 I shall refer to this general rule the ‘C&amp;D Rule’. Though interpretations differ, the context of the passage indicates the rule is treated as provisional – i.e., further work will be needed before the rule can be regarded as finally established. On two counts, the announcement of the rule is carefully tinged with caution, in anticipation of the revelation to come (two paragraphs later) that even clearly and distinctly perceived matters are vulnerable to the Evil Genius Doubt. First, the passage notes that being clearly and distinctly perceived “would not be enough to make me certain of the truth of the matter,” if the truth of such matters could be undermined. Second, the announcement includes an important qualification, in saying that it does “now seem” (videor) that this is a justified rule. Because it soon emerges that the Evil Genius Doubt undermines the veracity of the rule, Descartes assumes the burden of trying to establish the rule – a proof he takes to occur not in this early Third Meditation passage, but only later, after having argued for an all-perfect God: “in the Fourth Meditation it is proved that everything that we clearly and distinctly perceive is true” (Synopsis, AT 7:15, CSM 2:11).  (Section 5.3  discusses Descartes’ Fourth Meditation argument for the C&amp;D Rule.)