--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The lion cares less about being king of…" description: "\"The lion cares less about being king of the beasts than about finding his dinner.\" — Mason Cooley" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5a/mason-cooley-92_beast_the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of_2311600.png" --- # The lion cares less about being king of the beasts than… ![“The lion cares less about being king of the beasts than about finding his dinner.” quote by Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5a/mason-cooley-92_beast_the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of_2311600.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5a/mason-cooley-92_beast_the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of_2311600.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5a/mason-cooley-92_beast_the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of_2311600.png) > “The lion cares less about being king of the beasts than about finding his dinner.” [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The lion prioritizes survival over status, valuing practical needs over symbolic power. **In simple terms:** Survival matters more than titles. Key Takeaway Focus on meeting essential needs before seeking prestige. Themes survival priorities humility Mood thoughtful pragmatic Type aphoristic inspirational When to use this quote - job hunting - budgeting - health care decisions Key Concepts practicality power dynamics basic needs Questions to Reflect On - What essential needs are you ignoring? - How does focusing on basics affect your goals? A Different Perspective Neglecting status can limit opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beast/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Dinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinner/) [Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kings/) [Lion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lion/) [Lions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lions/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) ## Related quotes > [Of all animals, the outward form of the Lion is the most striking ; his look is bold and confident; his gait proud; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-pinnock/of-all-animals-the-outward-form-of-the-lion-is-the-most-striking-his/) William Pinnock > [“Not even the lion is designated as the king of the beasts,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-pacwa/not-even-the-lion-is-designated-as-the-king-of-the-beasts/) [Mitch Pacwa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-pacwa/) > [A lion is called a 'king of beasts' obviously for a reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hanna/a-lion-is-called-a-king-of-beasts-obviously-for-a-reason/) [Jack Hanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hanna/) > [King of the animals — as thou hast described him — I should rather say king of the beasts, thou being the greatest —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/king-of-the-animals-as-thou-hast-described-him-i-should-rather-say-2/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Truly man is the king of beasts, for his brutality exceeds them. We live by the death of others. We are burial places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/truly-man-is-the-king-of-beasts-for-his-brutality-exceeds-them-we/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [King of the animals-- as thou hast described him-- I should rather say king of the beasts, thou being the greatest--because thou doest only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/king-of-the-animals-as-thou-hast-described-him-i-should-rather-say/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [“Love is the king of the beasts And when it gets hungry it must kill to eat Love is the king of the beasts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-callahan/love-is-the-king-of-the-beasts-and-when-it-gets-hungry-it-must-kill/) [Bill Callahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-callahan/) > [But I have long loved the written word, and come to see in it the power of the sleeping lion. This is my name.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-hill/but-i-have-long-loved-the-written-word-and-come-to-see-in-it-the/) [Lawrence Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-hill/) > [Man is too near all kinds of beasts,--a fawning dog, a roaring lion, a thieving fox, a robbing wolf, a dissembling crocodile, a treacherous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cowley/man-is-too-near-all-kinds-of-beasts-a-fawning-dog-a-roaring-lion-a/) [Abraham Cowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cowley/) > [Far overhead from beyond the veil of blue sky which hid them the stars sang again; a pure, cold, difficult music. Then there came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/far-overhead-from-beyond-the-veil-of-blue-sky-which-hid-them-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think that if the beast who sleeps in man could be held down by threats of any kind, whether of jail or retribution,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/i-think-that-if-the-beast-who-sleeps-in-man-could-be-held-down-by/) [Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/) > [After The Wizard Of Oz I was typecast as a lion, and there aren't all that many parts for lions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bert-lahr/after-the-wizard-of-oz-i-was-typecast-as-a-lion-and-there-aren-t-all/) Bert Lahr > [When a captive lion steps out of his cage, he comes into a wider world than the lion who has known only the wilds.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukio-mishima/when-a-captive-lion-steps-out-of-his-cage-he-comes-into-a-wider-world/) [Yukio Mishima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukio-mishima/) > [My first name was inspired by the character of Aslan, the lion in C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aselin-debison/my-first-name-was-inspired-by-the-character-of-aslan-the-lion-in-c-s/) Aselin Debison > [“(Quoting her friend Tom Black on an amateur hunter's injury:) "Lion, rifles -- and stupidity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/quoting-her-friend-tom-black-on-an-amateur-hunter-s-injury-lion/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) ## More by Mason Cooley > [Nostalgia keeps dissolving the ironic narratives in which I have contained my past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/nostalgia-keeps-dissolving-the-ironic-narratives-in-which-i-have/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [The modernist writers found despair inspirational.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-modernist-writers-found-despair-inspirational/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Even the most abject have a sense of superiority based on powerful though undefined merits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/even-the-most-abject-have-a-sense-of-superiority-based-on-powerful/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Money comes to life as it is spent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/money-comes-to-life-as-it-is-spent/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Even the most fickle are faithful to a few bad habits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/even-the-most-fickle-are-faithful-to-a-few-bad-habits/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Rage is exciting, but leaves me confused and exhausted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/rage-is-exciting-but-leaves-me-confused-and-exhausted/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Literary tradition is full of lies about poverty-the jolly beggar, the poor but happy milkmaid, the wholesome diet of porridge, etc.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/literary-tradition-is-full-of-lies-about-poverty-the-jolly-beggar-the/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Experience teaches us, but we scarcely know what.