 as for his asceticism regarding the heads of the mosque of ibn raghban the people of basra prefer the meat of castrated goats to whole sheep and sheep heads are fatter more tender and more delicious. the head of a male goat has more meat than the head of a castrated goat because the skin of a castrated goat sweats and the meat of its head is less and its skin does not reach even if it is a goat in price a tenth of what the skin of a male goat reaches and its head is only less. that is why he skipped it to something else.
وأما زهده في رؤوس مسجد ابن رغبان، فان البصريين يختارون لحم الماعز الخصي على الضأن كله، ورؤوس الضأن أشحم وألحم رخصا وأطيب. ورأس التيس أكثر لحما من رأس الخصي، لأن الخصي من الماعز يعرق جلده، ويقل لحم رأسه ولا يبلغ جلده وإن كان ما عزا في الثمن عشر ما يبلغ جلد التيس، ولا يكون رأسه إلا دونا. ولذلك تخطاه إلى غيره.