Virgil, Aeneid III.658
Melphi speaks
monstrum horrendum, informe, ingens, cui lumen ademptum.
The priest translates
«a monster dreadful, shapeless, huge, whose light has been taken from him.»
And interprets
This line puts something huge and frightening in front of you: a problem that looks enormous, an overbearing person, a fear that freezes you. But look closely at the last words: the monster is blind. What scares you has a weak point, and often it is precisely its inability to see clearly. You do not need to confront it head on, nor to stay frozen: you need to move wisely, quietly, without being where it expects you. If you feel small these days in front of a giant difficulty, remember that size is not the same as strength. Step away calmly and choose your course with care.
The historical translations
Annibal Caro (1581)
Mostro orrendo, difforme e smisurato,
Che avea come una grotta oscura in fronte
Invece d’occhio, e per bastone un pino,
Mostro orrendo, difforme e smisurato,
Che avea come una grotta oscura in fronte
Invece d’occhio, e per bastone un pino,
Theodore C. Williams (1910)
huge, shapeless, horrible, with blinded eye,
huge, shapeless, horrible, with blinded eye,
Source
Publius Vergilius Maro, Aeneis, ed. J. B. Greenough (1900)
Virgil, Aeneid III.658