--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No fish can swim until the King is born…" description: "\"No fish can swim until the King is born, until the King is born in Tupelo.\" — Nick Cave" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/nick-cave-1153_born_no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born_2109953.jpg" --- # No fish can swim until the King is born, until the King is… ![“No fish can swim until the King is born, until the King is born in Tupelo.” quote by Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/nick-cave-1153_born_no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born_2109953.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/nick-cave-1153_born_no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born_2109953.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/nick-cave-1153_born_no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born_2109953.jpg) > “No fish can swim until the King is born, until the King is born in Tupelo.” [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The metaphor ties a king’s emergence to a fish’s ability to swim, symbolizing new beginnings. **In simple terms:** King’s birth enables swimming. Key Takeaway Recognize pivotal moments. Themes myth growth transformation Mood enigmatic dramatic Type musical poetic When to use this quote - personal milestones - cultural rites - creative storytelling Key Concepts allegory ritual symbolism Questions to Reflect On - What does the king represent? - How do you mark your own birth? A Different Perspective Metaphor may be obscure. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fish/) [Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kings/) ## Related quotes > [I had a little Richard and that black piano, oh that sweet Georgia Peach, and the boy form Tupelo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elton-john/i-had-a-little-richard-and-that-black-piano-oh-that-sweet-georgia/) [Elton John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elton-john/) > [“She's as sweet as tupelo honey, She's an angel of the first degree. - Tupelo Honey ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-morrison/she-s-as-sweet-as-tupelo-honey-she-s-an-angel-of-the-first-degree/) [Van Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-morrison/) > [“It's not quite as valuable as if it had been written in 1929, when Martin Luther King was born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayborne-carson/it-s-not-quite-as-valuable-as-if-it-had-been-written-in-1929-when/) Clayborne Carson > [ “Queen or no queen, I have a royal destiny. \[…\] no matter what I look like, where I live, or how much I have… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-christmyer/queen-or-no-queen-i-have-a-royal-destiny-no-matter-what-i-look-like/) Sarah Christmyer > [Whoso pulleth out this sword of this stone and anvil is rightwise king born of all England.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-malory/whoso-pulleth-out-this-sword-of-this-stone-and-anvil-is-rightwise/) [Thomas Malory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-malory/) > [He that can work is born to be king of something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/he-that-can-work-is-born-to-be-king-of-something/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [“It is recorded of Jesus that He was "born King of the Jews" (Mt. 2:2). To this throne He made final claim at His…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-sperry-chafer/it-is-recorded-of-jesus-that-he-was-born-king-of-the-jews-mt-2-2-to/) [Lewis Sperry Chafer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-sperry-chafer/) > [Everyone is born a king, and most people die in exile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/everyone-is-born-a-king-and-most-people-die-in-exile/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Hark the herald angels sing, Glory to the new-born king.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-wesley/hark-the-herald-angels-sing-glory-to-the-new-born-king/) [Charles Wesley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-wesley/) > [“Everyone is born a king; some people die in exile”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/everyone-is-born-a-king-some-people-die-in-exile/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [A born king is a very rare being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/a-born-king-is-a-very-rare-being/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [He was born a King. The wise men came from the East and asked, 'Where is He that is born King of the Jews?'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-a-criswell/he-was-born-a-king-the-wise-men-came-from-the-east-and-asked-where-is/) [W. A. Criswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-a-criswell/) > [If a man is born, he should be born either a king or a fool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/if-a-man-is-born-he-should-be-born-either-a-king-or-a-fool/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Picture me like a new born king cuz I go hard as a king can be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/egbowon-femi-jeffery/picture-me-like-a-new-born-king-cuz-i-go-hard-as-a-king-can-be/) Egbowon Femi Jeffery > [“Born to be a king, I ask one thing in return: a front seat to watch Earth burn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loki/born-to-be-a-king-i-ask-one-thing-in-return-a-front-seat-to-watch/) Loki ## More by Nick Cave > [Texting is apocalyptic on some level. It's a reduction of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/texting-is-apocalyptic-on-some-level-it-s-a-reduction-of-things/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [“And I know why our friendship must be kept a secret. Or they will kill You like they killed You in the Bible. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/and-i-know-why-our-friendship-must-be-kept-a-secret-or-they-will-kill/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I want to write songs that are so sad, the kind of sad where you take someone's little finger and break it in three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-want-to-write-songs-that-are-so-sad-the-kind-of-sad-where-you-take/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [“Through these days Bunny made increasingly frequent and protracted visits to the bathroom, beating off with a single-minded savagery intense even by Bunny's standards.