Tapping Into the Zen of Python: Reading the Poem & Understanding the History @realpython
Tapping Into the Zen of Python: Reading the Poem & Understanding the History  @realpython
Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
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This is a preview of the video course, "Tapping Into the Zen of Python". The Zen of Python is a collection of 19 aphorisms that capture the guiding principles behind Python’s design. You can display them anytime by running import this in a Python REPL. Tim Peters wrote them in 1999 as a joke, but they became an iconic part of Python culture that was even formalized as PEP 20.

This is a portion of the complete course, which you can find here: realpython.com/courses/tapping-into-the-zen-of-python

And the original text tutorial is here: realpython.com/zen-of-python

The rest of the course covers:
- Demonstrating Practical Advice
- Exercise: Flat Is Better Than Nested
- Exploring Contradictions and Balance
- Embracing the Jokes
- Does Python Itself Follow the Advice
- Tapping Into the Zen of Python (Quiz)



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Tapping Into the Zen of Python: Reading the Poem & Understanding the History

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