Does a soldier incur sin by plucking the white hairs of his beard?
2026-10-13
T132 · Ibn Taymiyyah
Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah
شيخ الإسلام أحمد بن تيمية
Original Q&A · Full displayed answer
Ibn Taymiyyah’s word “disliked” is retained without silently changing it to another ruling. The related report and its displayed grading are given separately.
النص العربي
السؤال الأصلي
عن رجل جندي يقلع بياض لحيته: فهل عليه في ذلك إثم أم لا؟
الجواب
الحمد لله رب العالمين. نتف الشيب مكروه للجندي وغيره، فإن في الحديث أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم «نهى عن نتف الشيب، وقال: إنه نور المسلم».
English translation
English rendering prepared for SalafAlSalih.com from the cited Arabic answer. Not an official translation.
Original question
Concerning a soldier who plucks the white hairs of his beard: does he incur sin by doing that?
Answer
Praise be to Allah, Lord of all worlds. Plucking grey hair is disliked for a soldier and for others. The hadith reports that the Prophet ﷺ forbade plucking grey hair and said that it is the Muslim’s light.
Source and editorial notes
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā 21/120; King Fahd Complex, Madinah, 1425 AH / 2004
مجموع الفتاوى
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā
Arabic transcribed and compared against the cited scan and adjacent context.