Marker above「filled, plugged orifice」or「plugging filled orifice」also may depict the head of an infant during the birthing process, as well as the fact that a baby's soft spots, open holes in its skull, later become a「filled-in orifice」as the bones fuse and close the spots with no bone at birth. Some scholars say this is a variant of an infant's skull (囟) with the「center of the head, weave」of an「enclosure」of bones forming it. The human skull at birth is not a single bone, but weaves together into a solid shape and hardens after birth, eventually closing over the soft spots in the skull (that could enable access to the physical brain). A newborn infant's soft spots are called a fontanelle (or fontanel). Babies are actually born with six fontanelles, which are spaces where the skull bones have not yet fused together. The two most prominent are the anterior fontanelle, a large, diamond-shaped soft spot located on the top-front of the head. It typically closes between 12 and 18 months of age. The other is the posterior fontanelle, a smaller, triangular-shaped soft spot located at the back of the head, which usually closes within the first 2 to 3 months. These gaps are vital because they allow the skull to flex during birth and accommodate a rapidly growing brain. The separate bones and softer form allow for an easier passage through the birth canal, but in particular passage through the tightest point and 'bottleneck', the mother's VAGINAL CERVIX connecting the uterus with the vagina ('cervix' means 'neck').
Emphasis on the DEEPEST PART, the top of a「filled plugged orifice」which in this case may possibly refer to the VAGINAL CERVIX:「…cervical mucus plug (operculum) is a plug that fills and seals the cervical canal during pregnancy. It is formed by a small amount of cervical mucus. The mucus plug acts as a protective barrier by deterring the passage of bacteria into the uterus, and contains a variety of antimicrobial agents, including immunoglobulins, and similar antimicrobial peptides to those found in nasal mucus.」
[ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cervical_mucus_plug 2015-11-05 ]
Other sources claim that this element means "the head of a ghost" [recall that "ghosts" are the disembodied spirits of something that has died], another variant of an infant's skull. Whether this is the case, or not, does imply that the element has nothing to do with rice paddies of any kind. In pre-modern and historical societies, approximately 30% of infants died within their first year of life. When looking more broadly at childhood, historical demographers and archaeological data indicate that about 50% of all children died before reaching puberty (roughly age 15). The primary drivers of these staggering loss rates included infectious diseases and malnutrition, post-natal infections, contaminated water, and gastrointestinal illnesses as major killers once the infant began weaning. Birth complications of obstructed labor, breech presentations, and umbilical cord prolapses frequently resulted in the death of both the mother and the newborn. Prematurity and low birth weight without modern incubators, respiratory support, or specialized neonatal intensive care, preterm infants faced a very low chance of survival. Because child loss was so common, many historical cultures delayed naming infants until they had survived their perilous first weeks or months of life.