Roman poet Virgil who is best known for his epic, The Aeneid, wrote a famous line through the character of Juno. "If I cannot move Heaven, I will raise Hell," is one of the most memorable declarations in classical literature. The original Latin reads: "Flectere si nequeo superos, Acheronta movebo." A more literal translation is: "I f I cannot bend the powers above, I shall move Acheron ." Acheron was one of the rivers of the Underworld in Greek and Roman mythology. So the literal meaning of the phrase is calling upon the forces of Hell when Heaven refuses to cooperate.
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