8. The eighth method is to place three fingers—the little, the ring, and the middle—on the string, keep the index finger extended along the length of the arrow, and give the thumb no share at all.
   This is the hook (1) of all the Slavs, to whom it is ascribed. For these three fingers they fashion thimbles of gold, silver, copper, or iron, and in this technique the bow is held upright, not laid on its side.

9. The ninth is to draw with four fingers (2): the index, middle, little, and ring.
   This was the practice of the ancient Arabs in the pre-Islamic era. Some of them (3) drew with these fingers while keeping the bow horizontal, placed the arrow between the middle and ring fingers, and pulled to their chests; most of the Bedouins adhered to it.

Some authorities have said: All of these hooks are erroneous except the sixty-three hook; yet one may occasionally be forced to use one of them if something happens to the thumb or the like, so it is worth learning them—or at least some of them. Still, whoever seeks power, firmness, and speed must employ the sixty-three hook.

Furthermore, certain archers have said: I conceal my nails completely, and I set the string at the thumb-joint perfectly straight, without any slant.