194. IX. THAT THIS FORMATION IS EFFECTED BY THE WIFE IN SECRET WAYS; AND THAT THIS IS WHAT IS MEANT BY THE WOMAN BEING CREATED WHILE THE MAN SLEPT. We read in the Book of Creation that Jehovah God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, that he might fall asleep, and then took one of his ribs and built it into a woman (Gen. 2:21, 22). That by the man's sleep and by his falling asleep is signified his entire ignorance that a wife is being formed and, as it were, created from him, is evident from what was shown in the preceding and also in the present chapter, concerning the innate prudence and circumspection of wives in not divulging anything whatever about their love or about their assumption of the affections of the man's life and so about the transcription of his wisdom into themselves. That this is effected by the wife in secret ways, the husband all unaware and as though sleeping, is clear from what has been explained above (nos. 166-68 seq.). There it was also explained that for reasons which are necessities, the prudence to accomplish this is implanted in women from creation and hence from birth, to the end that conjugial love, friendship, and confidence may be established, and so the blessedness of cohabitation and the happiness of life. That this may be rightly done, it was therefore enjoined on the man that he should leave father and mother and cleave unto his wife (Gen. 2:24; Matt. 19:4, 5). [2] In the spiritual sense, by the father and mother whom the man is to leave is meant the proprium of his will and the proprium of his understanding, the proprium of man's will being to love himself, and the proprium of his understanding to love his own wisdom; and by cleaving is signified devoting himself to the love of his wife. That these two propriums are evils deadly to man if they remain with him, and that the love of the two is changed into conjugial love so far as the man cleaves to his wife, that is, receives her love, may be seen just above (no. 193) and in other passages. That by sleeping is signified being in ignorance or unconcern; that by father and mother are signified the two propriums of man, that of his will and that of his understanding; and that by cleaving is signified devoting one's self to the love of some one, can be abundantly confirmed by passages from other parts of the Word, but this is not the place.