Occitan: "the Beatifying"; Latin: Beatrix) is a central figure in works by Dante Alighieri (1265-1321). In Dante's imagery, she is a symbol of the purified astral body transformed into the spirit self, which in Christian terminology is also called the Virgin Sophia. As a symbol of the vita contemplativa, she embodies the true Christian faith, the true "theologia", which Dante interprets entirely in terms of Templar esotericism.

„If you follow the teachings of the Templars, there is something at the centre that was worshipped as something feminine. This feminine was called the divine Sophia, the divine wisdom. Manas is the fifth principle, the spiritual self of man, which should arise, to which a temple should be built. And just as the pentagon from the entrance to Solomon's temple characterises the five-membered man, so too does this feminine characterise the wisdom of the Middle Ages. With his "Beatrice", Dante wanted to portray nothing other than this wisdom. Only those who look at Dante's "Divine Comedy" from this point of view can understand it. Therefore you will find the same symbols in Dante's work that are expressed in the Templars, the Christian knighthoods, the Grail knights and so on.“ (Lit.:GA 93, p. 152)

Literature

References to the work of Rudolf Steiner follow Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works (CW or GA), Rudolf Steiner Verlag, Dornach/Switzerland, unless otherwise stated.
Email: verlag@steinerverlag.com URL: www.steinerverlag.com.
Index to the Complete Works of Rudolf Steiner - Aelzina Books
A complete list by Volume Number and a full list of known English translations you may also find at Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works
Rudolf Steiner Archive - The largest online collection of Rudolf Steiner's books, lectures and articles in English.
Rudolf Steiner Audio - Recorded and Read by Dale Brunsvold
steinerbooks.org - Anthroposophic Press Inc. (USA)
Rudolf Steiner Handbook - Christian Karl's proven standard work for orientation in Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works for free download as PDF.

References

  1. Rossetti writes in a letter to William Graham of 3 March 1873 that his painting was intended
    „not as a representation of the incident of the death of Beatrice, but as an ideal of the sub- ject, symbolized by a trance or sudden spiritual transfiguration. Beatrice is rapt visibly into Heaven, seeing as it were through her shut lids (as Dante says at the close of the Vita Nuova): "Him who is Blessed throughout all ages"; and in sign of the supreme change, the radiant bird, a messenger of death, drops the white poppy between her open hands. In the background is the City which, as Dante says: "sat solitary" in mourning for her death; and through whose street Dante himself is seen to pass gazing towards the figure of Love opposite, in whose hand the waning life of his lady flickers as a flame. On the sundial at her side the shadow falls on the hour of nine, which number Dante connects mystically in many ways with her and with her death. The date below the predella (31st March 1300) is that of Dante's meeting Beatrice in the Garden of Eden. [The date 9 June 1290 heading the main panel represents the date of Beatrice's death.] The words, "Veni, Sponsa De Libano" are sung at the meeting by the women in the train of Beatrice.“ (zit. nach Lady Frances Horner: Time Remembered, W. Heinemann, London 1933 [1]