proverb · Legacy record
Looking at a king’s mouth, one would never think he sucked his mother’s breast.
Looking at a king’s mouth, one would never think he sucked his mother’s breast.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
A king’s mouth not suggesting infancy contrasts an imposing present role with an ordinary earlier dependence. The saying recalls a shared human beginning beneath status.
What the words are saying
The rhetorical image does not erase different childhood experiences or require a literal account of every person’s feeding. A useful interpretation questions grandeur being mistaken for a different kind of humanity. Past dependence is not shameful and should not become a reason to mock anyone.
Everyday example
A reader recognises ordinary human needs beneath a prestigious role without using childhood to humiliate its holder.
When to use it
Use it to question status distance while preserving dignity.
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What it does not mean
No universal infancy account or inferiority from dependence is established.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
Nigeria
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin.- Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided wisdom reference (2014 AD)
Supplied reference B; unit 664; PDF page 60; collection label: Nigeria
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- Nigeria
