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I have watched a part of TV show and the Muslim scholar was saying it is a must to let your beard grow and trim your mustache. I have always thought there is a kind of cultural influence and it is not a must to have it.

Is in a sin to shave your beard in Islam? is it a must to have a beard or else you will not be a good Muslim?

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    I would typically discourage questions of a fiqhi nature because they're not suited for discussion on a forum of amateurs but I'm not flagging this one because the topic of the beard is of general interest and something that is highly visible, thereby inviting questions.
    – Ansari
    Commented Jun 20, 2012 at 16:01
  • -1 You didn't do your research. This is a well-established ruling.
    – ashes999
    Commented Jun 20, 2012 at 16:54
  • Related: Is it more important to grow a beard, or to avoid resembling non-muslims?
    – Mateen Ulhaq
    Commented Jun 24, 2012 at 20:52

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Having a beard for a man (when it is possible) is wajib (obligatory) in Sunni Islam by consensus of almost all scholars and schools of thought. One of the many ahadith cited as evidence for this is the hadith from Abdullah b. Umar narrating from the Prophet (saws):

انْهَكُوا الشَّوَارِبَ، وَأَعْفُوا اللِّحَى
Trim the mustaches and leave the beard (to grow).

from Sahih al-Bukhari also in many other books

There is a difference of opinion within the Shafi'i school whether it's highly encouraged or obligatory.

For a Muslim, a hadith with a command from the Prophet (saws) is generally taken to describe an obligatory deed unless evidence suggests otherwise (from the principle "al-amru li al-wujoob").

Based on this hadith and many others like it, the scholars do say that it is a sin to shave the beard. As for whether or not you won't be a good Muslim without it, I don't see the connection. Being a good Muslim encompasses a number of things, from belief in the heart to kind actions to acts of worship. Not having a beard doesn't directly reflect on someone's character or the purity of their heart. But if not having a beard comes out of an arrogance or intentional disobedience of the Prophet (saws) then I guess that could have effects on others parts of one's Islam.

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    Are you sure? Having bread is not Wajib, but shaving it is haraam.
    – user8749
    Commented Jun 20, 2012 at 16:01
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    Well if shaving it is haram, then having it (when possible) is wajib :) In any case, even aside from that argument, the standard position in Sunni fiqh at least is that it is wajib, with a caveat for a difference of opinion among some Shafi'is.
    – Ansari
    Commented Jun 20, 2012 at 16:03
  • Ah, you're quite right. They're the same thing! Please add the "Sunni fiqh" part to your answer.
    – user8749
    Commented Jun 20, 2012 at 16:04
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    Done - thanks for pointing that out. Curious now - what's the Shi'a fiqh on this? Ja'fari or Zaidi ...
    – Ansari
    Commented Jun 20, 2012 at 16:07
  • A special shaving of beard is forbidden (haraam) in Shi'a Figh. One can use moser to shave beard to a level that you can't tell if he has from a fairly near distance. But I think there's not much of difference on this matter between n the two, only a slightly detailed one.
    – user8749
    Commented Jun 20, 2012 at 16:24

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