包袱
bāofú · HSK 7
burden
🎒 bāo = wrap + fú = skin/cover — a cloth that wraps things up
The first character 包 means to wrap or contain. The second 袱 has the clothing radical 衤, pointing to fabric. Together: a cloth used for wrapping bundles. The figurative leap to burden is natural — a heavy bundle on your back weighs you down.
包 — 勹 wrap + 巳 fetus
包 is a pictograph showing a fetus (巳) wrapped inside a womb (勹, an enclosing shape). The original sense was 'to wrap' or 'enclose,' and it later extended to mean a bundle, package, or bag. It also serves as a phonetic component in many characters like 抱, 泡, and 饱.