What is the ruling regarding men growing a beard?

Published as Growing a Beard

· 14 Rajab 1433 AH1 min readEnglish

Question

What is the ruling regarding men growing a beard? Is it necessary or merely a tradition?

Answer

It is compulsory for men to grow the beard to the extent of one fist. Shaving or trimming the beard before one fist is impermissible.

References (Arabic / Urdu sources)

ولا بأس بنتف الشيب و أخذ أطراف اللحية والسنة فيها القبضة ... ولذا يحرم على الرجل قطع لحيته (الدر المختار 6/406)

( لا ) يكره ... تطويل اللحية إذا كانت بقدر المسنون وهو القبضة ... وأما الأخذ منها وهي دون ذلك كما يفعله بعض المغاربة ومخنثة الرجال فلم يبحه أحد وأخذ كلها فعل يهود الهند ومجوس الأعاجم (الدر المختار 2/417-418)

Answered by
Mufti Zakaria Makada
Checked & approved by
Mufti Ebrahim Salejee (Isipingo Beach)
Questions about this ruling, answered only from the archive with sources.

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People also ask

What is the length of the beard in Islam?

“It is impermissible (makrooh-e-tahreemi) to appoint a person who shaves his beard or trims it less than one fist length as the Imaam. However, if such a person is appointed as the Imaam, the sin will not be upon the musallis,…”

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