--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ... those people who believe in previous…" description: "\"“... those people who believe in previous lives always think they were dukes or queens or something, ignoring the fact that most people back then spent..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/tad-williams-2777_old-age_those-people-who-believe-in-previous-liv_213280.jpg" --- # ... those people who believe in previous lives always… ![“... those people who believe in previous lives always think they were dukes or queens or something, ignoring the fact that most people back then spent their whole lives up to their knees in shit before dying of toothless old age at thirty.” quote by Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/tad-williams-2777_old-age_those-people-who-believe-in-previous-liv_213280.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/tad-williams-2777_old-age_those-people-who-believe-in-previous-liv_213280.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/tad-williams-2777_old-age_those-people-who-believe-in-previous-liv_213280.jpg) > ““... those people who believe in previous lives always think they were dukes or queens or something, ignoring the fact that most people back then spent their whole lives up to their knees in shit before dying of toothless old age at thirty.”” [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People who claim past lives often imagine noble status, ignoring harsh historical realities. **In simple terms:** Past‑life claims can be self‑deluding. Key Takeaway Seek humility and evidence over fantasy. Themes history ego humility Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical historical When to use this quote - genealogy research - historical study - personal identity Key Concepts Reincarnation belief social status Questions to Reflect On - Why do we idealize ancestors? - How does acknowledging past hardships affect our self‑view? A Different Perspective Romanticizing the past can distort present understanding. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Old age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-age/) ## Related quotes > [I believe in previous lives and the Muse—and that books and music exist before they are written and that they are propelled into material…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pressfield/i-believe-in-previous-lives-and-the-muse-and-that-books-and-music/) [Steven Pressfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pressfield/) > [I'm just into spirituality. I believe that in a previous life I used to be Shirley MacLaine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roseanne-barr/i-m-just-into-spirituality-i-believe-that-in-a-previous-life-i-used/) [Roseanne Barr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roseanne-barr/) > [Until we find out who was born this time around, it seems irrelevant to seek earlier identities. I have heard many people speak of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/until-we-find-out-who-was-born-this-time-around-it-seems-irrelevant/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [I find it very, very hard. He was part of the fabric of my life. We were kids together, and teenagers. We spent the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-gibb/i-find-it-very-very-hard-he-was-part-of-the-fabric-of-my-life-we-were/) [Robin Gibb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-gibb/) > [I have found by experience that they who have spent all their lives in cities contract not only an effeminacy of habit, but of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/i-have-found-by-experience-that-they-who-have-spent-all-their-lives-2/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [“In my errant life I roamed to learn the secrets of women and men, of gods and dreams. I lived in wealth and poverty,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-payne/in-my-errant-life-i-roamed-to-learn-the-secrets-of-women-and-men-of-3/) [Roman Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-payne/) > [We spent our lives making livings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/we-spent-our-lives-making-livings/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [“But there was always work to be done. We spent our lives making livings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/but-there-was-always-work-to-be-done-we-spent-our-lives-making-livings/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [“It's the touching they both long for. The holding. 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Now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-mather/people-spent-their-lives-searching-for-peace-by-chasing-idle-dreams/) [Matthew Mather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-mather/) > [A socialist is just someone who is unable to get over his or her astonishment that most people who have lived and died have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/a-socialist-is-just-someone-who-is-unable-to-get-over-his-or-her/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [Our suicidal poets (Plath, Berryman, Lowell, Jarrell, et al.) spent too much of their lives inside rooms and classrooms when they should have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/our-suicidal-poets-plath-berryman-lowell-jarrell-et-al-spent-too-much/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [By the nature of the sport and the danger we face daily, we are very close knit. Some of us have spent most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-mccoy/by-the-nature-of-the-sport-and-the-danger-we-face-daily-we-are-very/) [Tony McCoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-mccoy/) > [I have two brothers and we basically spent our lives playing in the woods, falling in ponds, getting chased by wasps and riding donkeys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-brand/i-have-two-brothers-and-we-basically-spent-our-lives-playing-in-the/) [Jo Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-brand/) > [Not only can I not recall my experiences in my previous lives, sometimes I can't even remember what I did yesterday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/not-only-can-i-not-recall-my-experiences-in-my-previous-lives/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) ## More by Tad Williams > [“That is what I hate about ruling and royalty, Simon. It is living, breathing people with whom a prince plays the games of statecraft.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/that-is-what-i-hate-about-ruling-and-royalty-simon-it-is-living/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“If we do not reach our hands will always be empty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/if-we-do-not-reach-our-hands-will-always-be-empty/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Im Schlamm fing es an, wie so vieles.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/im-schlamm-fing-es-an-wie-so-vieles/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“I'm tired of being lost and I'm tired of dying, so I'm going to try something different this time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/i-m-tired-of-being-lost-and-i-m-tired-of-dying-so-i-m-going-to-try/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“A piece of writing is a trap,” he said cheerily, “and the best kind. A book, you see, is the only kind of trap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/a-piece-of-writing-is-a-trap-he-said-cheerily-and-the-best-kind-a/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“He shouldn't have had to die." "Nobody should have to die," Miriamele said slowly. "Especially while they're still alive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/he-shouldn-t-have-had-to-die-nobody-should-have-to-die-miriamele-said/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Fear goes where it is invited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/fear-goes-where-it-is-invited/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Because love does not do sums, but instead make choices, and then gives its all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/because-love-does-not-do-sums-but-instead-make-choices-and-then-gives/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [So we face our final hours...and all that was once certain has become uncertain. Except for defeat. That, as always, is the end of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/so-we-face-our-final-hours-and-all-that-was-once-certain-has-become/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Go down." It seemed obvious. "You have to go down before you can come out - that's how these things always work.