In his classic work on epistemology or theory of knowledge
titled the Discourses on Method, Rene Descartes proclaimed
to the world his philosophical conclusion: “I think therefore I am.”
(Cogito ergo sum). In this treatise Descartes debunked empiricism
or the use of man’s five senses to observe and measure knowledge
of the world around him. Suffice it to say that there are only two
philosophical methods of attempting to arrive at objective truth or reality:
a prior and a posteriori.
An a priori claim posits that objective knowledge can be known
independently of observation–that the truth or falsity of a thing is
self-evident and needs no further explanation. On the other hand,
an a posteriori claim supports the idea that a phenomenon can only
be known through observation using man’s five senses.
Although Descartes was a mathematician and mathematics is
an a priori method, the philosopher came to the conclusion that
to accept mathematics as the source of truth is to affirm the
existence of an Evil Genius, akin to the Devil himself, who deceives
man because there is no way of really finding out if 2+2= 4 and
whether or not mathematics is something real or just an illusion.
Moreover, Descartes rejected mathematics as an accurate
yardstick for measuring objective reality because it does not meet
or measure up to the rigorous standards of methodological doubt
through which this philosopher also discredited the a posteriori
method. In place of methematics, Descartes presented the human
mind, which he equated with the soul, as the only genuine tool
for measuring absolute truth.
The main flaw in Descartes argument is that man and the
universe also belong to the spiritual realm. In addition the mind
cannot accurately perceive objective reality simply because it
also creates its own labyrinth of deception and illusion. This
is based on the counter-proposition that man possesses a soul
which transcends his mental faculty and belongs to the more
subtle realm of the spirit. Thus the only reasonable solution
left for us is to accept the proposition that objective reality
can only be measured and analyzed through man’s spiritual
eye through the use and expansion of his spiritual consciousness
by developing such spiritual virtues or abilities such as
unconditional love, compassion, devotion, hope, charity,
humility, patience and non-violence.
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