THE SACRED GROVE OF BOMARZO : 2nd step

Whoever enters here must prove that he can enter. To gain the right to pass, the riddle of the sphinxes must be solved. Their plinths bear the following inscription:

"Oh ye who enter here
and use thy Wit
to try to understand
what thou shalt see
from beginning to end,
tell me if so many marvels
were created to make thee err
or for Art."

"He who does not go there
with eyes wide open
and lips sealed
will not be able to admire
the most wonderful marvels."

This is the atmosphere in which Vicino Orsini invited his guests to visit his garden. So that when one discovered this monster far beyond a hedge, what did it mean? First, one rubbed one's eyes in disbelief because it was a gigantic, monolithic turtle.

"To he who knows how to go slowly, Fortune will display its glory."

At the time, this was called an emblem, today it would be a proverb.
A little further on, a war-elephant holding a warrior with his trunk.

"Nothing can resist he who goes directly and relentlessly."

More and more disturbing, a giant is tearing another man in two.

"Indeed, nothing can resist he who goes slowly and directly."

The riddles having been solved, one can now enter the world of the gods. "You who have passed the tests, you are entering the Kingdom of Dreams."