Which innate ideas did Cartesianism identify as most important?

In Cartesianism, innate ideas are concepts considered to be inborn in the human mind rather than derived from sensory experience. René Descartes identified the most important of these as the ideas of mind, matter, and God.123

• Mind: Descartes defined the mind (or soul) as a mental substance whose essence is self-conscious thinking.43
• Matter: He defined matter as a material substance whose essence is extension in three dimensions.23
• God: Descartes posited the idea of God as a perfect, infinite being. He argued that because humans are finite, they could not generate the idea of an infinite being on their own; therefore, God must exist as the cause of this innate idea.43

These ideas serve as the foundation for Cartesian rationalism, allowing for the establishment of certain knowledge through reason without relying on fallible sensory input. By contemplating these clear and distinct ideas, Cartesians sought to establish metaphysical foundations for the existence of the self, the material world, and the divine.43