DiotimosReading Desk

Wonder without practical benefit

prosit; re mira; mirabilis; iucundum; prodesse; mirus

At the close of the artificial-stone example the speaker admits that the result benefits the recipient nothing, yet asks that it be regarded as a marvel.

From the book

Nine Books on the Nature of Things

Attributed to Paracelsus · Diotimos Editions · 2026

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Meaning

At the close of the artificial-stone example the speaker admits that the result benefits the recipient nothing, yet asks that it be regarded as a marvel. This distinction separates utility from the pleasure or astonishment of a visible result. The preceding metallic tree is also praised as delightful to behold. A summary organized only around profit or medicine would miss this explicit place for wonder without practical gain.

Places to read

  1. Book 2 · Growth · Passage 5Latin“quanquam hoc tibi nil prosit, sit tibi tamen pro re mira”