--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Curse not the king, no not in thy…" description: "\"Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber, for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/doris-lessing-501_air_curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought_3028456.jpg" --- # Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not… ![“Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber, for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.” quote by Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/doris-lessing-501_air_curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought_3028456.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/doris-lessing-501_air_curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought_3028456.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/doris-lessing-501_air_curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought_3028456.jpg) > “Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber, for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.” [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Cursing others invites negative energy; the truth will be revealed by natural forces regardless of spoken malice. **In simple terms:** Avoid curses; truth emerges naturally. Key Takeaway Speak kindly, avoid malice. Themes ethics truth karma communication Mood reflective serious thoughtful Type literary ethical When to use this quote - interpersonal conflict - public discourse - media criticism - personal relationships Key Concepts moral philosophy social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - What positive language can replace curses? - How does truth surface despite negative speech? A Different Perspective Curses may reflect deeper resentment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Air](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air/) [Bedchamber Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bedchamber-bird-4935884/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible/) [Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) [Curse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curse/) [Ecclesiastes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ecclesiastes/) [Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kings/) [Matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matter/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Thought Curse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-curse-1126826/) [Thy Bedchamber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thy-bedchamber-4935885/) [Voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voice/) [Wings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wings/) [Wings Shall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wings-shall-1410879/) ## Related quotes > [“You probably thought that curse was the cleverest thing ever, didn’t you?” His lips turned down as he tried not to smile. “It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiersten-white/you-probably-thought-that-curse-was-the-cleverest-thing-ever-didn-t/) [Kiersten White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiersten-white/) > [“How many dawns, chill from his rippling rest The seagull’s wings shall dip and pivot him, Shedding white rings of tumult, building high Over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hart-crane/how-many-dawns-chill-from-his-rippling-rest-the-seagull-s-wings-shall/) [Hart Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hart-crane/) > [The birth of a child is the imprisonment of a soul. The soul must work its way out of prison, and, in doing so,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gilmore-simms/the-birth-of-a-child-is-the-imprisonment-of-a-soul-the-soul-must-work/) [William Gilmore Simms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gilmore-simms/) > [All things come alike to all; there is one event to the righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/all-things-come-alike-to-all-there-is-one-event-to-the-righteous-and/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [No Ideas original - there is nothing new under the sun...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/no-ideas-original-there-is-nothing-new-under-the-sun/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [“Live in such a way that even if given another opportunity to live your life all over again, you would still choose to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-b-girao/live-in-such-a-way-that-even-if-given-another-opportunity-to-live/) [William B. Girao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-b-girao/) > [“Oh, you who are! "Ecclesiastes calls you the All-powerful; the Maccabees call you the Creator; the Epistle to the Ephesians calls you liberty; Baruch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/oh-you-who-are-ecclesiastes-calls-you-the-all-powerful-the-maccabees/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“I have thought deeply about all that goes on here under the sun, where people have the power to hurt each other. —Ecclesiastes 8:9      ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-seraphs/i-have-thought-deeply-about-all-that-goes-on-here-under-the-sun-where/) [Marc Seraphs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-seraphs/) > [As Ecclesiastes tells it, a wholesale devotion to pleasure will, paradoxically, lead to a state of utter despair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/as-ecclesiastes-tells-it-a-wholesale-devotion-to-pleasure-will/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-gaines/i-know-that-there-is-nothing-better-for-people-than-to-be-happy-and/) [Chip Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-gaines/) > [There is a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon/there-is-a-time-to-weep-and-a-time-to-laugh-a-time-to-mourn-and-a/) [Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon/) > [A good name is better than precious ointment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon/a-good-name-is-better-than-precious-ointment/) [Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon/) > [“A time to be born, and a time to die; A time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/a-time-to-be-born-and-a-time-to-die-a-time-to-plant-and-a-time-to/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“The point which we consider it our duty to note is, that outside of and beyond his faith, as it were, the Bishop possessed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/the-point-which-we-consider-it-our-duty-to-note-is-that-outside-of/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“He has made everything beautiful in its time. Ecclesiastes 3: 11a”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-rae-jordan/he-has-made-everything-beautiful-in-its-time-ecclesiastes-3-11a/) [Kimberly Rae Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-rae-jordan/) ## More by Doris Lessing > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“In the morning, when she wishes me to wake, she crouches on my chest, and pats my face with her paw. Or, if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/in-the-morning-when-she-wishes-me-to-wake-she-crouches-on-my-chest/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [You know, whenever women make imaginary female kingdoms in literature, they are always very permissive, to use the jargon word, and easy and generous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/you-know-whenever-women-make-imaginary-female-kingdoms-in-literature/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [There is only one real sin and that is to persuade oneself that the second best is anything but second best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/there-is-only-one-real-sin-and-that-is-to-persuade-oneself-that-the/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“She was