Shaving one's beard is un-Islamic, says Darul Uloom Deoband's Fatwa

Darul Uloom of Deoband, the largest Muslim seminary in India, has said that shaving or trimming one’s beard is ‘un-Islamic’. The fatwa comes in response to a query by Mohammad Irshad and Mohammad Furqan, who run a salon in Badjia-ul-Haq locality of Deoband in western Uttar Pradesh.

"The sharia doesn't allow us to cut the beard of a person of any religion. If someone is in this business then he should try to shift to some other work," the Darul Ifta department which issues religious decrees said.

Some of the barbers in the area have stopped shaving beards. They have also pasted a copy of the fatwa on the doors of their shops. Darul Uloom of Deoband had said in the past that shaving the beard or not growing a beard both are unlawful and a major sin.

"You should grow your beard trusting in Allah as well as keep on supplicating Allah for firmness," it had earlier said.