--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nonetheless, we can in the same breath…" description: "\"“Nonetheless, we can in the same breath deny that there is any such thing as coincidence. What's done is done, what's yet to be is clearly yet to be, a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ab/haruki-murakami-21_coincidence_nonetheless-we-can-in-the-same-breath-de_458200.jpg" --- # Nonetheless, we can in the same breath deny that there is… ![“Nonetheless, we can in the same breath deny that there is any such thing as coincidence. What's done is done, what's yet to be is clearly yet to be, and so on. In other words, sandwiched as we are between the ''everything'' that is behind us and the ''zero'' beyond us, ours is an ephemeral…” quote by Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ab/haruki-murakami-21_coincidence_nonetheless-we-can-in-the-same-breath-de_458200.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ab/haruki-murakami-21_coincidence_nonetheless-we-can-in-the-same-breath-de_458200.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ab/haruki-murakami-21_coincidence_nonetheless-we-can-in-the-same-breath-de_458200.jpg) > ““Nonetheless, we can in the same breath deny that there is any such thing as coincidence. What's done is done, what's yet to be is clearly yet to be, and so on. In other words, sandwiched as we are between the ''everything'' that is behind us and the ''zero'' beyond us, ours is an ephemeral existence in which there is neither coincidence nor possibility.”” [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage argues that existence is fleeting and deterministic, leaving no room for random chance or true possibility. **In simple terms:** Life is brief and predetermined, without random events. Key Takeaway Accept the limits of control. Themes existence determinism ephemerality philosophy Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal decision‑making - career planning - relationship expectations - creative projects Key Concepts fate temporal finitude causality Questions to Reflect On - How does belief in determinism affect your choices? - Can randomness have value in life? A Different Perspective It overlooks human agency and the role of chance in discovery. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Coincidence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coincidence/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ## Related quotes > [“We can, if we so choose, wander aimlessly over the continent of the arbitrary. Rootless as some winged seed blown about on a serendipitous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/we-can-if-we-so-choose-wander-aimlessly-over-the-continent-of-the/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Even chance meetings are the result of karma… Things in life are fated by our previous lives. That even in the smallest events there’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/even-chance-meetings-are-the-result-of-karma-things-in-life-are-fated/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Leviter smiles. "There is no such thing as coincidence, my dear Jax. Only immaculate planning.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-aguirre/leviter-smiles-there-is-no-such-thing-as-coincidence-my-dear-jax-only/) [Ann Aguirre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-aguirre/) > [“There is no such thing as coincidence, only hitsuzen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clamp/there-is-no-such-thing-as-coincidence-only-hitsuzen/) [Clamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clamp/) > [I have always believed that there is no such thing as coincidence, and I have always believed in destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adnan-sami/i-have-always-believed-that-there-is-no-such-thing-as-coincidence-and/) [Adnan Sami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adnan-sami/) > [“These parallel universes are not ghost worlds with an ephemeral existence; within each universe, we have the appearance of solid objects and concrete events…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/these-parallel-universes-are-not-ghost-worlds-with-an-ephemeral/) [Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/) > [The individual appears for an instant, joins the community of thought, modifies it and dies; but the species, that dies not, reaps the fruit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-individual-appears-for-an-instant-joins-the-community-of-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Yes, you see, there’s no such thing as coincidence. There are no accidents in life. Everything that happens is the result of a calculated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-darhower/yes-you-see-there-s-no-such-thing-as-coincidence-there-are-no/) [J.M. Darhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-darhower/) > [There is no such thing as coincidence in this world. The only thing is hitsuzen. Hitsuzen...A naturally fore-ordained event. A state in which all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-no-such-thing-as-coincidence-in-this-world-the-only-thing-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I really do believe that there's no such thing as coincidence. People come into our lives for a reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbi-fields/i-really-do-believe-that-there-s-no-such-thing-as-coincidence-people/) [Debbi Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbi-fields/) > [“His grandmother had taught him that there was no such thing as coincidence. There are millions of people in this world, she had told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/his-grandmother-had-taught-him-that-there-was-no-such-thing-as/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [It has been said that there is no such thing as coincidence in this world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-has-been-said-that-there-is-no-such-thing-as-coincidence-in-this/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“There is no such thing as coincidence, Topper. It is always, always your enemies conspiring against you." (from How to Succeed in Evil)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-e-mclean/there-is-no-such-thing-as-coincidence-topper-it-is-always-always-your/) [Patrick E. McLean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-e-mclean/) > [Do you know what ‘Sputnik’ means in Russian? ‘Travelling companion’. I looked it up in a dictionary not long ago. Kind of a strange…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/do-you-know-what-sputnik-means-in-russian-travelling-companion-i/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Symbols are miracles we have recorded into language.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-kelley-harrell/symbols-are-miracles-we-have-recorded-into-language/) [S. Kelley Harrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-kelley-harrell/) ## More by Haruki Murakami > [I always feel like I'm struggling to become someone else. Like I'm trying to find a new place, grab hold of a new life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-always-feel-like-i-m-struggling-to-become-someone-else-like-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [If writing novels is like planting a forest, then writing short stories is more like planting a garden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-writing-novels-is-like-planting-a-forest-then-writing-short/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“The sad truth is that what I could recall in five seconds all too soon needed ten, then thirty, thena full minute...