Is it obligatory for men to grow the beard, and is trimming it allowed?

The Prophet (peace be upon him) commanded men to leave the beard to grow and to trim the moustache: "Cut the moustaches short and leave the beard" (Sahih al-Bukhari 5893), and in another wording to differ from the polytheists by doing so (Sahih Muslim 259). Because it is a direct command, the majority who follow the Salaf hold that keeping the beard is obligatory (wajib) and that shaving it entirely is sinful, not merely a matter of preference. The scholars differ over trimming what exceeds a fistful, some permitting it (as reported of Ibn ʿUmar) and others holding it is better to leave it as it grows, but all agree the beard itself must not be shaved off. This is an act of following the fitrah and the guidance of the Prophet and the earlier Prophets.

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