"In the book of my memory—the part of it before which not much is legible—there is the heading Incipit vita nova. Under this heading I find the words which I intend to copy down in this little book; if not all of them, at least their essential meaning."
This is the incipit of the work, which begins with a prose section. Dante refers to the book of memory from which he is drawing to tell the story of the love between him and Beatrice. In his memory there is a heading that reads 'Incipit Vita Nova', that is, 'Incipit of the New Life'. The New Life, which gives the work its title, is the Poet's love experience, extraordinary and exemplary, recounted in its meaning. The amorous sentiment evolves over the course of the work, first based on courtly ideals, then culminating in the poetic praise of the woman Beatrice, whose name means 'she who gives bliss', combining human passion with Christian love.
"Nine times, the heaven of the light had returned to where it was at my birth, almost to the very same point of its orbit, when the glorious lady of my mind first appeared before my eyes—she whom many called Beatrice without even knowing that was her name."
The first meeting between Dante and Beatrice took place at the age of 9, precisely in 1274. The number 9 takes on a symbolic meaning for the Poet and will be central throughout his works, right up to the Commedia. The number 9, in fact, is the cube of the number 3, considered the holy number par excellence, as it is the number that represents the Holy Trinity. The two lovers, therefore, meet at this age and later meet again at 18, confirming how important 9 is for Dante's work and biography. Beatrice appears as 'glorious' and, with this adjective, Dante intends to emphasise how she is not a human creature, but has divine effects by her mere presence, so much so that her name is 'Beatrice' because she bestows bliss.
"that marvelous lady appeared to me dressed in pure white, between two gracious women, both of whom were older than she. And passing along a street, she turned her eyes in the direction of where I stood gripped by fear, and thanks to her ineffable benevolence and grace, which now is rewarded in eternal life, she greeted me with such power that then and there I seemed to see to the farthest reaches of beatitude."
The second meeting between Dante and Beatrice takes place in their eighteenth year. The description of Beatrice exalts the purity of the young girl, symbolised by the colour white and her youth. She is described as 'marvellous' and her kindness, which has divine connotations, succeeds in sweeping away the poet's fear, who is greeted by the woman. Beatrice's greeting has the effect of showing those who receive it all the degrees of bliss and, in fact, in the Commedia the young woman will occupy one of the seats among the blessed and guide Dante into the terrestrial Paradise.
To all besotted souls
"To all besotted souls, my counterparts, to whom these verses come with a petition to write me what you think of my rendition: greetings in Love, the lord of open hearts. Already nearly over by a third were all those hours lit up by stars till morning, when Love appeared before me without warning. I shudder thinking what his presence stirred. It seemed that he was overjoyed in keeping my heart in hand, his arms a gentle bed for someone draped in silk—my lady sleeping. He woke her. And, respectfully, he fed that burning heart to her, who shook with dread. Then, as he turned to leave, I saw him weeping."
This is the first sonnet collected in the Vita Nova. As Dante makes clear, it is divided into two parts; in the first the poet offers his greeting and asks for a reply, in the second he explains how one should reply. The sonnet is addressed to kind-hearted souls (thus predisposed to amorous feeling) and Dante tells of the appearance of Love, personified, who would visit him. Amore holds the Poet's heart in his hand and in his arms he carries Dante's woman, sleeping. Beatrice is then awakened and frightened; Amore feeds on Dante's heart and walks away weeping. This vision testifies how Dante's feeling leaves him no escape and has captured his heart in a powerful way. The sonnet will be sent to souls (poets) who can grasp Dante's feeling and, among them, is Guido Cavalcanti, Dante's friend to whom the work is dedicated.
