What is the ruling on shaving the beard, and how do we reconcile this with the action of Ibn 'Umar in Hajj?
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The reader: The questioner asks, what is the ruling on shaving the beard, and how do we reconcile this with the action of Ibn 'Umar...
The Shaykh : And with what?
The reader: The action of Ibn 'Umar in Hajj.
The Shaykh : Yes, the strange thing is that this questioner asked about one thing and brought up something he thinks contradicts it, but it does not contradict it. He asked about shaving the beard, then said: "And how do we combine that with the action of Ibn 'Umar?" Did Ibn 'Umar shave his beard?!
The student: No.
The Shaykh : So that we can ask how to combine this with the action of Ibn 'Umar? May he be far from that!
Shaving the beard is a sin against the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Shaving the beard is contrary to the guidance of the Prophets and Messengers. Shaving the beard is contrary to the path of the righteous Salaf. Shaving the beard is contrary to what a believer should be, in his adherence to the command of Allah and His Messenger and his following of the guidance of the Messengers (peace and blessings be upon them).
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: And some of the common people narrate this hadith and say: "Honor the living and disgrace the mustaches". The mustaches would be upset if you said disgrace them!!
As for honoring the beards, some people say: Honoring the beards is by removing this hair from them! Because if he removes this hair, they remain clean, and if the hair remains, it may become soiled with dirt. So honoring the beard is by shaving it. Look, because this narration from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is defective in wording, it became defective in meaning. The Messenger did not say "Honor the beards," but rather he said: All of this means leave them as they are. So if he shaves it, he has disobeyed the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and whoever disobeys the Messenger has disobeyed Allah.
As for the action of Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him and his father), that when he performed Hajj he would grasp his beard and cut what exceeded the handful, that is his action. And his action is not used to contradict the text, because the saying of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) takes precedence over the saying of Ibn 'Umar and others, and over the action of Ibn 'Umar and others.
So if someone says: Ibn 'Umar is the narrator of the hadith and he is more knowledgeable about its meaning?
We say: The hadith is before us, and it does not contain what indicates the permissibility of the action of Ibn 'Umar. But Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) exercised independent legal reasoning, and the one who exercises independent legal reasoning may be mistaken or may be correct.
Then we say: Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) did not do this always, but rather he did it when he performed Hajj. So it is as if he (may Allah be pleased with him) considered that if he shortened his hair or shaved it, then completing that would be to shorten his beard, but he would leave it the size of a handful. And with this, the action of Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), as you have seen now, the action of Ibn 'Umar is a specific thing. By what?
By the handful. And the specific thing must have evidence established for its specification. So where in the Sunnah is there what indicates that the command to let the beard grow is limited to the amount of a handful?
It does not exist. And we are responsible for the words of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), not for the words of any person.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : As for the boundaries of the beard, the beard is from the prominent bone adjacent to the ear canal to the bottom of the chin. That is, from the ear to the ear, all of this is of the beard. And as for what is on the throat, meaning on the neck, that is not of the beard. And as for what is on the cheek, the apparent statement of the scholars of knowledge is that it is of the beard, and that it is not permissible to shave it. And Allah knows best.
The Shaykh : And with what?
The reader: The action of Ibn 'Umar in Hajj.
The Shaykh : Yes, the strange thing is that this questioner asked about one thing and brought up something he thinks contradicts it, but it does not contradict it. He asked about shaving the beard, then said: "And how do we combine that with the action of Ibn 'Umar?" Did Ibn 'Umar shave his beard?!
The student: No.
The Shaykh : So that we can ask how to combine this with the action of Ibn 'Umar? May he be far from that!
Shaving the beard is a sin against the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Shaving the beard is contrary to the guidance of the Prophets and Messengers. Shaving the beard is contrary to the path of the righteous Salaf. Shaving the beard is contrary to what a believer should be, in his adherence to the command of Allah and His Messenger and his following of the guidance of the Messengers (peace and blessings be upon them).
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Differ from the Zoroastrians, let the beards grow, and trim the mustaches.
خالفوا المجوس، وفّروا اللحى وحفوا الشواربAs for honoring the beards, some people say: Honoring the beards is by removing this hair from them! Because if he removes this hair, they remain clean, and if the hair remains, it may become soiled with dirt. So honoring the beard is by shaving it. Look, because this narration from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is defective in wording, it became defective in meaning. The Messenger did not say "Honor the beards," but rather he said:
Let the beards grow.
وفّروا اللحىLet the beards grow full.
أوفوا اللحىLet the beards hang down.
أرخوا اللحىLet the beards grow.
أعفوا اللحىAs for the action of Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him and his father), that when he performed Hajj he would grasp his beard and cut what exceeded the handful, that is his action. And his action is not used to contradict the text, because the saying of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) takes precedence over the saying of Ibn 'Umar and others, and over the action of Ibn 'Umar and others.
So if someone says: Ibn 'Umar is the narrator of the hadith and he is more knowledgeable about its meaning?
We say: The hadith is before us, and it does not contain what indicates the permissibility of the action of Ibn 'Umar. But Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) exercised independent legal reasoning, and the one who exercises independent legal reasoning may be mistaken or may be correct.
Then we say: Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) did not do this always, but rather he did it when he performed Hajj. So it is as if he (may Allah be pleased with him) considered that if he shortened his hair or shaved it, then completing that would be to shorten his beard, but he would leave it the size of a handful. And with this, the action of Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), as you have seen now, the action of Ibn 'Umar is a specific thing. By what?
By the handful. And the specific thing must have evidence established for its specification. So where in the Sunnah is there what indicates that the command to let the beard grow is limited to the amount of a handful?
It does not exist. And we are responsible for the words of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), not for the words of any person.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : As for the boundaries of the beard, the beard is from the prominent bone adjacent to the ear canal to the bottom of the chin. That is, from the ear to the ear, all of this is of the beard. And as for what is on the throat, meaning on the neck, that is not of the beard. And as for what is on the cheek, the apparent statement of the scholars of knowledge is that it is of the beard, and that it is not permissible to shave it. And Allah knows best.