Mortar
The mortar denotes the receptive feminine principle; paired with the phallic pestle, it signifies fertility, and together they also evoke grinding and transformation.
Our paraphrase of what the sources say it carries.
At a glance
- Type
- Symbol
- Borne by
- 2 figures
- Traditions
- East Asian folklore (general) (1)Slavic folklore (1)
Figures that bear it
A model judged each figure against its own description, one term at a time. Is: the figure is, or is partly, this thing. Bears: it carries the thing or is marked by it. What a figure does is filed under motifs and powers. Open "why" for the sentence the judgement rests on.
- Baba Yaga bears Slavic folklore
why
She travels in a mortar, wielding a pestle as both weapon …
- Moon rabbit bears East Asian folklore (general)
why
… on the moon, often seen pounding with a mortar and pestle