The term "defile" is used with notable versatility, shifting its meaning from the literal to the metaphorical. In some works it designates a narrow passage or gorge—a physical constriction through which armies must pass, as seen when a cavernous defile leads to an enemy’s retreat [1], [2], [3], [4]—while in other texts it conveys the act of degrading something pure or sacred. Writers employ it to portray the contamination of holy spaces and the sullying of moral or spiritual integrity, whether referring to the defilement of altars and sanctuaries [5], [6], [7], or the degradation of the self and intimate bonds [8], [9], [10]. In this way, "defile" serves as a powerful metaphor, able to evoke both the physical stripping away of pristine terrain and the moral staining of one’s character.