Position of the Scholars
All the ‘ulama’ (scholars) of as-Salaf us-Salih (the Righteous early Muslims),
including the Four Imams, agree that shaving the beard is haram (prohibited). They consider shaving it an impermissible mutilation, as has been reported from Umar Bin Abdul Aziz- [At-Tarikh by Ibn Asakir]. They considered the man who shaved his beard effeminate. Many of them would not accept his testimony or allow him to lead the prayers.
CONTEMPORARY SCHOLARS
The great scholars of our time have expressed that it is prohibited to shave
the beard or cut it short. Among those are Ali Mahfuz, Muhammad Nasir ud-Din al-Albani, Abd ul-Aziz Bin Baz, al-Kandahlawi, Abu Bakr al-Jaza’iri,
Ismail al-Ansari, and many others.
WRONGS OF SHAVING THE BEARD
Shaving the beard results in a series of Islamic violations, among which are
the following:
1. Disobedience to Allah
Shaving the beard is an act of disobedience to Allah, as is expressed in the
words of His Messenger !, Abu Hurayrah reported that
"the ruler of Yemen,appointed by the Persian emperor Kisra, sent two envoys
to the Messenger !. When they came into his presence, he noticed that they had shaved their beards and let their moustaches grow big. Hating their ugly appearance, he turned his face away and said, “Woe be to you, who told you to do so?” They replied: “Our lord (Kisra) did!” The Messenger responded: “But my Lord, exalted and glorified be He, has commanded me to spare my beard and trim my moustaches.” [Recorded by Ibn Jarir at-Tabari, IbnSa’d, and Ibn Bishran. Verified to be hasan (good) by al-Albani (Fiqh
us-Sirah by al-Ghazali p. 359)]
2. Disobedience to the Messenger
Shaving the beard is an act of disobedience to the Messenger ! who
commanded the men to spare their beards in many hadiths. Ibn Umar (may
Allah be pleased with them) reported that Allah's Messenger ! said:
“Closely trim the moustaches, and spare the beard.”[Al-Bukhari, Muslim and others]. Obeying the Messenger ! is equivalent to obeying Allah:
“He who obeys the Messenger has obeyed Allah; and as for those who turn away: We have not sent you as a guardian over them.” [An-Nisa 4:80
3. Deviation from the Guidance of the Messenger
There is no doubt that Allah’s Messenger ! is the best example of a man, both
in his appearance and actions. Allah says: “There has certainly been for you in the Messenger of Allah an excellent pattern - for anyone whose hope is
in Allah and the Last Day, and who remembers Allah often.” [An-Nisa' 4:80]
And Jabir " reported that Allah's Messenger ! said: “Verily, the best guidance is Muhammad's guidance.” [Recorded by Muslim]. Jabir Bin Samurah " reported that Allah's Messenger ! had a large beard [Recorded by Muslim]. Shaving the beard clearly exhibits a deviation from his appearance and guidance.
4. Deviation from the Way of Believers
One must strive to follow the ways of the believers and identify with them.
This is an obligation expressed by Allah: “Whoever opposes the Messenger, after guidance has become clear to him, and follows other than the way
of the ‘Believers’, We will give him what he has chosen and let him into Hell: What an evil destination!” [an-Nisa 4:115]
Note: The description ‘Believers’ in the ayah applies first and foremost to the
Sahabah [the Prophet's companions-May Allah be pleased with them all]
All of the prophets (alaihis-salaam), the Sahabah (the Prophet's companions), the great ‘ulama’, and the righteous Salaf (early Muslims) of
this Ummah (Nation) grew their beards.
There is no report of a single one of them selectively shaving his beard. -For example, Allah tells us that Harun (alaihis-salaam) addressed his brother Musa (alaihis-salaam) as follows: He said, “O son of my mother! Do not hold me by my beard or head.” [Ta-Ha 20:94]
Furthermore, there are authentic reports indicating that the Rightly Guided
Successors, as well as other sahabah and tabi'un had large beards. Abu Bakr
" had a thick beard [Qut ul-Qulub 4:9], Umar " had a big beard [Al-Isabah
2:511], Uthman had a large beard [Al-Isabah 2:455], and Ali's beard was so wide as to span the distance between his shoulders [At-Tabaqat (3:25) by Ibn Sa’d], Therefore, shaving the beard exhibits a clear deviation from the way of the believers.
6. Changing Allah's Creation Without Permission
Except for cases that are expressly indicated in Islam, it is prohibited to
change the way that Allah has created things. Changing Allah's creation
without permission involves obeying Satan who, as Allah tells us, had said:
“They actually call upon none but rebellious Satan, whom Allah has cursed. And he had said (to Allah), “I will surely take from among Your servants a specific portion. I will mislead them, give them false promises, command them so they will slit the ears of cattle, and command them so they will change the
creation of Allah.” Certainly, whoever takes Satan as an ally instead of Allah is in tremendous loss.” [an-Nisa 4:117~119]
Allah has honored the human beings and fashioned them in the best form:
“Verily, We have created the human being in the best of stature.” [At-Tin 95:4]
Changing this without permission is indeed an act of great atrocity and deviation that deserves punishment. The Messenger ! has declared that the women who change what Allah has created (such as removing their facial hair, wearing wigs, filing their teeth, or tattooing their bodies) seeking by that to improve their appearance, are accursed by Allah.
