半途而廢

From the Doctrine of the Mean (《中庸》) in the Book of Rites:

子曰：「素隱行怪，後世有述焉，吾弗為之矣。君子遵道而行，半涂而廢，吾弗能已矣。…… [Traditional Chinese poetry, trad.]

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子曰：「素隐行怪，后世有述焉，吾弗为之矣。君子遵道而行，半涂而废，吾弗能已矣。…… [Traditional Chinese poetry, simp.]

From: The Book of Rites, c. 4^th – 2^nd century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Zǐyuē: “Sù yǐn xíng guài, hòushì yǒu shù yān, wú fú wéi zhī yǐ. Jūnzǐ zūn dào ér xíng, bàntú ér fèi, wú fúnéng yǐ yǐ....... [Pinyin]

The Master said, "To live in obscurity, and yet practice wonders, in order to be mentioned with honor in future ages: this is what I do not do. The good man tries to proceed according to the right path, but when he has gone halfway, he abandons it: I am not able so to stop. […]

半途而廢

1. to give up halfway through a task; to not finish what one has started