yàn què ān zhī hóng hú zhī zhì
lit. can the sparrow and swallow know the will of the great swan? (idiom)
fig. how can we small fry predict the ambitions of the great?
燕
yàn
variant of 燕[yan4]
雀
què
(bound form) small bird
安
ān
(bound form) calm; peaceful
知
zhī
to know
鸿
hóng
eastern bean goose
鹄
hú
swan
之
(possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的[de5])
志
zhì
sign