I thank Providence who has guided my destinies, that I now live; nay, that I live happier than a king of Persia. You know, fathers and fellow-citizens, that I am wholly occupied with this academical garden; that it is my Rhodus, or rather my Elysium. There I possess all the spoils of the east and the west which I wished for; and which, in my belief, are far more precious than the silken garments of the Babylonians, and the porcelain vases of the Chinese. There I receive and convey instruction. There I admire the wisdom of the Creator, which manifests itself in so many various modes, and demonstrate it to others.

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "I thank Providence who has guided my destinies, that I now live; nay, that I live happier than a king of Persia. You know, fathers and fellow-citizens, that I am wholly occupied with this academical garden; that it is my Rhodus, or rather my Elysium. There I possess all the spoils of the east and the west which I wished for; and which, in my belief, are far more precious than the silken garments of the Babylonians, and the porcelain vases of the Chinese. There I receive and convey instruction. There I admire the wisdom of the Creator, which manifests itself in so many various modes, and demonstrate it to others." in the context of "Carl Linnaeus, address to the University of Uppsala, on the anniversary of the king's birth-day (1752), After the creation of his botanical garden. In The Life of Sir Charles Linnaeus, Knight of the Swedish Order of the Polar Star (1794), Dietrich Heinrich Stoever, E. Hobson, p. 207. Also found in A sketch of the life of Linnæus : in a series of letters designed for young persons (1827), Harvey and Darton, London, p. 120.
• As quoted in A life of Linnaeus (1858), by J. Van Voorst & Cecilia Lucy Brightwell, London. p. 123: I render thanks to the Almighty, who has ordered my lot so that I live at this day; and live, too, happier than the King of Persia. I think myself thus blessed because in this academic garden I am principal. This is my Rhodus, or, rather, my Elysium; here I enjoy the spoils of the East and the West, and, if I mistake not, that which far excels in beauty the garments of the Babylonians and the porcelain of China. Here I behold myself the might and wisdom of the Great Creator, in the works by which He reveals Himself, and show them unto others."''" to mean that wisdom is timeless.