The Shari'ah's concern with the outward appearance of a person, for it is the title of the inward state

The Shaykh : Therefore, one should not be lenient in rectifying outward appearances on the grounds that what matters is the inward state, for there is a very close connection between the outward and the inward. There is a close connection between the outward and the inward, and this is what the Messenger (peace be upon him) affirmed in the authentic hadith recorded in the two Sahihs, where the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: .
The student : And whoever falls into doubtful matters has fallen into [forbidden matters].

The Shaykh : No, no, before that.
The student : Every king has a protected area.

The Shaykh : Yes, . The point is the complete hadith: So let no one be deceived by the words of some people who say that these outward appearances—this beard, this jilbab, or this dishdasha, or whatever is similar—are merely formal, outward matters of no value. No, and no again, for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded in this group of hadiths to rectify outward appearances because they are a sign of the rectitude of the inward state. Do you not see that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: , as if the matter were entirely material? How so? If the heart of an old, elderly man is sound, his body is sound, and vice versa. If the heart of a strong, robust young man becomes corrupt, his body becomes corrupt, exactly so. This faith that is settled in the heart, if it weakens, does so only by opposing the Shari'ah and committing what our Lord (Blessed and Exalted is He) and His Prophet have forbidden. Then this heart becomes ill, and with the illness of this heart, faith becomes ill . Thus, the saying of some scholars is correct: "The outward is the title of the inward." Therefore, we find dozens of hadiths from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbidding imitation of the Jews and Christians and commanding their opposition, even in matters that a person does not control, even in matters that a person does not control. The Wise Lawgiver commands opposing the Jews and Christians, and you know, for example, His saying (peace and blessings be upon him): . Gray hair is the Sunnah of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) in His creation; there is no difference in that between a Muslim and a disbeliever. And yet, the Messenger (peace be upon him) commanded the Muslim that when he grows gray, and the disbelievers grow gray just like him, he should oppose them in this gray hair, knowing that it is not of his making but of his Lord's making. He said: . Therefore, dyeing hair was among the Sunnahs of worship that the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) followed him in, dyeing their hair until Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not resemble Allah with a grayness that would disfigure him, but rather there were about twenty white hairs in the front of his beard . And yet, he died (peace and blessings be upon him) with henna mixed with katam visible on his beard (peace and blessings be upon him). And his Companions did the same after him, and it became a followed Sunnah among the scholars of hadith later, who cared about following the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) exactly, tooth for tooth. When they wrote biographies of men, they would say, "And he used to dye his hair, and he used to dye his hair," because this is a Sunnah that few Muslims have cared about in the past, let alone the Muslims of the last times. The point of all this is that the Messenger (peace be upon him) commanded us to rectify outward appearances. Part of this rectification is that when a teacher or preacher sits to teach, it is not permissible for people to be far from him; rather, they should be close to him, because this outward appearance indicates the close connection between this teacher who imparts beneficial knowledge, if Allah wills, and these listeners to his speech. Therefore, take this as a rule: do not sit in mosques in large circles. If one of you sits to teach and benefit his brothers, he must urge them to come close to him so that they are near, as he said (peace and blessings be upon him): , to the end of the hadith.