逆水行舟,不進則退 nì shuǐ xíng zhōu , bù jìn zé tuì

DEFINITIONS

  1. like rowing a boat upstream, if you stop moving forward you fall back (idiom)

CHARACTERS

逆 nì disobey, rebel; rebel, traitor
水 shuǐ water, liquid, lotion, juice
行 xíng go; walk; move, travel; circulate
舟 zhōu boat, ship; KangXi radical 137
不 bù no, not; un-; negative prefix
進 jìn advance, make progress, enter
則 zé rule, law, regulation; grades
退 tuì step back, retreat, withdraw