The Connection Between the Letter ס and the Creation of a Women
ויפל ד' אלקים תרדמה על האדם ויישן ויקח אחת מצלעתיו ויסגר בשר תחת נה
“And Hashem cast a deep sleep upon Man, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs and closed the flesh beneath the incision.” (Beraishis 2:21)
The Medrash (Bereishis Rabbah 17:6) points out that the letter ס does not appear in the Torah’s narrative of Creation until the 52nd pasuk, which records that after Hashem caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep and took one of his ribs to form his wife Chava, He closed (ויסגר) Adam’s flesh. The Medrash parenthetically notes that the letter ס does appear a few pasukim earlier (Bereishis 2:11) in the word הסובב, but says this does not count because it is referring to the river. The Matnas Kehuna commentary explains that the word הסובב is merely describing where the river runs, not recording an act of formation. Why is the letter ס first used in conjunction with the creation of woman?
Rabbi Paysach Krohn explains that when spelled out, the letter ס is written סמך, which also means “support.” The Gemara says (Yevamos 62b) that a man who dwells without a wife lacks a חומה - wall, as a supportive wife protects and encourages her husband.
The Torah says (2:18) that Hashem created Chava to serve as an עזר כנגדו - helpmate opposite Adam. The numerical value of this phrase is 360 – the number of degrees in the circular ס that surrounds and protects what is inside. The Targum Onkelos renders the word עזר into Aramaic as סמך – supportive wall. For this reason, a kallah walks around her chosson under the chuppah to symbolize this function, and he in turn gives her a round ring.
The Mishnah (Ta’anis 26b) teaches that: חמשה עשר באב – the 15th of Av – was designated for eligible Jewish males to look for a suitable wife. The Arizal notes that באבחמשה עשר can also be read as the th letter in the aleph-beis – ס, the letter that connotes support and is used for the first time to describe the creation of woman, who fulfills this vital role he seeks in a wife. (R’ Ozer Alport)