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/experience-teaches-us-but-we-scarcely-know-what/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [The body has a mind of its own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-body-has-a-mind-of-its-own/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [In retirement, I look for days off from my days off. Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/in-retirement-i-look-for-days-off-from-my-days-off-mason-cooley/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [My intentions go one way, my desires another. Thus I feel both self-indulgent and deprived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/my-intentions-go-one-way-my-desires-another-thus-i-feel-both-self/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [The Puritan sours his pleasures by disguising them as duties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-puritan-sours-his-pleasures-by-disguising-them-as-duties/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Unlike the actual, the fictional explains itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/unlike-the-actual-the-fictional-explains-itself/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Vacations prove that a life of pleasure is overrated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/vacations-prove-that-a-life-of-pleasure-is-overrated/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Outside literature, high-flown sentiments are merely exasperating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/outside-literature-high-flown-sentiments-are-merely-exasperating/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) [Explore all 1,401 Mason Cooley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) ## More Beast quotes > [We became Homo sapiens not that long ago, from the scientific perspective, and we've retained a lot of our beast nature. We've done all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangechi-mutu/we-became-homo-sapiens-not-that-long-ago-from-the-scientific/) [Wangechi Mutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangechi-mutu/) > [“Once upon a time, there was a naïve and innocent girl who thought she could tame the beast and live happily ever after. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/once-upon-a-time-there-was-a-na-ve-and-innocent-girl-who-thought-she/) [Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/) > [Is man no more than this? Consider him well. Thou ow'st the worm no silk, the beast no hide, the sheep no wool, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/is-man-no-more-than-this-consider-him-well-thou-ow-st-the-worm-no/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [In giving us dominion over the animal kingdom God has signified His will that we subdue the beast within ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lancaster-spalding/in-giving-us-dominion-over-the-animal-kingdom-god-has-signified-his/) [John Lancaster Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lancaster-spalding/) > [ No visiting angel, or explorer from another planet, could have guessed that this bland orb \[Earth\] teemed with vermin, with world-mastering, self-torturing, incipiently angelic… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olaf-stapledon/no-visiting-angel-or-explorer-from-another-planet-could-have-guessed/) [Olaf Stapledon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olaf-stapledon/) > [As a beast of toil an ox is fixed capital. If he is eaten, he no longer functions as an instrument of labour, nor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/as-a-beast-of-toil-an-ox-is-fixed-capital-if-he-is-eaten-he-no-longer/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [« He squeezed his hands into fists. I picked up a grapefruit-sized rock and handed it to him. It went flying. Home run, Beast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/he-squeezed-his-hands-into-fists-i-picked-up-a-grapefruit-sized-rock/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [Was man made stupid to see his own stupidity? Is God by definition indifferent, beyond us all? Is the eternal truth man's fighting soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-eberhart/was-man-made-stupid-to-see-his-own-stupidity-is-god-by-definition/) [Richard Eberhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-eberhart/) > [When a man is treated like a beast, he says, 'After all, I'm human.' When he behaves like a beast, he says 'After all,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/when-a-man-is-treated-like-a-beast-he-says-after-all-i-m-human-when/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [The American people are incredibly generous and even playful when you open yourself up and feed the media beast until it goes away satisfied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krystal-ball/the-american-people-are-incredibly-generous-and-even-playful-when-you/) [Krystal Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krystal-ball/) > [Wherever I am, I see the yoke on women in some form or another. On some it sits easy for they are but beasts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-may-alcott/wherever-i-am-i-see-the-yoke-on-women-in-some-form-or-another-on-some/) [Abby May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-may-alcott/) > [“He's a beast. A monster. And he looks like he wants to devour me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-darhower/he-s-a-beast-a-monster-and-he-looks-like-he-wants-to-devour-me/) [J.M. Darhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-darhower/) > [ Antichrist is the pope and the Turk \[Muslim\] together. A beast full of life must have a body and soul. The spirit or soul… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/antichrist-is-the-pope-and-the-turk-muslim-together-a-beast-full-of/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [My hero among heroes is my grandmother, she's the epitome of strength and I try to mock that strength all the time. She's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeriel-miranda/my-hero-among-heroes-is-my-grandmother-she-s-the-epitome-of-strength/) [Aeriel Miranda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeriel-miranda/) > [You've heard tales of beauty and the beast. How a fair maid falls in love with a monster and sees the beauty of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-maitland/you-ve-heard-tales-of-beauty-and-the-beast-how-a-fair-maid-falls-in/) [Karen Maitland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-maitland/) [Browse all 1,640 Beast quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beast/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The lion cares less about being king of the beasts than about finding his dinner.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mason Cooley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of-the-beasts-than-about-finding/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beast" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of-the-beasts-than-about-finding/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5a/mason-cooley-92_beast_the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of_2311600.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5a/mason-cooley-92_beast_the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of_2311600.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5a/mason-cooley-92_beast_the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of_2311600.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The lion cares less about being king of the beasts than about finding his dinner.” — Mason Cooley", "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": "Mason Cooley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The lion cares less about being...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of-the-beasts-than-about-finding/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-lion-cares-less-about-being-king-of-the-beasts-than-about-finding/#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 } } ] } ```