--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When we read history we find that in all…" description: "\"When we read history we find that in all ages people have thought, this is the dark age.\" — Tenzin Palmo" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d1/tenzin-palmo-1431_age_when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all_887347.png" --- # When we read history we find that in all ages people have… ![“When we read history we find that in all ages people have thought, this is the dark age.” quote by Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d1/tenzin-palmo-1431_age_when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all_887347.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d1/tenzin-palmo-1431_age_when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all_887347.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d1/tenzin-palmo-1431_age_when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all_887347.png) > “When we read history we find that in all ages people have thought, this is the dark age.” [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People always view their era as the darkest, reflecting a timeless pattern of pessimism. **In simple terms:** Every generation thinks its time is the worst. Key Takeaway Recognize that pessimism is a common human bias. Themes history perception optimism Mood thoughtful reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - Political unrest - technological change - cultural shifts - personal crises Key Concepts Cognitive bias historical relativism Questions to Reflect On - Why do we label our era as a dark age? - How can we shift perspective to see progress? A Different Perspective Sometimes periods are genuinely challenging, not just perceived as such. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Ages People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ages-people-430065/) [Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) [Dark Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-age-457264/) [Dark ages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-ages/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [History Ages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history-ages-1112122/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-thought/) [Thought Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-dark-1112123/) ## Related quotes > [People do stop me a lot, and what is really very rewarding is that the ages of the people who stop me vary so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-mcewan/people-do-stop-me-a-lot-and-what-is-really-very-rewarding-is-that-the/) [Geraldine McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-mcewan/) > [I do not think much of ages. People are people. What does it matter how old or young they are? It is a category,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/i-do-not-think-much-of-ages-people-are-people-what-does-it-matter-how/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [A Dark Age is not just a period in which people no longer know how to do things. The real key is that people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-pournelle/a-dark-age-is-not-just-a-period-in-which-people-no-longer-know-how-to/) [Jerry Pournelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-pournelle/) > [The world is entering another dark age. After 1985, the Maya will be so thick that it will be difficult to advance spiritually without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-world-is-entering-another-dark-age-after-1985-the-maya-will-be-so/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Here in Europe they had a Dark Age so extensive, radical and obliterative that everyone forgot how to speak Latin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-sterling/here-in-europe-they-had-a-dark-age-so-extensive-radical-and/) [Bruce Sterling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-sterling/) > [Someday our piecing together of knowledge will open up such terrifying vistas we shall either go mad or flee into the safety of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/someday-our-piecing-together-of-knowledge-will-open-up-such/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [ \[Should Britain fail, then the entire world would\] sink into the abyss of a new dark age made more sinister ... by the lights… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/should-britain-fail-then-the-entire-world-would-sink-into-the-abyss/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [The definition of a Dark Age is that we no longer remember what we once could do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-pournelle/the-definition-of-a-dark-age-is-that-we-no-longer-remember-what-we/) [Jerry Pournelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-pournelle/) > [It is possible, I suppose, that we are returning to a Dark Age. What is frightening is that violence is not only represented by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/it-is-possible-i-suppose-that-we-are-returning-to-a-dark-age-what-is/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Once Europe existed in a Dark Age and Islam carried the torch of learning. Now we Muslims live in a Dark age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmud-tarzi/once-europe-existed-in-a-dark-age-and-islam-carried-the-torch-of/) [Mahmud Tarzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmud-tarzi/) > [A Tibetan Lama said to me, "The best place to stand, Ram Dass, is halfway between hope and hopelessness." So I can write a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/a-tibetan-lama-said-to-me-the-best-place-to-stand-ram-dass-is-halfway/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [For the pre-Darwinian age had come to be regarded as a Dark Age in which men still believed that the book of Genesis was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/for-the-pre-darwinian-age-had-come-to-be-regarded-as-a-dark-age-in/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [We're living in a Dark Age of macroeconomics. Remember, what defined the Dark Ages wasn’t the fact that they were primitive — the Bronze…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-krugman/we-re-living-in-a-dark-age-of-macroeconomics-remember-what-defined/) [Paul Krugman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-krugman/) > [Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this island or lose the war. If we can stand up to him, all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/hitler-knows-that-he-will-have-to-break-us-in-this-island-or-lose-the/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [Until now in world's history, whenever we've had a dark age, its been temporary and local. And other parts of the world have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/until-now-in-world-s-history-whenever-we-ve-had-a-dark-age-its-been/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) ## More by Tenzin Palmo > [All of us are playing roles, and there's nothing wrong with playing roles because we have to live in this world - the problem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/all-of-us-are-playing-roles-and-there-s-nothing-wrong-with-playing/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [The very best players, when they are practicing, put everything they've got into it. But then they leave it for a while. And it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/the-very-best-players-when-they-are-practicing-put-everything-they-ve/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [I really don't know what I could teach and don't really plan to teach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/i-really-don-t-know-what-i-could-teach-and-don-t-really-plan-to-teach/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [If you go to any nunnery and ask them what the main obstacle is, they'll always say low self-esteem and lack of confidence. