The reading of all good books is like a conversation with the finest minds of past centuries.
Rene DescartesRead
I have concluded the evident existence of God, and that my existence depends entirely on God in all the moments of my life, that I do not think that the human spirit may know anything with greater evidence and certitude.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Descartes asserts that the existence of God is clear and that our very lives are dependent on this divine reality.
In this quote, René Descartes expresses a profound conclusion regarding the existence of God, emphasizing that he sees God's presence as an undeniable truth that shapes every moment of human existence. He suggests that this understanding is not only fundamental but also more certain than any other knowledge the human spirit can possess, highlighting the pivotal role of divine existence in human life and philosophy.
Themes
GodExistencePhilosophyLifeCertainty
In practice
Example use cases
In a philosophical lecture discussing the nature of existence.
More from Rene Descartes
All quotes →If we possessed a thorough knowledge of all the parts of the seed of any animal (e.g. man), we could from that alone, be reasons entirely mathematical and certain, deduce the whole conformation and figure of each of its members, and, conversely if we knew several peculiarities of this conformation, we would from those deduce the nature of its seed.
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Mathematics is a more powerful instrument of knowledge than any other that has been bequeathed to us by human agency.
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Before examining this more carefully and investigating its consequences, I want to dwell for a moment in the contemplation of God, to ponder His attributes in me, to see, admire, and adore the beauty of His boundless light, insofar as my clouded insight allows. Believing that the supreme happiness of the other life consists wholly of the contemplation of divine greatness, I now find that through less perfect contemplation of the same sort I can gain the greatest joy available in this life.
Rene DescartesRead
I am accustomed to sleep and in my dreams to imagine the same things that lunatics imagine when awake.
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The greatest minds are capable of the greatest vices as well as of the greatest virtues.
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