It is stated in "Sahih al-Bukhari" that Abdullah ibn Umar used to trim from his beard what was less than a handful, and it is authentic from him that he is the narrator of the hadith regarding leaving the beard long.

The questioner : It is stated in "Sahih al-Bukhari" that Abdullah ibn Umar used to trim from his beard what was less than a handful, and it is authentic from him that he is the narrator of the hadith regarding leaving the beard long. It is known in the language that leaving the beard long means leaving it as is. Do we want to reconcile between these actions and words?

The Shaykh : There is no contradiction between this and that, because leaving the beard long is as I mentioned, but this leaving of the beard is not a hidden matter that we should generalize, but rather it is a matter observed from the Messenger (peace be upon him). The witness sees what the absent one does not see. That is, Ibn Umar, who narrated the hadith from the Messenger (peace be upon him) , undoubtedly lived with the Messenger (peace be upon him) for many years, so he saw him either trimming or not trimming. What does the Muslim, who knows the biography of Abdullah ibn Umar and his eagerness to adhere to the Sunnah to the extent that he adhered to the customary Sunnah, imagine? We have explained to you at times the difference between the devotional Sunnah and the customary Sunnah. He (may Allah be pleased with him) would perform actions that attracted attention, or even required reproof. For example, he was seen one day circling his camel around a place. He was asked about the reason, and he said: "I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) doing that." He was seen intentionally urinating at a tree. He was asked about that, and he said: "I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) do that." These are matters in which it is absolutely clear that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) did not intend to draw near to Allah in them, but rather the circumstances required it. However, Abdullah ibn Umar's love for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) and his emulation of him led him to emulate him completely, even in customary matters.
Perhaps he, or another of the Companions, was seen unbuttoning his shirt. He was asked about that, and he said: "I saw the Messenger of Allah do that." The Messenger of Allah did that mixed with a feeling of heat, to relieve himself a little. But this does not mean that it is worship, but rather it is a need! If the need is found, he unbuttons; if the need to button is found, he buttons. And so on. So, if one is of this caliber in his eagerness to follow the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), even in customary matters, do we imagine that he would contradict the absolute command of the Prophet in his saying: , while he sees the Messenger (peace be upon him) morning and evening, night and day, not trimming from his beard what is less than a handful (what exceeds it)?
This is the intended meaning. This is the furthest thing from such a man who was unique in his eagerness to follow the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) with an eagerness that not even his father, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, shared with him. In fact, his father contradicted him, and we see that his contradiction of him is the correct one. 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), on one of his journeys, found people who had stopped at a place and were taking a path to the right or left. Something caught his attention and drew his eye, so he asked where these people were going. It was said to him: There is a prayer place where the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed. He said (may Allah be pleased with him) — and this is from the precision of 'Umar's knowledge — he said: "O people, whoever catches the prayer in one of these places, let him pray, for what destroyed those before you was their following the traces of their prophets." "What destroyed those before you was their following the traces of their prophets." He rebuked these people who were intentionally taking a path that was not their path to Mecca, but rather a side path leading to a prayer place where it was established that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed there. He prayed there because he stopped at a place there, and the prayer time came, so he prayed. He did not intend to pray there. So why are you intentionally going there? This is extremism in religion. So he said (may Allah be pleased with him): "Do not do that. Whoever catches the prayer in one of these places, let him pray, and otherwise let him move on, for what destroyed those before you was their following the traces of their prophets."
This is 'Umar, but his son was following the traces of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) exactly, step by step. A noble Companion like this heard with his own ears the saying of (peace be upon him): , and then he saw the Messenger, as we said earlier, day and night, not trimming? I assert that it is impossible for someone like him to contradict his Prophet, because he would be contradicting him in his command. He agreed with him in what has no command, in what is his custom and not his worship. So how would he contradict him in what is worship? This is the furthest thing from being correct. Therefore, many of the Companions and the Successors joined Ibn Umar in what he did. Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari narrated in his "Tafsir" many reports that agree with what was mentioned earlier regarding 'Umar taking from his beard what was less than a handful. Ibn Umar, my mind was turned to recalling a report from the noble reports that have not yet appeared in the world of publications. Al-Hafiz Abu Bakr al-Bayhaqi narrated in his book "Shu'ab al-Iman" from Ibrahim ibn Yazid al-Nakha'i — and he is a Successor and a noble jurist — that "the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to take from their beards."
So, if we look at this group of reports, we return to a rule that I have repeatedly mentioned to some of the students — and it is very important: Every general text that contains many parts, if a part of this general text has not been acted upon, then we should not use this general text as evidence for this specific part, as long as the action has not been carried out on it, especially if it is established that the action was carried out on its opposite. Now, here is a general text, no matter how long it is, and even if Allah blesses it and drags it to the ground, what does this mean? The general text , was the action carried out on this? We know that many scholars, both past and present, say: It is obligatory to take the generality of the text, and it is not permissible to take from the beard at all, acting according to the generality. So, we ask, based on this rule that my soul has settled upon and my chest has opened to: Did the action proceed on this absolute generality? Do those who say that it is not permissible to contradict this text prove that the action proceeded on it? And in my opinion, "beyond that is the twisting of the thorn," rather, the action proceeded on the opposite of that. And you have just heard some of the reports. The first is what al-Bukhari narrated in a suspended form, the second is what Ibn Jarir al-Tabari narrated in a connected form from a group of them, in addition to Ibn Umar, Abu Hurayrah, and among them Mujahid from the great Successors and the famous exegetes among them, and among them Ibrahim ibn Yazid al-Nakha'i, who transmitted from the Companions that they used to take from their beards. These reports must not be neglected simply because we understand the generality of the text from its generality, for this part of it is from what the action has not been carried out on.
And this is sufficient, and praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
So depart, guided.