Dicho español · Spanish proverb
«A Dios rogando y con el mazo dando.»
Word for word
Praying to God and hitting with the mallet.
What it really means
The closest English equivalent: Pray to God but keep rowing to shore.
Said to encourage combining faith or hope with practical effort, rather than passively waiting for divine help. Widely used across the Spanish-speaking world as a call to action.
Hear it in a sentence
Sé que confías en que todo saldrá bien, pero a Dios rogando y con el mazo dando: ponte a estudiar.
I know you trust everything will work out, but pray to God but keep rowing to shore: start studying.
More Spanish sayings
- Los trapos sucios se lavan en casa. — Don't air your dirty laundry in public.
- Un clavo saca otro clavo. — One nail drives out another.
- A grandes males, grandes remedios. — Desperate times call for desperate measures.
- El hombre propone y Dios dispone. — Man proposes, God disposes.
- La esperanza es lo último que se pierde. — Hope is the last thing to lose.
Why learn dichos?
Proverbs like this one are everywhere in spoken Spanish — dropped mid-conversation, usually just the first half, with the rest left for you to complete. Recognizing them is one of the fastest ways to sound less like a textbook and follow real speech. Every Lingocito edition signs off with the dicho del día, so you meet one a day next to news written at your level.