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/if-you-go-to-any-nunnery-and-ask-them-what-the-main-obstacle-is-they/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [To really be of benefit to others as the Buddha always taught, we ourselves must first get out of the swamp. 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One has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/for-any-practice-to-work-the-mind-which-is-meditating-on-the-object/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [I've often said that the seventh paramita should be a sense of humor, so we don't take ourselves too seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/i-ve-often-said-that-the-seventh-paramita-should-be-a-sense-of-humor/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [If you take the time to study how to be a doctor and how to use your scalpel and your medicine, then there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/if-you-take-the-time-to-study-how-to-be-a-doctor-and-how-to-use-your/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [If we want to be musicians, dancers or sportspeople, we can download a certain amount and watch DVDs and read books, but in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/if-we-want-to-be-musicians-dancers-or-sportspeople-we-can-download-a/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [Realization is wonderful, but you have to expand it until there's not a single defilement left in the mind and the mind is completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/realization-is-wonderful-but-you-have-to-expand-it-until-there-s-not/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [It's not a matter of how much you know or can define, or how many millions of mantras or thousands of prostrations you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/it-s-not-a-matter-of-how-much-you-know-or-can-define-or-how-many/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [We have compassion because of the incredible pain and suffering which we as unenlightened beings cause to ourselves and all others through our ignorance.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/we-have-compassion-because-of-the-incredible-pain-and-suffering-which/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [When I look back I can think that of course I've been lazy and haven't practiced as much as I could have and have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/when-i-look-back-i-can-think-that-of-course-i-ve-been-lazy-and-haven/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [We do have the precious opportunity of this human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/we-do-have-the-precious-opportunity-of-this-human-life/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [I think the problem with Western students is they're very ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/i-think-the-problem-with-western-students-is-they-re-very-ambitious/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) [Explore all 242 Tenzin Palmo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) ## More Age quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/) [Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/) > [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/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [When I first started writing, when I was 15, I would go to work with people and they would tell me my lyrics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-claudio/when-i-first-started-writing-when-i-was-15-i-would-go-to-work-with/) [Sabrina Claudio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-claudio/) > [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I am just enjoying the dream of being Milan coach at the age of 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-am-just-enjoying-the-dream-of-being-milan-coach-at-the-age-of-40/) [Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/) > [Age is an accumulation of life and loss. Adulthood is a series of lines crossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/age-is-an-accumulation-of-life-and-loss-adulthood-is-a-series-of/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [I calculated that if I live up to the age of 80, then I end up using 450 toothbrushes in my life. All that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-calculated-that-if-i-live-up-to-the-age-of-80-then-i-end-up-using/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? 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That was a hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-kaulitz/we-have-started-to-make-music-at-age-seven-that-was-a-hard-work/) [Bill Kaulitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-kaulitz/) [Browse all 18,948 Age quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When we read history we find that in all ages people have thought, this is the dark age.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tenzin Palmo" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all-ages-people-have-thought/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Age" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all-ages-people-have-thought/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d1/tenzin-palmo-1431_age_when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all_887347.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d1/tenzin-palmo-1431_age_when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all_887347.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d1/tenzin-palmo-1431_age_when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all_887347.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When we read history we find that in all ages people have thought, this is the dark age.” — Tenzin Palmo", "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": "Tenzin Palmo", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When we read history we find...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all-ages-people-have-thought/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/when-we-read-history-we-find-that-in-all-ages-people-have-thought/#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 } } ] } ```