224 Quotes by Rene Descartes

These long chains of perfectly simple and easy reasonings by means of which geometers are accustomed to carry out their most difficult demonstrations had led me to fancy that everything that can fall under human knowledge forms a similar sequence; and that so long as we avoid accepting as true what is not so, and always preserve the right order of deduction of one thing from another, there can be nothing too remote to be reached in the end, or to well hidden to be discovered.

I think therefore am.

The principal use of prudence, of self-control, is that it teaches us to be masters of our passions, and to so control and guide them that the evils which they cause are quite bearable, and that we even derive joy from them all.

Conquer yourself rather than the world.

Divide each difficulty at hand into as many pieces as possible and as could be required to better solve them.

De omnibus dubitandum

There is a great difference between mind and body insomuch as body is by nature always divisible, and the mind is entirely indivisible.

... moral certainty is certainty which is sufficient to regulate our behaviour, or which measures up to the certainty we have on matters relating to the conduct of life which we never normally doubt, though we know that it is possible, absolutely speaking, that they may be false.

I accept no principles of physics which are not also accepted in mathematics.