using the water as she had used the fruit earlier—to calm herself, to assure herself of the possibility of normality. Yet all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/she-was-using-the-water-as-she-had-used-the-fruit-earlier-to-calm/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [I remember World War II when there were very few books, very little paper available. For me to walk into a shop or look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/i-remember-world-war-ii-when-there-were-very-few-books-very-little/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [They can't give a Nobel to someone who's dead so I think they were probably thinking they had better give it to me now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/they-can-t-give-a-nobel-to-someone-who-s-dead-so-i-think-they-were/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“While she strode rapidly through the ward to the door at the other end, she was able to see that every bed or cot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/while-she-strode-rapidly-through-the-ward-to-the-door-at-the-other/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [I do not think that marriage is one of my talents. I've been much happier unmarried than married.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/i-do-not-think-that-marriage-is-one-of-my-talents-i-ve-been-much/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [I haven't got the energy to write now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/i-haven-t-got-the-energy-to-write-now/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [What really fascinates me is this need that is so strong now that if you read a work of the imagination you instantly have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/what-really-fascinates-me-is-this-need-that-is-so-strong-now-that-if/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“The charge that the United Nations are using bacteriological warfare in Korea cannot be dismissed merely because it would be insane.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/the-charge-that-the-united-nations-are-using-bacteriological-warfare/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [What I did have, which others perhaps didn't, was a capacity for sticking at it, which really is the point, not the talent at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/what-i-did-have-which-others-perhaps-didn-t-was-a-capacity-for/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [The human community is evolving... . We can survive anything you care to mention. We are supremely equipped to survive, to adapt and even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/the-human-community-is-evolving-we-can-survive-anything-you-care-to/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [So love is rest? The cosy corner? The little nook? Sometimes it ought to be. Sometimes it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/so-love-is-rest-the-cosy-corner-the-little-nook-sometimes-it-ought-to/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) [Explore all 508 Doris Lessing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) ## More Air quotes > [I will be a tireless advocate for our District's defense priorities including Sheppard Air Force Base, Pantex, Bell Helicopter, universities conducting important research, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronny-jackson/i-will-be-a-tireless-advocate-for-our-district-s-defense-priorities/) [Ronny Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronny-jackson/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [If U.S. air, naval, missile, and ground forces were not in and around Korea, and if we were not treaty-bound to fight alongside South…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/if-u-s-air-naval-missile-and-ground-forces-were-not-in-and-around/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) > [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. The smell of coalsmoke in the air at night. Old times, dead years. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-cooler-days-have-brought-a-wistful-mood-upon-him-the-smell-of/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/) [Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/) > [I'm a candle flame that sways in currents of air you can't see. You need to be the one who steadies me to burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/i-m-a-candle-flame-that-sways-in-currents-of-air-you-can-t-see-you/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/) [Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/) > [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. All the normal noises of life were gone, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-a-few-mouthfuls-of-moon-flavored-air-even-the-stubbornly-drowsy/) [N.D. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-d-wilson/) > [There was a little nook on Air Force Two that contained the vice presidential seal, and I would sort of wedge myself in there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-biden/there-was-a-little-nook-on-air-force-two-that-contained-the-vice/) [Jill Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-biden/) > [Words are substance strange. Speak one and the air ripples into another's ears. Write one and the eye laps it up. But the sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-beachy-quick/words-are-substance-strange-speak-one-and-the-air-ripples-into/) [Dan Beachy-Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-beachy-quick/) > [ \[A\]s you partake of the world's bill of fare, that's darned good advice to follow. Do a lot of spitting out the hot air.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-seuss/a-s-you-partake-of-the-world-s-bill-of-fare-that-s-darned-good-advice/) [Dr. Seuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-seuss/) > [...As the disparity between the rich and the poor grows, the fight to corner resources is intensifying. To push through their "sweetheart deals," to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-the-disparity-between-the-rich-and-the-poor-grows-the-fight-to/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Washington bureaucrats have classified the very air we exhale as a pollutant and have gone unchallenged in this incredible assertion. The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [“It is unnatural to fear something natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/it-is-unnatural-to-fear-something-natural/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) [Browse all 6,278 Air quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber, for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Doris Lessing" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought-and-curse-not-the-rich-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Air" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought-and-curse-not-the-rich-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/doris-lessing-501_air_curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought_3028456.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/doris-lessing-501_air_curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought_3028456.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/504/doris-lessing-501_air_curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought_3028456.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber, for a bird of the air…” — Doris Lessing", "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": "Doris Lessing", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Curse not the king, no not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought-and-curse-not-the-rich-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/curse-not-the-king-no-not-in-thy-thought-and-curse-not-the-rich-in/#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 } } ] } ```