一潭死水 yī tán sǐ shuǐ stagnant pond

Explanation

比喻没有生气，毫无活力，停滞不前，没有发展，没有进步的局面。

A metaphor for a situation that is lifeless, without vitality, stagnant, without development, and without progress.

Origin Story

在一片广阔的森林里，有一条清澈的小溪，它日夜奔流，滋润着周围的土地和植物。小溪的旁边，有一个幽深的湖泊，湖水平静如镜，水色碧绿，美不胜收。然而，这个湖泊却是一个「一潭死水」，它没有小溪的活力，没有流水的声音，也没有鱼儿在水中嬉戏。湖泊里的水静止不动，久而久之，湖水变得浑浊，散发着腐烂的气息。湖泊周围的土地也变得荒芜，树木枯萎，草木不生。 有一天，一只小鸟飞到了湖泊边，看到这个死气沉沉的湖泊，它感到非常奇怪，就问湖泊：“为什么你这么安静，没有一点生气？”湖泊回答说：“因为我是静止的，没有流动的水，所以才没有生气。”小鸟听了，摇摇头说：“生命在于运动，你静止不动，当然就没有生气了。就像人一样，如果你一直躺在床上不动，也会生病的。”湖泊听了小鸟的话，沉默不语。它终于明白了，生命只有在运动中才能充满活力，只有在不断变化中才能充满生机。

zài yī piàn guǎng kuò de sēn lín lǐ, yǒu yī tiáo qīng chè de xiǎo xī, tā rì yè bēn liú, zī rùn zhe zhōu wéi de tǔ dì hé zhí wù. xiǎo xī de páng biān, yǒu yī gè yōu shēn de hú pó, hú shuǐ píng jìng rú jìng, shuǐ sè bì lǜ, měi bù shèng shōu. rán ér, zhè gè hú pó què shì yī gè 「yī tán sǐ shuǐ」, tā méi yǒu xiǎo xī de huó lì, méi yǒu liú shuǐ de shēng yīn, yě méi yǒu yú ér zài shuǐ zhōng xī xì. hú pó lǐ de shuǐ jìng zhǐ bù dòng, jiǔ ér zhī zhī, hú shuǐ biàn de hún zhuó, fā shàn zhe fǔ làn de qì xī. hú pó zhōu wéi de tǔ dì yě biàn de huāng wú, shù mù kū wěi, cǎo mù bù shēng. yǒu yī tiān, yī zhī xiǎo niǎo fēi dào le hú pó biān, kàn dào zhè gè sǐ qì chén chén de hú pó, tā gǎn dào fēi cháng qí guài, jiù wèn hú pó: “wèi shén me nǐ zhè me ānjìng, méi yǒu yī diǎn shēng qì?” hú pó huí dá shuō: “yīn wèi wǒ shì jìng zhǐ de, méi yǒu liú dòng de shuǐ, suǒ yǐ cái méi yǒu shēng qì.” xiǎo niǎo tīng le, yáo yáo tóu shuō: “shēng mìng zài yú yùn dòng, nǐ jìng zhǐ bù dòng, dāng rán jiù méi yǒu shēng qì le. jiù xiàng rén yī yàng, rú guǒ nǐ yī zhí tǎng zài chuáng shàng bù dòng, yě huì bìng de.” hú pó tīng le xiǎo niǎo de huà, chén mò bù yǔ. tā zhōng yú míng bai le, shēng mìng zhǐ yǒu zài yùn dòng zhōng cái néng chōng mǎn huó lì, zhǐ yǒu zài bù duàn biàn huà zhōng cái néng chōng mǎn shēng jī.

In a vast forest, there was a clear stream, which flowed day and night, nourishing the surrounding land and plants. Next to the stream was a deep lake, its water as calm as a mirror, the color of the water emerald green, beautiful. However, this lake was a “dead lake”, it did not have the vitality of the stream, no sound of flowing water, no fish playing in the water. The water in the lake stood still, and over time, the water became turbid and smelled of decay. The land around the lake also became barren, the trees withered, and no plants grew. One day, a small bird flew to the edge of the lake, saw this lifeless lake, and felt very strange. It asked the lake: “Why are you so quiet, without any life?” The lake replied: “Because I am stationary, there is no flowing water, so there is no life.” The little bird listened, shook its head and said: “Life lies in motion, if you stand still, of course there is no life. Just like a person, if you lie in bed all the time without moving, you will also get sick.” The lake listened to the words of the little bird and remained silent. Finally, it understood that life is only full of vitality when it is in motion, and only in constant change can it be full of life.

Usage

比喻停滞不前，毫无生机，没有发展，没有进步的局面。

bǐ yù tíng zhì bù qián, háo wú shēng jī, méi yǒu fā zhǎn, méi yǒu jìn zhèn de jú miàn.

Used to describe a situation that is stagnant, lifeless, showing no development and no progress.

Examples

• 这间教室里静得像一潭死水。

  zhè jiān jiào shì lǐ jìng de xiàng yī tán sǐ shuǐ.

  The classroom was as quiet as a stagnant pond.

• 公司的发展已经停滞不前，就像一潭死水

  gōng sī de fā zhǎn yǐ jīng tíng zhì bù qián, jiù xiàng yī tán sǐ shuǐ

  The company's development has stagnated, like a stagnant pond.

Related Idioms

• 死气沉沉

• 一成不变

• 故步自封

• 墨守成规

Opposite Idioms

• 生机勃勃

• 欣欣向荣

• 蒸蒸日上