First published on: What The Moon For Muslims Really Is 


  Summar Hamdy

It was a shock for me when I found out that some non-Muslims think we worship the moon, but I also gave them an excuse, they find crescent on every mosque’s top, which is not from islamic teachings in anything, except that it is some meaningless tradition that caused a new misconception. So far; let’s fix it:

What do Muslims consider the moon for?

– For Counting Years & Start of Each Lunar Month:

Deep down the meaning of the crescent to Muslims, and according to Islamic teachings; crescent is mentioned in the Quran for direction guidance, and for calculating years:

It is He who made the sun a shining light and the moon a derived light and determined for it phases – that you may know the number of years and account [of time]. Allah has not created this except in truth. He details the signs for a people who know.” [Quran.com/10/5]

– For Knowing When To Fast:

Prophet Muhammad said; start your fasting days when you see the crescent of the beginning of month of fasting Ramadan (i.e The month for fasting in Islam on the Lunar Calendar), and stop fasting when you see the crescent of the month next to it.

Fast when you see it and stop fasting when you see it, and if it is obscured from you (too cloudy), then count it as thirty (days).” [Sunan an-Nasa’i].

So, Muslims consider the Lunar Calendar for knowing (when) to start their rites which they do to please Allah; The One Creator of Heavens & Earth, and for counting the start of each new month when they firstly see the new crescent.

What Muslims Don’t About The Moon!

Muslims Don’t Even Wear Crescents In Their Necks:

Unfortunately it was a common misconception among non-Muslims, if Christians are wearing the cross, Jews are wearing the star, then Muslims are wearing the crescent, so you’ll find a non-Muslim model supposed to be acting as a Muslim on non-Muslim TV wearing the crescent in her neck; which is in fact  NOT a Muslim thing at all, it’s actually FORBIDDEN in Islam to wear Amulets of any kind. Also on the traditional base, crescent as a jewelry barely exists among Muslims, and even if was found, crescent is mostly about reminding Muslims of the happiness they feel in Ramadan, but also; not from Islamic teachings in anything.

Muslims Don’t & CAN’T Worship The Moon, Not Now, Neither Earlier!

And of His signs are the night and day and the sun and moon. Do not prostrate to the sun or to the moon, but prostrate to Allah, who created them, if it should be Him that you worship.” [Quran.com 41:37]


If a Muslim ever did such a thing as (even thinking) that moon can harm or benefit anyone, then he/she becomes an infidel! As Islam main belief is all about Pure Monotheism.

Is “Allah” The Muslim Name For God?

No, it’s in Arabic Bible “Allah”, meaning Arabic Christians are calling for Allah in churches, and it’s clearly in the Arabic Bible:

Also when we look further, Jesus didn’t call “God” in English but in Aramaic, which is “Alaha” [1], and in search you’ll find that it’s “Elaoh” [2] in Hebrew, which are all giving almost same pronunciation.

It’s the main name of God, The One Creator, Arabic, Aramaic, Syriac, and Hebrew are sister languages, which makes no wonders to know so.

It was always that way in the desert, even until current days, stars, crescent and the moon have been the way Arabs calculated their days, first of each Lunar month, mentioning that few Arabs only are still living in deserts after the invasion of the Skyscrapers in most of Arabian cities.

Therefore, moon for Muslims is nothing, and the crescent over the mosque is only some meaningless tradition, on some Muslim countries flags but not on others, like Egyptian flag for example, it may be just to say “This belongs to Muslims and not any other religion”. And according to the teachings of Islam; neither the moon nor the crescent represent anything except for calculating days on the Lunar Calendar.

It is He who made the sun a shining light and the moon a derived light and determined for it phases – that you may know the number of years and account [of time]. Allah has not created this except in truth. He details the signs for a people who know” [Quran.com/10/5]

[1] Aramaic/Syriac “alaha”, meaning ‘God’ or ‘the God’, Christoph Heger: http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Sources/alaha.html

[2] Hebrew Name of God, John J. Parsons: http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Names_of_G-d/Eloha/eloha.html

Dear Reader: Important Tip About Fasting For 3 Days/Month: Chemotherapy

Fasting has been tested scientifically as one of the best treatment for many diseases, for elderly, and SHOCKINGLY for 3 days per month specifically; as a good treatment for cancer under chemotherapy, The Telegraph reported: “Fasting for as little as three days can regenerate the entire immune system, even in the elderly, scientists have found in a breakthrough described as ‘remarkable’.”

“Observing Saum (fasting) on three days of every month is equivalent to a full month’s fasting.” [Bukhari & Muslim] Prophet Muhammad said over 1400 years ago. For more;  please read: Fasting for three days can regenerate entire immune system, study finds, Sarah Knapton, Science Correspondent, 5 June 2014 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2016/03/12/fasting-for-three-days-can-regenerate-entire-immune-system-study/