Ibn Mas'ud " reported that Allah's Messenger ! said: “Allah curses those (women) who tattoo (for others) and those who get tattoos, those who pluck the facial hair (for others) and those who have their facial hair plucked, those who connect their hair with other (fake) hair, and those who file their teeth for beauty - they all change Allah's creation.” [al-Bukhari and Muslim]
This hadith mentions women in particular because they normally seek to
beautify themselves more than men. But the warning applies to both genders,
because the condition for the curse is declared: changing Allah's creation.
Thus the curse applies to anyone who satisfies such condition. Shaving the beard falls under this warning, as it is much worse than ‘nams’ - (removal of facial hair) practiced by some women.
At-Tahanawi said: “It is established that changing Allah's creation is a cause for the curse, and that whatever Allah's Messenger ! prohibits is prohibited by Allah.” [Bayan ul-Quran]
Waliyy Ullah ad-Dahlawi said: “Cutting it is the way of the Magians, and involves changing Allah's creation.” [Bayan ul-Quran]
7. Imitation of Women
The beard presents a major distinction between men and women. Shaving it
removes this distinction, and is thus a means of imitating women. Any act
that involves imitation of the opposite gender makes a person liable for the
curse of Allah and His Messenger !. Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them), reported: “Allah's Messenger ! has cursed the men who imitate the women; and the women who imitate the men.” [Recorded by al-Bukhari and others].
Al-Kandahlawi said: “No one can have doubt that complete imitation of women arises from shaving the beard. This imitation is stronger than that of imitating their clothing and other matters, because the beard is the foremost and greatest distinction between men and women. This is possible to observe by all people, and is not denied except by one who wants to deceive himself, follow his whims, and be effeminate after Allah has favored him
with the good appearance of a man.” [Wujub i’fa il-Lihyah31-32].
8. Contradicting the Pure Fitrah
The Messenger ! indicates that a child is born with a pure nature, which may
subsequently be blurred by self-indulgence or unfavorable environmental
influence. Abu Hurayrah and al-Aswad Bin Sari reported that Allah's Messenger ! said: “Every child is born with the pure fitrah (nature) - until
he becomes able to express himself. It is his parents who then turn him into a Jew, a Christian, a Magian, or a pagan.” [al-Bukhari and Muslim]
Furthermore, Allah's Messenger ! mentioned ten qualities as indicative of a
good, clean nature. Two of these qualities are to trim the moustaches and to
grow the beard. A’ishah " reported that Allah's Messenger ! said: “There are ten qualities of fitrah: trimming the mustaches, sparing the beard, siwak (brushing the teeth), inhaling water (to clean the nose) [and rinsing the mouth], cutting the nails, washing the finger knuckles, plucking the armpit hair, shaving the pubic hair, washing the private parts with water, [and circumcision].” [Muslim, Abu Dawud, Ahmad, Ibn Abi Shaybah, and others.
The part between square brackets is not in Muslim (Sahah ul-Jami `no. 2222)]
This fitrah never changes with time: Allah says: “The pure nature according to which Allah has created the people. There is no change in Allah's
creation.” [ar-Rum 30:30]
In the footsteps of the disbelievers, many Muslims fitrah is now very deformed. They find a clean-shaven man more handsome and masculine than
one with a beard - exactly the opposite to what the Messenger ! declared in
the above hadith!
9. Ridiculing the Din
With the deformed fitrah that many contemporary Muslims have, they
approve of the ways of the disbelievers and disapprove of the guidance of
Allah's Messenger !! They adorn themselves with closely shaved beards, and
are ashamed of attending important functions or meetings with even a slight
beard. They admire the shiny look of a clean shaved man, and congratulate
one who just had a nice shave! They command their relatives, children, and
subordinates to shave their beards, declaring that the beard is a sign of being
messy, backward, and lazy! They ridicule the beard and anyone who grows it!
By doing this, they redicule an established part of the religion of Islam,
which is a major sin. If they do not know that, they are most ignorant about
their din, and if they do it knowingly, they could fall into a definite act of kufr
(disbelief) - in Allah we seek refuge.
A Mere Sunnah?
One frequently hears the excuse, "But it is only a sunnah!" In their understanding, growing the beard is an optional sunnah at best! From the
previous discussion, it is obvious that this is a wrong understanding, and
there is no doubt that growing it is a mandatory sunnah.
I'm really sorry for the long post but the above is from a book that I have called The "Beard - Muhammad al-Jibaly". it contains more evidence also.
also check out this vid by murtaza khan.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQh45hH3RE0