What is the ruling on keeping the waste that a person removes from his body, such as fingernails?

The questioner : O Shaykh, some people, when they trim their fingernails, keep them or place them in a location. Is there a basis for this?

The Shaykh : Some scholars say that the waste a person removes, such as fingernails, pubic hair, armpit hair, and mustache hair, should be buried. They have narrated an athar (report) regarding this from 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him and his father), but I do not recall a sunnah (recommended practice) from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) on this matter. This may have been an ijtihad (independent legal reasoning) of Ibn 'Umar based on the generality of the statement of Allah the Exalted: . If we take the generality, we would say that everything that separates from the human body is to be returned to the earth. However, I do not recall a sunnah on this matter, so Allah knows best. If a person buries it, there is nothing wrong with it, and if he throws it in any place, there is nothing wrong with it.