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/through-these-days-bunny-made-increasingly-frequent-and-protracted/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Personally I find the story of Christ incredibly moving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/personally-i-find-the-story-of-christ-incredibly-moving/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [ That's what we \[outsiders\] feel America is really about - the kind of crazed ravings of the Christian right - when it's probably something… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/that-s-what-we-outsiders-feel-america-is-really-about-the-kind-of/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [“My relationship with my muse is a delicate one at the best of times and I feel that it is my duty to protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/my-relationship-with-my-muse-is-a-delicate-one-at-the-best-of-times/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I'm kind of old-school and love nothing more than sitting, opening a book, and reading it. But I also love listening to audio books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-m-kind-of-old-school-and-love-nothing-more-than-sitting-opening-a/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Early on I realized when you write a song about someone, it flatters them on some level, and gives you a lot of room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/early-on-i-realized-when-you-write-a-song-about-someone-it-flatters/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [My father was a teacher and my mother also worked in the school, so the family has a background in education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/my-father-was-a-teacher-and-my-mother-also-worked-in-the-school-so/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I think it's an essential fact for any performer or artist to fail as poignantly as they can succeed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-think-it-s-an-essential-fact-for-any-performer-or-artist-to-fail-as/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [To my undying shame, I do read reviews. I don't read them all, but I like to get some kind of idea how things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/to-my-undying-shame-i-do-read-reviews-i-don-t-read-them-all-but-i/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Brother, be a brother, fill this tiny cup of mine. And please, sir, make it whiskey: I have no head for wine!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/brother-be-a-brother-fill-this-tiny-cup-of-mine-and-please-sir-make/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [When you've been initiated, you can stand in the world differently. And I think it is up to all of us, we can have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/when-you-ve-been-initiated-you-can-stand-in-the-world-differently-and/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Polly Jean, I love you. I love the texture of your skin, the taste of your saliva, the softness of your ears. I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/polly-jean-i-love-you-i-love-the-texture-of-your-skin-the-taste-of/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) [Explore all 280 Nick Cave quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) ## More Born quotes > [My mother says I didn't open my eyes for eight days after I was born, but when I did, the first thing I saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-taylor/my-mother-says-i-didn-t-open-my-eyes-for-eight-days-after-i-was-born/) [Elizabeth Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-taylor/) > [I always thought if I was born 2000 years earlier, I would be a monk, probably carving a monastery or some giant pantheon buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenova-chen/i-always-thought-if-i-was-born-2000-years-earlier-i-would-be-a-monk/) [Jenova Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenova-chen/) > [The real world out there isn't nearly as nice as some people prefer it to be, so don't swallow everything your high-born teachers tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-real-world-out-there-isn-t-nearly-as-nice-as-some-people-prefer/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Anybody looking for a quiet life has picked the wrong century to born in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/anybody-looking-for-a-quiet-life-has-picked-the-wrong-century-to-born/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was born and raised in Orlando, where the economy and culture has been powerfully shaped by tourism, and so I've long been interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-was-born-and-raised-in-orlando-where-the-economy-and-culture-has/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [I know that in the rap game you've got a lot of people, that come from poverty, was born in poverty and if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-connor/i-know-that-in-the-rap-game-you-ve-got-a-lot-of-people-that-come-from/) [Jon Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-connor/) > [Nothing old is ever reborn but neither does it totally disappear. And that which has once been born, will always reappear in a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvar-aalto/nothing-old-is-ever-reborn-but-neither-does-it-totally-disappear-and/) [Alvar Aalto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvar-aalto/) > [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 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/) > [Must I go bound while you go free Must I love a manwho doesn't love me Must I be born with so little art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/must-i-go-bound-while-you-go-free-must-i-love-a-manwho-doesn-t-love/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I'm not against gay people. I have a relative who is also gay. We can't help it if they were born that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manny-pacquiao/i-m-not-against-gay-people-i-have-a-relative-who-is-also-gay-we-can-t/) [Manny Pacquiao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manny-pacquiao/) > [“Every child is born as angel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/every-child-is-born-as-angel/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [For the glory born of Goodness Never dies, And its flag is not half-masted In the skies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-harte/for-the-glory-born-of-goodness-never-dies-and-its-flag-is-not-half/) [Bret Harte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-harte/) > [There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower. 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I was born after Valentine's Day, so they wanted to change it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-romero/if-you-can-believe-it-hollywood-wanted-to-change-my-birthdate-i-was/) [Cesar Romero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-romero/) Browse all 11,606 Born quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No fish can swim until the King is born, until the King is born in Tupelo.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nick Cave" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born-until-the-king-is-born-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Born" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born-until-the-king-is-born-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/nick-cave-1153_born_no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born_2109953.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/nick-cave-1153_born_no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born_2109953.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/nick-cave-1153_born_no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born_2109953.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“No fish can swim until the King is born, until the King is born in Tupelo.” — Nick Cave", "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": "Nick Cave", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "No fish can swim until the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born-until-the-king-is-born-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/no-fish-can-swim-until-the-king-is-born-until-the-king-is-born-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 } } ] } ```