Note 10 — Chapter III

Note 10. In their eagerness to obtain the earliest possible sight of the new moon which marks the period of the commencement of the Ramaḍán, lest they should not begin their fast as soon as the law requires, the Muslims often see the crescent one night earlier in this than in any other month. The comparison of an eyebrow to the new moon of Ramaḍán expresses, therefore, its extreme thinness, as well as its arched form. To reduce its natural thickness, and to give it this form, scissors are often used.