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/go-down-it-seemed-obvious-you-have-to-go-down-before-you-can-come-out/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“We call darkness our friend, but when the elders tell us stories of the Garden, they talk of the holy, unending light that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/we-call-darkness-our-friend-but-when-the-elders-tell-us-stories-of/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [Never trust people that like to call things by initials, that's my philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/never-trust-people-that-like-to-call-things-by-initials-that-s-my/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [We tell lies when we are afraid... afraid of what we don't know, afraid of what others will think, afraid of what will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/we-tell-lies-when-we-are-afraid-afraid-of-what-we-don-t-know-afraid/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“How can you care for a rough man like me?' he asked me. 'How can you love a man who can bring you no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/how-can-you-care-for-a-rough-man-like-me-he-asked-me-how-can-you-love/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Piercing My Hearte there is A Golden Dagger; That is God Piercing God's Hearte there is a Golden Needle; That is me”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/piercing-my-hearte-there-is-a-golden-dagger-that-is-god-piercing-god/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) [Explore all 143 Tad Williams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) ## More Old age quotes > [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [“So Mack got kind of a late start in the startup world—he founded TakeOff at the ripe old age of twenty-five”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doree-shafrir/so-mack-got-kind-of-a-late-start-in-the-startup-world-he-founded/) [Doree Shafrir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doree-shafrir/) > [“Fear of seeing a police car pull into the drive. Fear of falling asleep at night. Fear of not falling asleep. Fear of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-carver/fear-of-seeing-a-police-car-pull-into-the-drive-fear-of-falling/) [Raymond Carver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-carver/) > [“Exactly. I think the original tantric Buddhists took notice of was some very wise old people who never studied in their youth, but took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-niemczura/exactly-i-think-the-original-tantric-buddhists-took-notice-of-was/) [Joe Niemczura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-niemczura/) > [“Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess: Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prayer-of-an-anonymous-abbess-lord-thou-knowest-better-than-myself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Cast me not off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength faileth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bible/cast-me-not-off-in-the-time-of-old-age-forsake-me-not-when-my/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bible/) > [“Give someone more time and they'll appear to have done more with it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/give-someone-more-time-and-they-ll-appear-to-have-done-more-with-it/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [Relish love in your old age! Aged love is like aged wine; it becomes more satisfying, more refreshing, more valuable, more appreciated and more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-buscaglia/relish-love-in-your-old-age-aged-love-is-like-aged-wine-it-becomes/) [Leo Buscaglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-buscaglia/) > [In old age our bodies are worn-out instruments, on which the soul tries in vain to play the melodies of youth. But because the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/in-old-age-our-bodies-are-worn-out-instruments-on-which-the-soul/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [“I’m determined to be a big spender in my old age. I want to empty my savings account before I no longer know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hendrik-groen/i-m-determined-to-be-a-big-spender-in-my-old-age-i-want-to-empty-my/) [Hendrik Groen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hendrik-groen/) > [People do not realize that Alzheimer's is not old age. It is a progressive and fatal disease, and staggering amounts of people develop Alzheimer's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melina-kanakaredes/people-do-not-realize-that-alzheimer-s-is-not-old-age-it-is-a/) [Melina Kanakaredes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melina-kanakaredes/) > [“ Wisdom comes through suffering or old age. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lesley-pearse/wisdom-comes-through-suffering-or-old-age/) [Lesley Pearse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lesley-pearse/) > [I’m 59 and people call me middle aged. How many 118 year old men do you know?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-cryer/i-m-59-and-people-call-me-middle-aged-how-many-118-year-old-men-do/) [Barry Cryer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-cryer/) > [“What creature goes on four feet in the morning, on two at noonday, on three in the evening? Man. In childhood he creeps on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oedipus/what-creature-goes-on-four-feet-in-the-morning-on-two-at-noonday-on/) Oedipus > [Old age is not a total misery. Experience helps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euripides/old-age-is-not-a-total-misery-experience-helps/) [Euripides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euripides/) [Browse all 2,109 Old age quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-age/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“... those people who believe in previous lives always think they were dukes or queens or something, ignoring the fact that most people back then spent their whole lives up to their knees in shit before dying of toothless old age at thirty.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tad Williams" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/those-people-who-believe-in-previous-lives-always-think-they-were/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Old age" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/those-people-who-believe-in-previous-lives-always-think-they-were/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/tad-williams-2777_old-age_those-people-who-believe-in-previous-liv_213280.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/tad-williams-2777_old-age_those-people-who-believe-in-previous-liv_213280.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/tad-williams-2777_old-age_those-people-who-believe-in-previous-liv_213280.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“... those people who believe in previous lives always think they were dukes or queens or something, ignoring…” — Tad Williams", "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": "Tad Williams", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“... those people who believe in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/those-people-who-believe-in-previous-lives-always-think-they-were/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/those-people-who-believe-in-previous-lives-always-think-they-were/#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 } } ] } ```