ABSTRACT
The journey by Dante through Hell, Purgatory and Paradise is the journey of the spiritually aware person through life. Assagioli felt a most special connection with Dante Alighieri. The strength not to give up but to go on being fully alive is debated interestingly in Dante's conversation with the spirit of Marco Lombardo on the second cornice of Purgatory. Synthesis is fundamental, but Assagioli also regarded himself as a scientist, which is, of course, an analytical rather than a synthetic activity. Assagioli's espousal of both Dante and Plato gave him a different and alternative framework for his work, though he was always very keen to say he was a scientist. Assagioli uses the work of Dante for his work with the superconscious. He suggests that suitable people should be given the task of reading the Divine Comedy as it represents so clearly the personal journey, looking carefully at the symbolic meanings and identifying with Dante.
