逆水行舟 nì shuǐ xíng zhōu Sailing against the current

Explanation

比喻不努力就会后退，也比喻处境艰难。

A metaphor for the difficulty of maintaining progress without constant effort. It is also used to describe a difficult situation.

Origin Story

话说很久以前，在一个平静的小镇上，住着一位名叫阿明的年轻人。阿明非常勤奋，每天都努力工作，希望能过上更好的生活。然而，他发现自己就像逆水行舟，尽管他努力划桨，但总是感觉自己寸步难行。他尝试了各种方法，但收效甚微。有一天，一位老智者来到小镇，阿明向他诉说了自己的困境。老智者微微一笑，说道：“逆水行舟，不进则退，你之所以感到艰难，是因为你没有找到正确的方向。你要做的，不是拼命的划桨，而是找到水流的方向，顺势而为。”听了老智者的话，阿明豁然开朗，他开始认真思考自己的生活和工作，发现自己之前一直走错了方向。他调整了自己的方向，并持续努力，最终取得了巨大的成功。

huà shuō hěn jiǔ yǐqián, zài yīgè píngjìng de xiǎozhèn shàng, zhù zhe yī wèi míng jiào ā míng de niánqīng rén. ā míng fēicháng qínfèn, měitiān dōu nǔlì gōngzuò, xīwàng néng guò shàng gèng hǎo de shēnghuó. rán'ér, tā fāxiàn zìjǐ jiù xiàng nìshuǐ xíngzhōu, jǐnguǎn tā nǔlì huá jiǎng, dàn zǒngshì gǎnjué zìjǐ cùn bù nánxíng. tā chángshì le gè zhǒng fāngfǎ, dàn shōuxiào shèn wēi. yǒuyītiān, yī wèi lǎo zhìzhě lái dào xiǎozhèn, ā míng xiàng tā sùshuō le zìjǐ de kùnjìng. lǎo zhìzhě wēi wēi yīxiào, shuōdào: “nìshuǐ xíngzhōu, bù jìn zé tuì, nǐ zhīsuǒyǐ gǎndào jiānnán, shì yīnwèi nǐ méiyǒu zhǎodào zhèngquè de fāngxiàng. nǐ yào zuò de, bùshì pīnmìng de huá jiǎng, ér shì zhǎodào shuǐ liú de fāngxiàng, shùnshì ér wèi.” tīng le lǎo zhìzhě de huà, ā míng huòrán kāilǎng, tā kāishǐ rènzhēn sīkǎo zìjǐ de shēnghuó hé gōngzuò, fāxiàn zìjǐ zhīqián yīzhí zǒu cuò le fāngxiàng. tā tiáozhěng le zìjǐ de fāngxiàng, bìng chíxù nǔlì, zuìzhōng qǔdé le jùdà de chénggōng.

Once upon a time, in a peaceful town, lived a young man named Amin. Amin was very diligent and worked hard every day, hoping to live a better life. However, he found himself like a boat sailing against the current; despite his efforts to paddle, he always felt he could not make any progress. He tried various methods but to little avail. One day, a wise old man came to town, and Amin told him about his plight. The old man smiled slightly and said, “Sailing against the current means that if you don’t advance, you will regress. The reason you find it so difficult is that you haven’t found the right direction. What you need to do is not to paddle desperately but to find the direction of the current and go with the flow.” After listening to the wise old man’s words, Amin suddenly realized that he should change his direction. He began to think carefully about his life and work, and he discovered that he had been going in the wrong direction. He adjusted his direction, and with continued effort, he eventually achieved great success.

Usage

常用来比喻人处境艰难，不努力就会后退。

cháng yòng lái bǐyù rén chǔjìng jiānnán, bù nǔlì jiù huì hòutuì

Often used as a metaphor to describe a difficult situation where one will fall behind without continuous effort.

Examples

• 人生如逆水行舟，不进则退。

  rénshēng rú nìshuǐ xíngzhōu, bù jìn zé tuì

  Life is like sailing against the current; one must constantly strive to make progress, or one will fall back.

• 学习就像逆水行舟，稍有松懈就会落后。

  xuéxí jiù xiàng nìshuǐ xíngzhōu, shāo yǒu sōngxie jiù huì luòhòu

  Learning is like sailing against the current; a little slackness will lead to backwardness.

• 面对困难，我们不能退缩，要像逆水行舟一样勇往直前。

  miàn duì kùnnan, wǒmen bù néng tuìsuō, yào xiàng nìshuǐ xíngzhōu yīyàng yǒngwǎng zhíqián

  In the face of difficulties, we should not retreat but move forward like sailing against the current.

Related Idioms

• 奋勇前进

• 迎难而上

Opposite Idioms

• 一帆风顺

• 顺水推舟