Bez muke nema nauke

Informant: MK was born in New York, but raised in Dubrovnik, Croatia. He is a senior in high school. He has an older brother, and a younger sister. While growing up our grandparents would teach us valuable life lessons and most of the time they would use a proverb in doing so. Proverbs are a huge part of our family’s culture.

MK heard this proverb multiple times weather it was from a family member, school teacher or even his water polo coach.

“Bez muke nema nauke” when translated literally means “Without suffering, there is no learning.” The English equivalent is: No pain, no gain.

Have you ever heard of this proverb?

“Of course I have, it is a common saying in our community.”

Does it have any meaning to you?

“The same it means to anyone else that lives in my community. It teaches people a lesson. It’s a valuable lesson that I ended up learning the hard way.”

This proverb can be used in multiple occasions in variety of fields. For an example it is most commonly used in sports and schools. In sports without pain, suffering and sacrifice there is no gain, improvement. In schools, it is said when students complain about studying; without spending hours behind a book, one wont learn