Is stress man-made or G-d-made

I recently asked on Facebook:

“Is stress man made or G-d made?”

Most responded that “both” are true.

The Rambam in his More Nevuchim addresses this topic and says[1]:

“Many think that there are more negative than positive events in life. They say, that a great event is considered a novelty. There are even famous thinkers like Alrazi (author of Alalias) that believe that bad events outweigh the good…

“This is all against what we hold dear, that G-d is kind in a revealed way.

“The root of their mistake is their basing life on themselves and everything revolving around what they want. 

“Most – practically all negative events are caused by man. As [king] Shlomo wrote: “A man’s folly subverts his way, and his heart rages against G-d”[2].

The Rambam elaborates for five pages on this topic. I would highly suggest going over his words carefully. He address multiple questions and offers major insights into some society’s biggest issues[3].


[1]Vol. 3 ch. 12 (Rambam – R’ Moshe ben Maimon 1135-1204)
[2] Mishlei19:3
[3]The Rambam discusses illness, natural events and other related topics, cf. Toras Shmuel (R’ Shmuel of Lubavitch – Rebbe Maharsh 1834-1882 “Mayim Rabim”5636 pp. 2-7 that elaborates on this Rambam.