Bone of My Bone

Then the Man said,

This one at last

Is bone of my bone

And flesh of my flesh.

Genesis 2:23

History’s first surgery seems to occur in the second chapter of Genesis, performed by God Himself. The technical and gritty procedure begins as God “cast a deep sleep upon the Man.” The biblical term for this sleep—tardemah—refers to anesthesia in modern Hebrew. The operation continues in a surprisingly clinical manner: God takes Adam’s rib, “closes the flesh at that site,” and “builds” his companion. The episode concludes with an earthy proclamation: woman is “bone” and “flesh” of Adam himself.