What Descartes actually meant

Many a time I come across Rene Descartes’ famous quote: I think therefore I am. People often use it to make a statement, something like, “I exist because I think,” which is totally wrong, or if it not wrong, it is way off the true meaning.

I think therefore I am is an existential thought. It’s about the existence of the consciousness that makes us aware of ourselves. For instance, I only go as far as my awareness of myself, hence, I think therefore I am.. If I’m not aware of my existence, I don’t exist. The awareness of my being, my self-awareness of my being makes me exist as an individual.

In fact this thought, about the awareness of the self, has tormented countless philosophers and the conundrum got copious attention in the late 18th century and through the 19th century. I haven’t delved much into this subject. I’ve got a book by Sartre gifted to me by my sister titled: Being and Nothingness; but with my current knowledge of the subject, I found the book extremely hard to comprehend and if I remember correctly, I couldn’t even go beyond 10 pages.