Despite the fact that the establishment of the Council for Calendar Center of Tehran University in the Institute of Geophysics has brought about considerable developments in the country’s comparative chronology, the exact days of the beginning of the month of Ramadan and ‘Īd al-Fitr are still prone to change. This inconsistency is more related to the differences and variations in legal judgments (fatwās) than to weakness of astronomical calculations and lack of serious observations. Of course, all these variations in calendars have been for safeguarding the principle of “accuracy” in extracting the calendar. This article is intended to show that negligence of the necessity of the two principles of consistency and coordination in the country’s formal calendar has incurred considerable social and economical expenses for the nation. In conclusion, emphasizing that the calendar is very important in its social perspective as well as its religious aspect, a better solution for extracting and ratification of the country’s formal calendar is suggested that guarantees a relatively better balance between the three principles of accuracy, consistency, and coordination.
Samiei, Mohammad (2008) “Crescent Sighting in the Shi‘a Community: Roots and Ramifications of Controversy”. Journal of Shi‘a Islamic Studies, Volume 1, number 4.
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