Ad Astra per Aspera: Meaning and Origin

Ad astra per aspera is a Latin phrase meaning “to the stars through hardship” or “through difficulties to the stars.”

• ad = “to” or “toward”
• astra = “the stars”
• per = “through”
• aspera = “rough things,” “hardships,” or “difficulties”

The phrase expresses the idea that great achievements require struggle, perseverance, and endurance. “The stars” are often used symbolically to mean high goals, success, greatness, or something beyond ordinary reach.

A natural English paraphrase would be:

We reach great things by going through hard things.

It is commonly used as a motto for schools, military units, organizations, and space-related contexts. A closely related phrase is per aspera ad astra, which has the same basic meaning but uses a different word order: “through hardship to the stars.”