yoni

American  

[yoh-nee] / ˈyoʊ ni /

noun

1. a representation of the external female genitals, a symbol of Shakti or of female generative power.

---

yoni British  

/ ˈjəʊnɪ /

noun

1. the female genitalia, regarded as a divine symbol of sexual pleasure and matrix of generation and the visible form of Sakti

2. an image of these as an object of worship

---

Other Word Forms

• yonic adjective

Etymology

Origin of yoni

Borrowed into English from Sanskrit around 1790–1800

Example Sentences

At other times they are several inches in height, as in the domestic examples, and often have the bull Nandi carved either at the end of the yoni or at the side of the emblem.

From Phallic Miscellanies Facts and Phases of Ancient and Modern Sex Worship, as Illustrated Chiefly in the Religions of India by Jennings, Hargrave

Only after having reached a yoni the soul, affected with a remnant of its works, obtains a new body, and only in a body there can be the enjoyment of pleasure and pain.

From The Vedanta-Sutras with the Commentary by Ramanuja — Sacred Books of the East, Volume 48 by Thibaut, George

For that the word 'source' denotes the material cause is well known from the use of ordinary language; the earth, for instance, is called the yoni of trees and herbs.

From The Vedanta-Sutras with the Commentary by Sankaracarya Sacred Books of the East, Volume 1 by Thibaut, George

The lingam symbol is to be seen all over India, alone or with the yoni.

From Folkways A Study of the Sociological Importance of Usages, Manners, Customs, Mores, and Morals by Sumner, William Graham

Indescribably soft and sweet the chorus of those little voices in the round: Kango-kango sho-ya, Naka yoni sho-ya, Don-don to kunde Jizo-San no midzu wo Matsuba no midzu irete, Makkuri kadso.

From Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan Second Series by Hearn, Lafcadio