There are numerous anticipations. One often pointed to is in
انسلم: his phrase
quia Deus nihil sine ratione facit[۱] and the formulation of the
ontological argument for the existence of God. A clearer connection is with the
cosmological argument for the existence of God. The principle can be seen in both
توماس آکویناس and
ویلیام اکام. Leibniz formulated it, but was not an originator. See chapter on Leibniz and Spinoza in
A. O. Lovejoy,
The Great Chain of Being.
