''Mundus subterraneus, quo universae denique naturae divitiae'' (very roughly "The subterranean world, all its riches") is a scientific

textbook A textbook is a book containing a comprehensive compilation of content in a branch of study with the intention of explaining it. Textbooks are produced to meet the needs of educators, usually at educational institutions, but also of learners ( ...

written by

Athanasius Kircher Athanasius Kircher (2 May 1602 – 27 November 1680) was a German Society of Jesus, Jesuit scholar and polymath who published around 40 major works of comparative religion, geology, and medicine. Kircher has been compared to fellow Jes ...

, and published in 1665. The work depicts Earth's

geography Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...

through textual description, as well as lavish illustrations. Kircher had already advocated in favor of

rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the Epistemology, epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "the position that reason has precedence over other ways of acquiring knowledge", often in contrast to ot ...

and

natural laws Natural law (, ) is a philosophical and legal theory that posits the existence of a set of inherent laws derived from nature and universal moral principles, which are discoverable through reason. In ethics, natural law theory asserts that certa ...

in the explanation of

phenomena A phenomenon ( phenomena), sometimes spelled phaenomenon, is an observable Event (philosophy), event. The term came into its modern Philosophy, philosophical usage through Immanuel Kant, who contrasted it with the noumenon, which ''cannot'' be ...

, rejecting

miraculous A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...

explanations. He expanded on the concept with this book.

Context

'' Diatribe de Progidiosis Crucibus'' ("Diatribe of Prodigious Crosses") is Kircher's most succinct and explicit statement in favour of seeking rational causes for phenomena through an understanding of natural laws, derived from observation, rather than seeking

explanations. He pursued this in greater detail in ''Mundus Subterraneus'' (1665).

References

External links

* * 1665 in science 1665 non-fiction books Athanasius Kircher Geography textbooks Illustrated books Rationalism Natural law {{geo-book-stub