eumenes polifomis, kind of wasp
蝡 refers to a specific kind of wasp, Eumenes polifomis. Its meaning is narrow and biological, without a broader conceptual center.
蝡 combines 虫 (insect) with 耎, which likely contributes the sound. The exact historical development of 耎 is uncertain, but the character is clearly a phono-semantic compound for a type of wasp.
The insect radical 虫 on the left hints at a bug, and the right side 耎 looks like a wasp's nest with a big opening (大) over a comb-like structure (而). Picture a wasp guarding its nest.
For ゼン, imagine a Zen monk calmly observing a wasp without flinching: Zen -> ゼン, and the wasp 蝡 buzzes peacefully.