Original Sin In Dante's Inferno

Throughout Cantos 1-6 of Purgatorio, multiple times different individuals were talking about shadows and especially the fact that they could recognize something was different with the Pilgrim based on his shadow: “When those in front saw that the light in my right side was broken, so that the shadow extended from me to the cliff… “Without your asking, I confess to you that this a human body you see, by which the light of the sun is split upon the ground”” (Canto 3, p.53, lines 88-96). From Heaven there were rays of sun shining down onto purgatory and this seemed like it could possibly be a symbol of God’s grace on those repenting to get rid of their stains before entering the Kingdom, which is there was no sun in Hell. The shadows also made

In Baptism, one’s soul becomes clean and pure, which is what those in Purgatory are trying to do; they are bathing themselves to get rid of the dirt of sin through penance. Aquinas states in Q. 82 how one can consider Original Sin a habit, and he states that it is a disposition of a complex nature and can be seen as a second nature. The only way to get rid of it is through Baptism. One particular line that really stood out about Baptism was in Canto 4, page 67: “We sat down there, both turned to the East”. In the older centuries, during Baptism, one would turn to the west and denounce Satan and then turn to the east to accept God and His powers. By looking into the east, the Pilgrim was denouncing the Devil and accepting God. This also connects back to the shadows because the sun rises in the east and when turned to the east, the Pilgrim would have the true light of God. When talking about sin, Aquinas also states that sin creates a stain and diminishes the light of that soul, which can be shown with how bright it gets when getting closer to God because His light has never been