--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For the mind depends so much on the…" description: "\"“For the mind depends so much on the temperament and disposition of the bodily organs that, if it is possible to find a means of rendering men wiser an..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0c/ren-descartes-1376_descartes_for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temp_384590.jpg" --- # For the mind depends so much on the temperament and… ![“For the mind depends so much on the temperament and disposition of the bodily organs that, if it is possible to find a means of rendering men wiser and cleverer than they have hitherto been, I believe that it is in medicine that it must be sought. It is true that the medicine which is now in vogue…” quote by René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0c/ren-descartes-1376_descartes_for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temp_384590.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0c/ren-descartes-1376_descartes_for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temp_384590.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0c/ren-descartes-1376_descartes_for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temp_384590.jpg) > ““For the mind depends so much on the temperament and disposition of the bodily organs that, if it is possible to find a means of rendering men wiser and cleverer than they have hitherto been, I believe that it is in medicine that it must be sought. It is true that the medicine which is now in vogue contains little of which the utility is remarkable; but, without having any intention of decrying it, I am sure that there is no one, even among those who make its study a profession, who does not confess that all that men know is almost nothing in comparison with what remains to be known; and that we could be free of an infinitude of maladies both of body and mind, and even also possibly of the infirmities of age, if we had sufficient knowledge of their causes, and of all the remedies with which nature has provided us.”” [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Understanding bodily causes can improve mental and physical health, suggesting medicine should seek deeper knowledge. **In simple terms:** Better health through deeper medical knowledge. Key Takeaway Support research into causes and cures. Themes health knowledge medicine Mood analytical hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - public health policy - medical research - personal wellness Key Concepts biology philosophy science Questions to Reflect On - What medical mysteries intrigue you? - How can society fund deeper health research? A Different Perspective Complex causes may be hard to isolate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body And Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-and-mind/) [Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/descartes/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [Even the mind depends so much on temperament and the disposition of one's bodily organs that, if it is possible to find a way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/even-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-temperament-and-the-disposition-of/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [I can't understand why most people believe in medicine and don't believe in art, without questioning either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-hirst/i-can-t-understand-why-most-people-believe-in-medicine-and-don-t/) [Damien Hirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-hirst/) > [There is something to astrology for those who believe in astrology, as there is something to medicine for those who believe in medicine. Every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bach/there-is-something-to-astrology-for-those-who-believe-in-astrology-as/) [Richard Bach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bach/) > [“In the end, you have to do what's right. There's a higher good, always, to be found. You have to find it, that's all.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-rose-maccoll/in-the-end-you-have-to-do-what-s-right-there-s-a-higher-good-always/) [Mary-Rose MacColl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-rose-maccoll/) > [“For, medicine being a compendium of the successive and contradictory mistakes of medical practitioners, when we summon the wisest of them to our aid,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/for-medicine-being-a-compendium-of-the-successive-and-contradictory/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“Beauty lies in one’s heart and sex lies in one mind. It all depends on where your belief lies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravindra-shukla/beauty-lies-in-one-s-heart-and-sex-lies-in-one-mind-it-all-depends-on/) [Ravindra Shukla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravindra-shukla/) > [A prison is confining to the body, but whether it affects the mind, depends entirely upon the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/a-prison-is-confining-to-the-body-but-whether-it-affects-the-mind/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [“All sorts of thoughts cross one's mind—it depends upon whether one gives them harbour and encouragement”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/all-sorts-of-thoughts-cross-one-s-mind-it-depends-upon-whether-one/) [Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/) > [Happiness is a state of mind, and depends very little on outward circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/happiness-is-a-state-of-mind-and-depends-very-little-on-outward/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Happiness is the state of mind, and it depends on one's attitude toward life, not on what one has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pacifiersucker/happiness-is-the-state-of-mind-and-it-depends-on-one-s-attitude/) Pacifiersucker > [“the quality of your mind depends on the quality of your thought”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/okorie-deborah/the-quality-of-your-mind-depends-on-the-quality-of-your-thought/) okorie deborah > [The superiority of one mind over another depends on the rapidity with which experiences are thus organised.