Beard is a gift from Allah
The Exalted (subhanahu wata`ala) for male descendants of Adam. It is an
indicator of manhood. Keeping it is Allah's commandment, as conveyed by prophet
Muhammad shallallahu alaihi wasallam (Peace Be Upon Him) in his sayings.
Messenger of Allah
shallallahu alaihi wa sallam once said:
أَعْفُوا اللِّحَى، وَأَحْفُوا الشَّوَارِبَ
Let the beard grow and trim
the mustache. (Hadith
reported by An-Nasa'i)
He shallallahu alaihi wa
sallam also said:
خَالِفُوا المُشْرِكِينَ: وَفِّرُوا اللِّحَى، وَأَحْفُوا الشَّوَارِبَ
“Do the opposite of what
the pagans do. Keep the beard and cut the moustaches short.” (Hadith reported by Al-Bukhary)
Messenger of Allah
shallallahu alaihi wa sallam also said:
جُزُّوا الشَّوَارِبَ، وَأَرْخُوا اللِّحَى خَالِفُوا الْمَجُوسَ
“Trim the moustaches, let
the beard grow, and do the opposite of what zoroastrians do” (hadith reported
by Muslim)
It was revealed from many
narrations that the Messenger of Allah shallallahu alaihi wa sallam always
commands his people to let the beard grow. And his commands is an obligation to
every capable muslim. What forbids us from obeying his command?? What allows us
to go against his command??
Allah The Exalted stated:
فَلْيَحْذَرِ الَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِ أَنْ تُصِيبَهُمْ
فِتْنَةٌ أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ
“And let those who conspire
to evade orders beware lest grief or painful punishment befall them.” (Surah Nur : 63)
Aside from his (shallallahu
alaihi wa sallam) command on the obligation to keep the beard or let it grow,
it is essential for us to know the nature of his beard, whether it was thin or
even non-existent ?? Or perhaps his is thick and numerous ??
One of the prophet's
companion, Jabir bin Samurra once reported the description of his beard in a
hadith:
كَانَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَدْ شَمِطَ
مُقَدَّمُ رَأْسِهِ وَلِحْيَتِهِ، وَكَانَ إِذَا ادَّهَنَ لَمْ يَتَبَيَّنْ، وَإِذَا
شَعِثَ رَأْسُهُ تَبَيَّنَ، وَكَانَ كَثِيرَ شَعْرِ اللِّحْيَةِ
“... There had
appeared some whiteness on the front part of the head and beard of Allah's
Messenger. When he applied oil, it did not become visible, but when he did not
(apply) oil, it became apparent. And he had a thick beard.” (Hadith reported by
Muslim)
Jumhur (the dominant
majority of the) ulama deemed that keeping the beard is obligatory and trimming
it is prohibited. Among them including Ibn Hazm (rahimahullah – may Allah
bestow His Mercy) even quoted the ijma` (consensus) that trimming the beard is
prohibited.
He said:
وَاتَّفَقُوا أَن حلق جَمِيع اللِّحْيَة مثلَة لَا تجوز
“And the ulama had reached
the consensus that trimming the beard in totality/as a whole is prohibited.”
(Maratib al-Ijma`, page 157)
The beard of the rightly
guided caliphs, Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and `Ali radhiyallahu anhum (May Allah
be pleased with them) were also described as thick. Below are the description
of their beards.
Abu Bakr radhiyallahu anhu:
Aisha radhiyallahu anha
(his daughter) once described the beard of Abu Bakr radhiyallahu :
أخرج ابن سعد عن عائشة -رضي الله عنها- أن رجلاً قال لها: صِفي لنا أبا
بكر، فقالت: رجل أبيض، نحيف، خفيف العارضين
Narrated
by Ibn Sa`d, from Aisha radhiyallahu anha that a man once asked her, “Please
describe Abu Bakr to us!” She thus said, “he was a
white man, lean, and having thin sideburns” (Tarikh al-Khulafa`, p. 30)
Umar bin Khattab
radhiyallahu anhu:
وأخرج ابن عساكر عن أبي رجاء العطاردي قال: كان
عمر رجلًا طويلًا جسيمًا أصلع شديد الصلع أبيض شديد الحمرة في عارضيه خفة، سبلته كبيرة
Ibn Asakir narrated from
Abi Raja` Al-Atharidi that he said: “Umar was a tall, powerfully-built man, his
head was shaved (or he was bald), his complexion was reddish white, his
sideburns was thin and his beard thick.” (Tarikh al-Khulafa` p. 105)
Uthman bin Affan
radhiyallahu anhu:
وأخرج ابن عساكر من طرق: أن عثمان كان رجلًا ربعة:
ليس بالقصير، ولا بالطويل، حسن الوجه، أبيض مشربًا حمرة، بوجهه نمشات جدري، كثير اللحية
Ibnu Asakir reported from
several narrations that Uthman bin Affan was an average-sized man, neither
short nor tall. He was a handsome man with a reddish white complexion. He had
mole in his face, and plenty of beard” Tarikh al-Khulafa` p. 119
Ali bin Abi Thalib
radhiyallahu anhu:
وكان علي شيخًا سمينًا، أصلع، كثير الشعر، ربعة
إلى القصر عظيم البطن، عظيم اللحية جدًّا، قد ملأت ما بين منكبيه بيضاء كأنها قطن
And Ali was a stout old
man, there were patches of baldness on his head, but he still had plenty of
hair. He was of medium to short height. He was plump, and having a very thick
beard. His beard filled his chest region, was of white colour similar to
cotton” Tarikh al-Khulafa` p. 130
In conclusion, those were
the description of the beard of our prophet Muhammad shallallahu alaihi
wasallam and the rightly guided caliphs. It is our obligation to follow through
their path (their Sunnah). The Messenger of Allah shallallahu alaihi wa sallam
once said:
فَعَلَيْكُمْ بِسُنَّتِي وَسُنَّةِ الْخُلَفَاءِ الرَّاشِدِينَ
الْمَهْدِيِّينَ، وَعَضُّوا عَلَيْهَا بِالنَّوَاجِذِ، وَإِيَّاكُمْ وَمُحْدَثَاتِ
الْأُمُورِ، فَإِنَّ كُلَّ مُحْدَثَةٍ بِدْعَةٌ، وَإِنَّ كُلَّ بِدْعَةٍ ضَلَالَةٌ
“So you must keep to my
Sunnah and to the Sunnah of the Khulafa ar-Rashideen (the rightly guided
caliphs), those who guide to the right way. Cling to it stubbornly [literally:
with your molar teeth]. Beware of newly invented matters [in the religion], for
verily every bidah (innovation) is misguidance.” (Hadith
reported by Ahmad)
And Allah knows best, we
pray to Him for the beneficence of this article.
Author: Muhammad Abdurrahman Al Amiry
Translators: AU
Articles: alamiry.net (Study Al Amiry)
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