Finally, those who showed violence against God are placed in the harsh region of the Abominable Sands. As a penalty for having given their old bodies up, they are denied a human form in death. Those who committed suicide or violence against themselves are placed in the Wood of the Suicides, condemned to writhe in eternal pain as gnarled trees. These creatures kept those who are trapped within the Phlegethon from escaping. Those who acted with violence against others are boiled in a boiling river of blood, the Phlegethon, which was guarded by the Centaurs. This circle was guarded by the Minotaur (a mechanical statue in the game) and separated into three parts: Violence against others (Murder), Violence against self (Suicide) and Violence against God (Blasphemy). In this burning cemetery, the Pagans, the followers of Epicurus and atheists are burned alive in partially sealed coffins, crypts and tombs for eternity.įollowing Heresy was the seventh circle, Violence. In this circle, the heretics, such as Epicureans (those who believed that "the soul died with the body") are trapped alongside those who denied the existence of God and the soul after death, and those who worshiped false idols and devils. Beyond the river was the City of Dis, which was the residence of the Fallen Angels and the gateway to the final four circles of Hell.īelow Anger was the sixth circle, Heresy. The sullen are sunken gurgling beneath the water, as they are withdrawn "into a black sulkiness which could find no joy in God or man or the universe." This swampy and noxious terrain was guarded by its ferryman, Phlegyas, who transported passengers across. In the River Styx, the wrathful fought each other on the surface. Here, Plutus, the demonic God of Wealth, resides along with Lady Fortune, a gigantic "wheel of fortune," which impacts the fate of those who are still alive on Earth.īelow Greed was the fifth circle, Anger. Within the circle, the occupants are boiled alive in the molten gold below. This included the avaricious (hoarding valuable possessions and money) and the prodigal (those who squandered such goods). Those whose attitude toward the material goods deviated from the appropriate mean are punished here. In death, they are constantly devoured and excreted by several Gluttons for eternity.īelow Gluttony was the fourth circle, Greed. This frozen, maze-like hall was reserved for those of royalty and high status, who indulged in food and drinks to gross excess in life. Beyond him was the circle proper, as well as the Hall of Gluttons. This level was guarded by the three-headed worm demon, Cerberus. The rest of the terrain resembled digestive organs, in keeping with the aesthetics of the circle. The rains and sludge symbolized the cold and empty sensuality of their lives, and the waste that their voraciousness generated. Cleopatra, who ruled over the shades atop the Carnal Tower, resided here with her lover Marc Anthony.īelow Lust was the third circle, Gluttony, where the overindulgent souls laid in a vile slush produced by unceasing, foul and icy rains forever. These shades are permitted no rest at all, the tempest being a physical embodiment of their lusts never giving them rest in life. In this circle, the carnal Damned are punished in an endless tempest of fierce winds, representing the power of Lust to blow one around aimlessly and needlessly. King Minos, who judged the Damned and sentenced them to their fates in the remaining eight circles below, is stationed at the edge of Limbo.īelow Limbo was the second circle, Lust. Lacking a baptism, they lack the hope for something greater than themselves, despite the strength of their goodness. The guiltless Damned are punished by living in a grand yet deficient form of Heaven. They are treated with honor and they are not physically harmed in any way. Limbo was on the outer boundary of Hell, just across the Acheron River. The first circle, Limbo, is the resting place of the unbaptized, and the virtuous pagans who did not accept Christ nor had the opportunity to know about him, despite not being sinful in life. Denied Paradise, they are not required to enter The Woeful Realm, and they are not welcomed in either place. The Shores of Acheron are the outermost edges of this realm beyond the Gates of Hell. The shades that wandered its shores lived life with neither fame nor infamy, having only ever served themselves rather than choose a side. “Into the blind world we must now descend.” - Virgil
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