玉の緒

Etymology
Literally “string of jewels” or “cord of beads”, likely in reference as jewellery or prayer beads.

The figurative sense is an extension of with cognate/homophone.

Noun

 * 1) a beaded string, especially a jewelled necklace
 * 2)  the shortness in space of something
 * 3)  the (thread of) life, one’s own existence
 * 4)  during the Edo period, Buddhist mala beads used in Buddha worship
 * :, a species of stonecrop
 * :, a species of stonecrop