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-sad-truth-is-that-what-i-could-recall-in-five-seconds-all-too/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Intelligent teenage girls were often instinctively theatrical, purposely eccentric, mouthing highly suggestive words to confuse people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/intelligent-teenage-girls-were-often-instinctively-theatrical/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Memory is like fiction; or else it's fiction that's like memory. This really came home to me once I started writing fiction, that memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/memory-is-like-fiction-or-else-it-s-fiction-that-s-like-memory-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [The most dangerous creature here would have to be me. So maybe I'm just scared of my own shadow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-most-dangerous-creature-here-would-have-to-be-me-so-maybe-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [If you listen to the radio for a whole hour there's maybe one decent song. The rest is mass-produced garbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-you-listen-to-the-radio-for-a-whole-hour-there-s-maybe-one-decent/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“that one of our problems was our inability to recognize and accept our own deformities”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/that-one-of-our-problems-was-our-inability-to-recognize-and-accept/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“When I look back at myself at age twenty, what I remember most is being alone and lonely. I had no girlfriend to warm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-i-look-back-at-myself-at-age-twenty-what-i-remember-most-is/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“There's not a branch of publishing or broadcasting that doesn't depend in some way on advertising. It'd be like an aquarium without water. Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/there-s-not-a-branch-of-publishing-or-broadcasting-that-doesn-t/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“One by one, I'll face the tasks before me and complete them as best I can. Focusing on each stride forward, but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-i-ll-face-the-tasks-before-me-and-complete-them-as-best-i/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Eleven o'clock had come and gone. I had to find a way to bring this conversation to a successful conclusion and get out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/eleven-o-clock-had-come-and-gone-i-had-to-find-a-way-to-bring-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Some people get a kick out of reading railway timetables and that's all they do all day. Some people make huge model boats out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/some-people-get-a-kick-out-of-reading-railway-timetables-and-that-s/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“When the time comes, everybody’s got to end up where they belong. Only me, I didn’t have a place to call my own. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-the-time-comes-everybody-s-got-to-end-up-where-they-belong-only/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“You let something out of the bag before yourself knew what it was all about”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/you-let-something-out-of-the-bag-before-yourself-knew-what-it-was-all/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) [Explore all 2,928 Haruki Murakami quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## More Coincidence quotes > [“Symbols are miracles we have recorded into language.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-kelley-harrell/symbols-are-miracles-we-have-recorded-into-language/) [S. Kelley Harrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-kelley-harrell/) > [It was no accident, no coincidence, that the seasons came round and round year after year. It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/) [Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/) > [“Coincidence is the exception, not the rule.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soheir-khashoggi/coincidence-is-the-exception-not-the-rule/) [Soheir Khashoggi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soheir-khashoggi/) > [Is it a coincidence that stories from the private life became more popular just as the grand hope for public redemption through revolution was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-griffin/is-it-a-coincidence-that-stories-from-the-private-life-became-more/) [Susan Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-griffin/) > [It was an odd coincidence that my career took off the same decade as having babies. I often wished it had been different, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-kaczmarek/it-was-an-odd-coincidence-that-my-career-took-off-the-same-decade-as/) [Jane Kaczmarek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-kaczmarek/) > [“Every emotion in the world wishes to be expressed, every task desires to be done. Coincidence is the perfect texture.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-geary/every-emotion-in-the-world-wishes-to-be-expressed-every-task-desires/) [Patricia Geary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-geary/) > [It's not coincidence that these attacks come at the exact same moment, and all together at the same time as WikiLeaks releases documents exposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/it-s-not-coincidence-that-these-attacks-come-at-the-exact-same-moment/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [“You wonder if that really constitutes being ‘a coincidence’ but don’t press her on the issue, instead sticking your hand down your pocket to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-kerkhoven/you-wonder-if-that-really-constitutes-being-a-coincidence-but-don-t/) Rudolf Kerkhoven > [A thrumming of piano-strings beyond the gardens and through the elms. At length the melody steals into my being. I know not when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-thrumming-of-piano-strings-beyond-the-gardens-and-through-the-elms/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“We cannot see how our lives will unfold. What is destiny and What is accident? And how can one ever be certain?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-ostlere/we-cannot-see-how-our-lives-will-unfold-what-is-destiny-and-what-is/) [Cathy Ostlere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-ostlere/) > [When you live your life with an appreciation of coincidences and their meanings, you connect with the underlying field of infinite possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-live-your-life-with-an-appreciation-of-coincidences-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It’s amazing how many coincidences occur when one begins to pray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hybels/it-s-amazing-how-many-coincidences-occur-when-one-begins-to-pray/) [Bill Hybels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hybels/) > [“Premonitions are coincidences waiting to happen,” he said, without looking up. “I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-ozeki/premonitions-are-coincidences-waiting-to-happen-he-said-without/) [Ruth Ozeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-ozeki/) > [“A friend of mine once said that she didn't believe in coincidence, that it was God working in her life, not a coincidence every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-cameron/a-friend-of-mine-once-said-that-she-didn-t-believe-in-coincidence/) [Barbara Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-cameron/) > [Some people suggested that I should try something else. It was a lot of things, but nothing really stood out for me. Nothing felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-kim/some-people-suggested-that-i-should-try-something-else-it-was-a-lot/) [Claudia Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-kim/) [Browse all 823 Coincidence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coincidence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Nonetheless, we can in the same breath deny that there is any such thing as coincidence. What's done is done, what's yet to be is clearly yet to be, and so on. 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