Is it permissible to completely trim or shave one’s pubic region and underarms?
Question Summary
Is it permissible to completely trim or shave one’s pubic region and underarms?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
It is recommended to shave one’s pubic region, groom one’s body hair, and shower weekly. [Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]
Grooming one’s body hair includes removing the underarm hair. It is best to pluck (or epilate), but shaving is permissible. [Ibid.]
It is prohibitively disliked and potentially sinful, left without excuse, to leave the above for 40 days. [Ibid] This ruling is taken from the below narration from the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace).
The Time Limit
Anas bin Malik (May Allah be pleased with him) narrates, saying, “The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and give him peace) set for us a time limit in trimming the mustache, clipping the nails, shaving the pubic region, and plucking the underarm hair; it should not be left for more than 40 days.” [Tirmidhi]
The Natural Disposition
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “The natural disposition is in 5 things. Circumcision. Shaving the pubic region. Plucking the underarm hair. Clipping the nails. Trimming the Moustache.” [Bukhari]
This disposition is the natural way humans should be. In applying these things is the honor and dignity of the human.
Hope this helps
Allah knows best
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Shaykh Yusuf Weltch is a teacher of Arabic, Islamic law, and spirituality. After accepting Islam in 2008, he then completed four years at the Darul Uloom seminary in New York, where he studied Arabic and the traditional sciences. He then traveled to Tarim, Yemen, where he stayed for three years studying in Dar Al-Mustafa under some of the greatest scholars of our time, including Habib Umar Bin Hafiz, Habib Kadhim al-Saqqaf, and Shaykh Umar al-Khatib. In Tarim, Shaykh Yusuf completed the memorization of the Qur’an and studied beliefs, legal methodology, hadith methodology, Qur’anic exegesis, Islamic history, and several texts on spirituality. He joined the SeekersGuidance faculty in the summer of 2019
