继往开来

繼往開來

jìwǎngkāilái

idiom #67,042

Meanings

1 to carry forward the past and open up the future
2 to inherit tradition and forge new paths
3 to bridge past and future

Characters

to continue; to inherit

to open; to start

Examples

我们要继往开来，把事业推向新的高度。

Wǒmen yào jìwǎngkāilái, bǎ shìyè tuī xiàng xīn de gāodù.

We must carry forward the past and open up the future, pushing the enterprise to new heights.

这一代青年肩负着继往开来的使命。

Zhè yí dài qīngnián jiānfù zhe jìwǎngkāilái de shǐmìng.

This generation of youth bears the mission of carrying forward the past and opening up the future.

Tips

history

From Zhu Xi's 《朱子全书·周子书》 praising Zhou Dunyi: 「所以继往圣，开来学」 — 'he thereby continued the sages of old and opened learning for those to come.' Classic succession-of-the-Way (道统) vocabulary.

usage

Heavy ceremonial weight — used at anniversaries, leadership transitions, generational handoffs. A signature CCP congress phrase. Not casual language.

Stroke Order

继 jì

往 wǎng

开 kāi

来 lái