so what do the directions of the koi facing up or down mean
The Koi swims up the yellow river, and jumps UP the falls called Dragons Gate. Legend is that if the Koi makes it up Dragons gate, it is transformed into a dragon.
Hence, the symbology for strength, determination, and aspiration.
But it should only be shown jumping up Dragons Gate in the effort to become a dragon.....Not falling down.
And the Koi is always facing forward on the body. Never back. (I'm sure you can immaging the symbology around that as well).
Getting the tattoos in the wrong orientations is kind of like getting kanji, and not really knowing if you got one that says "I'm dumb."