Biblical figures
Elijah
Biblical prophet mentioned in the Comedy as a figure of comparison in two similes: the chariot of fire that carried him up to heaven, recalled by Ulysses, and the Transfiguration of Christ on Tabor, recalled in Purgatorio.
Profile
Elijah is remembered by Dante in two passages of the Comedy without ever appearing on stage. In Inferno XXVI, v. 35, Ulysses, speaking with Dante and Virgil, recalls the moment when, from the top of his flame in the eighth bolgia, he saw "the chariot of Elijah at its departure"; the commentary to the canto clarifies that this refers to the chariot of fire that carried the prophet Elijah up to heaven, leaving his disciple Elisha unable to follow it with his gaze. In Purgatorio XXXII, v. 80, Elijah appears instead in the scene of the Transfiguration: after Dante's awakening, Beatrice disappears as on Tabor, where Christ had appeared between Moses and Elijah to the three apostles overcome by the vision. Authoritative sources do not place Elijah in any circle or terrace: his mention belongs exclusively to these two biblical similes.
In the text
Linked verses
2 verses| Cantica | Canto | Verso | Testo | Open verse |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inferno | Canto XXVI | 35 | vide ’l carro d’Elia al dipartire, | Open verse |
| Purgatory | Canto XXXII | 80 | così di Moïsè come d’Elia, | Open verse |