Guǒ guā shīdì zé bù róng; yú lóng shī shuǐ zé bùlíng.

果瓜失地則不榮, 魚龍失水則不靈。

Lit Fruit [and] melons without land won't grow; [and] fish [and] dragons without water can't function.

Fig No one can be divorced from the support of the masses.

Note [From a biography written by the Song dynasty poet Su Shi; note: dragons are believed to live in water.]

Topics GOVERNMENT PEOPLE Song dynasty Su_Shi