The mill as a sign in culture is distinguished by its special symbolism and a number of metaphorical associations, which, at times, bring the household structure to a completely metaphysical level of perception. So, due to its special shape and ability to set in motion the mill is often associated with temporal categories. This is how the expression "mill of time" was born allegorically.
The mill as a symbol
The mill itself, especially the windmill, has been the object of many beliefs and traditions since ancient times. So, for example, the Slavs attributed the noise of the mill, as well as its properties to transform the power of some elements into others, a mystical meaning. Since ancient times, the mill was considered the abode of mermaids, goblin and other evil spirits. In Christianity, the mill is a symbol of humility.
A lot of symbolic metaphors and concepts are also associated with this word, for example, mill blades have long been called wings, since in their appearance they resemble the wings of birds. A mill is a kind of mechanism designed to successively reduce, grind particles and then mix them into a homogeneous mass. It is from this definition that the following philosophical concept, sung by many poets and artists, follows: "the mill of time."
The mill as an allegory
Perhaps the "mill of time" is something that inexorably absorbs the past, present and future, turning it into small grains, dust, making people insignificant in front of the very essence of being. "The mill of time" is, of course, a concept with a deep figurative meaning. For a concrete person, it is something that indicates the vanity of his life, the insignificance of petty passions and desires.
The mill of time is able to grind all sorrows and resentments, mix together the sorrows and joys that a person has ever thought and experienced, and at the output give a result, a certain personality, as a product of all events experienced in the past and in the present. The mill is a certain arbiter of destinies, who mixes everything and everyone, regardless of faces and situations.
The mill, as the basis of the metaphor, was not taken by chance. After all, this is a grandiose structure, which, at times, is quite difficult to stop, and even more so to turn back. She is only able to go forward, sweeping away literally everything in her path, completely not sorting out what gets into her. As a rule, such structures have stood for centuries, being the unwitting witnesses of many generations of people, tragic and happy events.
Change of eras
Replacing the mill is almost a symbol of a change of era, a symbol of time that is constantly eluding us, every second of which must be appreciated and lived for the benefit of oneself and others in complete harmony with reality and one's soul.
So, the "mill of time" is the embodiment of inexorable movement, a kind of eternal life, in which hours are replaced by years, years by centuries, centuries by millennia. Everything flows away - everything changes, only human memory and faith in higher powers remain from the eternal.
