A Clear Answer to the Discussion on Letting the Beard Grow and Shaving It
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Q: From 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Abd Allah ibn Baz to the honorable brother, the virtuous Shaykh M. D. 'A. D., may Allah increase him in knowledge and faith and make him a source of blessing wherever he may be, amen. Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
To proceed, your noble letter dated 13/10/1394 AH has reached me, may Allah connect you to the rope of guidance and success. It contained the information that a discussion took place between you and some teachers, graduates of al-Azhar, regarding the ruling on letting the beard grow, shaving it, and shortening it. Neither of you was convinced by the other's opinion, and you desired a clear and satisfying answer on this topic. Is that correct?
A: It is established from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) the command to let the beard grow and leave it long, as in the hadith of Ibn 'Umar in the two Sahihs, and the hadith of Abu Hurayrah in Sahih Muslim. Other hadiths on this matter have been reported in collections other than the two Sahihs, and all of them indicate the obligation of letting the beard grow, leaving it long, and preserving it. They also indicate the prohibition of shaving it and shortening it. This is because the default ruling for commands is obligation, and the default ruling for prohibitions is prohibition. It is not permissible for anyone to divert the texts from their original meaning and apparent sense except with a valid proof that is sound to rely upon. There is no proof for those who have taken these hadiths out of their original meaning and apparent sense, saying that they do not indicate obligation, or that they do not indicate the prohibition of shaving and shortening.
As for the hadith narrated by al-Tirmidhi from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to take from his beard in length and width, it is a false hadith according to the scholars of knowledge. This is because its chain of narration includes 'Umar ibn Harun al-Balkhi, who is accused of lying by most of the imams of hadith and their critics, as mentioned by al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar in (Tahdhib al-Tahdhib) and its abridgment, and as mentioned by al-Dhahabi in (al-Mizan).
Our brother, the distinguished scholar Shaykh 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Qasim al-'Asimi (may Allah have mercy on him), has compiled a treatise on this issue. We are sending you two copies of it. I hope that it, along with what we have mentioned, will be sufficient and provide a satisfying answer to your question. I ask Allah to grant us, you, and all our brothers understanding in His religion and steadfastness upon it, and to protect us all from the misleading trials, for He is the All-Hearing, the Near.
And peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
President of the Islamic University in the Holy City of Madinah
To proceed, your noble letter dated 13/10/1394 AH has reached me, may Allah connect you to the rope of guidance and success. It contained the information that a discussion took place between you and some teachers, graduates of al-Azhar, regarding the ruling on letting the beard grow, shaving it, and shortening it. Neither of you was convinced by the other's opinion, and you desired a clear and satisfying answer on this topic. Is that correct?
A: It is established from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) the command to let the beard grow and leave it long, as in the hadith of Ibn 'Umar in the two Sahihs, and the hadith of Abu Hurayrah in Sahih Muslim. Other hadiths on this matter have been reported in collections other than the two Sahihs, and all of them indicate the obligation of letting the beard grow, leaving it long, and preserving it. They also indicate the prohibition of shaving it and shortening it. This is because the default ruling for commands is obligation, and the default ruling for prohibitions is prohibition. It is not permissible for anyone to divert the texts from their original meaning and apparent sense except with a valid proof that is sound to rely upon. There is no proof for those who have taken these hadiths out of their original meaning and apparent sense, saying that they do not indicate obligation, or that they do not indicate the prohibition of shaving and shortening.
As for the hadith narrated by al-Tirmidhi from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to take from his beard in length and width, it is a false hadith according to the scholars of knowledge. This is because its chain of narration includes 'Umar ibn Harun al-Balkhi, who is accused of lying by most of the imams of hadith and their critics, as mentioned by al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar in (Tahdhib al-Tahdhib) and its abridgment, and as mentioned by al-Dhahabi in (al-Mizan).
Our brother, the distinguished scholar Shaykh 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Qasim al-'Asimi (may Allah have mercy on him), has compiled a treatise on this issue. We are sending you two copies of it. I hope that it, along with what we have mentioned, will be sufficient and provide a satisfying answer to your question. I ask Allah to grant us, you, and all our brothers understanding in His religion and steadfastness upon it, and to protect us all from the misleading trials, for He is the All-Hearing, the Near.
And peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
President of the Islamic University in the Holy City of Madinah
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.