Descartes’ proof of the existence of God oc

curs in the Third Meditation. He builds his entire argument upon his proof in the previous meditation that in order for him to think, he must exist. From this single observation, Descartes notices that the idea of his existence is very clear and distinct in his mind; based upon this clarity and the fact that he has just determined his own existence, he deduces a rule such that the things that he sees as very clear and very distinct are all true.

Next, Descartes discusses where ideas come from, namely, inside ourselves (innate or invented) and outside ourselves (adventitious). Innate, or inborn, ideas include “my understanding of what a thing is, what truth is, and what thought is” (Cottingham 26). These ideas are considered innate because the understanding seems to be resulting simply from my own nature. They are in no way derived. When my senses, seeing, hearing, feeling, etc, come into play, I develop an idea adventitiously. For example, if I were sitting by a fire, I would feel the heat of the flames. Feeling or having the idea of the heat was not something I decided to do from within; therefore, it must have come from something other than myself. Last but not least, some ideas are made up in my own mind. For instance, I have developed an image of my grandfather who passed away long before I was born. I have never actually seen him, but I invented an idea of him.

He then explains that he knows that he is imperfect due to the fact that he has doubts. Clearly, knowing is more perfect than doubting. From this notion, he realizes that within him lies this idea of a perfect being and that he is incapable of producing this idea alone. Descartes determines that such an idea must have a formal reality, a cause. This cause could not have originated from a less perfect reality or being, since he

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