He thus to me: "This miserable fate
Suffer the wretched souls of those, who lived
Without or praise or blame, with that ill band
Of angels mix'd, who nor rebellious proved,
Nor yet were true to God, but for themselves
Were only. From his bounds Heaven drove them forth
Not to impair his lustre; nor the depth
Of Hell receives them, lest the accursed tribe
Should glory thence with exultation vain."

In these lines from Dante's Inferno, Virgil explains to Dante the grim fate of "trimmers," souls who lived without making significant moral choices. These individuals, along with indecisive angels, neither rebelled against nor remained faithful to God. As a result, they find themselves in a liminal space, rejected by both Heaven and Hell. Heaven dismisses them to preserve its purity, while Hell refuses them to prevent any undeserved pride among the damned. Their plight serves as a cautionary illustration of the importance of commitment and moral decision-making. Dante's depiction underscores the theme that neutrality and indecision in matters of moral consequence result in spiritual insignificance and a lack of identity, destined to be forgotten and ignored even in the afterlife.