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/the-superiority-of-one-mind-over-another-depends-on-the-rapidity-with/) [George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/) > [“I am the scalpel that cuts out infection, and the heartbreak that makes men wiser.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-r-green/i-am-the-scalpel-that-cuts-out-infection-and-the-heartbreak-that/) [Simon R. Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-r-green/) > [“David was caught in a very uncomfortable position; however, he seemed to grasp a deep understanding of the unfolding drama in which he had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-edwards/david-was-caught-in-a-very-uncomfortable-position-however-he-seemed/) [Gene Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-edwards/) > [“Men wiser and more learned than I have discerned in history a plot, a rhythm, a predetermined pattern. These harmonies are concealed from me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/men-wiser-and-more-learned-than-i-have-discerned-in-history-a-plot-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by René Descartes > [“My third maxim was to endeavour always to conquer myself rather than fortune, and change my desires rather than the order of the world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/my-third-maxim-was-to-endeavour-always-to-conquer-myself-rather-than/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Your joy is your sorrow unmasked. And the self-same well from which your laughter rises was often-times filled with your tears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/your-joy-is-your-sorrow-unmasked-and-the-self-same-well-from-which/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [So blind is the curiosity by which mortals are possessed, that they often conduct their minds along unexplored routes, having no reason to hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/so-blind-is-the-curiosity-by-which-mortals-are-possessed-that-they/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [“For to be possessed of a vigorous mind is not enough; the prime requisite is rightly to apply it. The greatest minds, as they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/for-to-be-possessed-of-a-vigorous-mind-is-not-enough-the-prime/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [“It is useful to know something of the manners of different nations, that we may be enabled to form a more correct judgment regarding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/it-is-useful-to-know-something-of-the-manners-of-different-nations/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [A state is better governed which has few laws, and those laws strictly observed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/a-state-is-better-governed-which-has-few-laws-and-those-laws-strictly/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [ \[About Pierre de Fermat\] It cannot be denied that he has had many exceptional ideas, and that he is a highly intelligent man. For… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/about-pierre-de-fermat-it-cannot-be-denied-that-he-has-had-many/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Science is practical philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/science-is-practical-philosophy/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [ “And what more am I? I look for aid to the imagination. \[But how mistakenly!\] I am not that assemblage of limbs we call… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/and-what-more-am-i-i-look-for-aid-to-the-imagination-but-how/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [“And, in fine, of false sciences I thought I knew the worth sufficiently to escape being deceived by the professions of an alchemist, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/and-in-fine-of-false-sciences-i-thought-i-knew-the-worth-sufficiently/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Nothing is more fairly distributed than common sense: no one thinks he needs more of it than he already has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/nothing-is-more-fairly-distributed-than-common-sense-no-one-thinks-he/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [If I go for the alternative which is false, then obviously I shall be in error; if I take the other side, then it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/if-i-go-for-the-alternative-which-is-false-then-obviously-i-shall-be/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Everything is self-evident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/everything-is-self-evident/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Neither the true nor the false roots are always real; sometimes they are imaginary; that is, while we can always imagine as many roots…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/neither-the-true-nor-the-false-roots-are-always-real-sometimes-they/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [It is only intelligence that is divided equally between people because everybody thinks he/she is enough wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/it-is-only-intelligence-that-is-divided-equally-between-people/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) [Explore all 232 René Descartes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) ## More Descartes quotes > [It may be said that the conceptions of differential quotient and integral, which in their origin certainly go back to Archimedes, were introduced into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophus-lie/it-may-be-said-that-the-conceptions-of-differential-quotient-and/) Sophus Lie > [It is actually a nice question how far Descartes himself endorses the monological and metaphysically dualistic theory of mind associated with his name and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-w-wood/it-is-actually-a-nice-question-how-far-descartes-himself-endorses-the/) [Allen W. Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-w-wood/) > [“Descartes gave sight to the blind. These saw the errors of antiquity and of the sciences. The path he struck out is since become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/descartes-gave-sight-to-the-blind-these-saw-the-errors-of-antiquity/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“Starting from Descartes’ commitment to a few absolutely certain innate ideas and reason’s ability to determine some facts about reality a priori, Leibniz ended…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-braver/starting-from-descartes-commitment-to-a-few-absolutely-certain-innate/) [Lee Braver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-braver/) > [Descartes's epistemology is a special case of Aristotle's virtue ethics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-sosa/descartes-s-epistemology-is-a-special-case-of-aristotle-s-virtue/) [Ernest Sosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-sosa/) > [Perhaps people need to understand some history here. Rene Descartes, in the late 16th, early 17th century, postulated that body, mind, physicality and spirituality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/perhaps-people-need-to-understand-some-history-here-rene-descartes-in/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [“Agnosticism, in fact, is not a creed, but a method, the essence of which lies in the rigorous application of a single principle. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-henry-huxley/agnosticism-in-fact-is-not-a-creed-but-a-method-the-essence-of-which-2/) [Thomas Henry Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-henry-huxley/) > [Descartes is rightly regarded as the father of modern philosophy primarily and generally because he helped the faculty of reason to stand on its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/descartes-is-rightly-regarded-as-the-father-of-modern-philosophy/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [“Descartes walks into a bar, and the bartender asks "Would you like a beer?" Descartes replies, "I think not" and poof! he vanishes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/various/descartes-walks-into-a-bar-and-the-bartender-asks-would-you-like-a/) Various > [“Descartes had somehow managed to use skepticism in service of orthodoxy; he preserved crucial shards of church doctrine—the immortal soul, for starters—while buying intellectual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-foer/descartes-had-somehow-managed-to-use-skepticism-in-service-of/) [Franklin Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-foer/) > [“logic limits love, which may be why Descartes never married.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/logic-limits-love-which-may-be-why-descartes-never-married/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [For someone who claimed to have found the true method for seeking reliable knowledge, it is remarkable how wrong Descartes was about so many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-weinberg/for-someone-who-claimed-to-have-found-the-true-method-for-seeking/) [Steven Weinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-weinberg/) > [A long time ago, Descartes sad, “I think, therefore I am.” But if you are not thinking, what?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seungsahn/a-long-time-ago-descartes-sad-i-think-therefore-i-am-but-if-you-are/) [Seungsahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seungsahn/) > [To do is to be. -Descartes To be is to do. - Voltaire Do be do be do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-sinatra/to-do-is-to-be-descartes-to-be-is-to-do-voltaire-do-be-do-be-do/) [Frank Sinatra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-sinatra/) > [“If the people of Europe had known as much of astronomy and geology when the bible was introduced among them, as they do now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-g-ingersoll/if-the-people-of-europe-had-known-as-much-of-astronomy-and-geology/) [Robert G. Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-g-ingersoll/) [Browse all 80 Descartes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/descartes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“For the mind depends so much on the temperament and disposition of the bodily organs that, if it is possible to find a means of rendering men wiser and cleverer than they have hitherto been, I believe that it is in medicine that it must be sought. It is true that the medicine which is now in vogue contains little of which the utility is remarkable; but, without having any intention of decrying it, I am sure that there is no one, even among those who make its study a profession, who does not confess that all that men know is almost nothing in comparison with what remains to be known; and that we could be free of an infinitude of maladies both of body and mind, and even also possibly of the infirmities of age, if we had sufficient knowledge of their causes, and of all the remedies with which nature has provided us.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "René Descartes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temperament-and-disposition-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Descartes" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temperament-and-disposition-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0c/ren-descartes-1376_descartes_for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temp_384590.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0c/ren-descartes-1376_descartes_for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temp_384590.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0c/ren-descartes-1376_descartes_for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temp_384590.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For the mind depends so much on the temperament and disposition of the bodily organs that, if it is possible…” — René Descartes", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "René Descartes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“For the mind depends so much...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temperament-and-disposition-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/for-the-mind-depends-so-much-on-the-temperament-and-disposition-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```