imperceptible within something perceptible: he apprehends what is inimical to him, namely, the other man’s inclination toward his wife and her inclination toward him.
Likewise, if a woman finds another woman with her husband, suspects that there is a relationship between them, and feels jealous, this jealousy arises only through this faculty. For jealousy involves aversion and hatred toward what causes harm; it is a kind of apprehension of hostility in that which arouses jealousy. Similarly, a man feels affection for his father, mother, and wife because he senses their love and affection. His apprehension of their love and affection is also, according to them, estimation, since it apprehends something imperceptible within something perceptible: the bond of friendship between them. This is like what they say about a he-goat’s apprehension of a quality in a ewe. When a man sees a woman who is a stranger to him, he may apprehend that she is inclined toward him, much as a he-goat apprehends a quality in a ewe. Or he may apprehend that she recoils from him, much as a ewe apprehends a quality in a wolf. This is a broad subject.
The point is to consider this alongside what Ibn Sīnā says in “The Stations of the Gnostics,” which forms the conclusion of their scripture. Al-Rāzī said:
“This chapter is the most distinguished part of this book, for he has arranged the science of the Sufis in a manner in which none before him preceded him, and none after him will equal him.”
Al-Tūsī endorsed this statement and said:
“It has been stated by the learned