Re: And Who Will Go Out Of Religion…
Peace Khoji,
My topic was about ‘keeping beard’ but whether that hadit is significance only about ‘keeping beard or not’ let analyze the following info:
There are many hadiths in both Sahihain, Sunan AbuDawood and in Malik Muwatta, where ‘five’ acts of ‘Fitra’ mentioned, however, a hadith which narrated by Hazrat Aisha r.a., She said there are ‘ten’ acts of ‘Fitra’ which also include ‘letting the beard grow’.
There is a another hadit where Ibn Umar said: "The Messenger 
of Allah said: “Trim closely the mustache and let the beard grow”. I fact there are many hadith similar to that where trimming of mustache and letting the beard grow is mentioned. The chain of transmission of this hadith is from Ibn Umar who narrates it from Nafie, who narrate it from Ubaidahh bin Umar bin Hafs, who narrated it from Muhammad bin Abdullah bin Numayr, who narrates it from Yahya bin Said bin Farroukh Al Qatan and lastly it is narrated from Muhammad bin Al-Muthna Al Zaman.
Moreover, I haven’t came across any hadith where it is ordered or given permission to shave the beard. However, I read we should differ to the non-believers in all aspects and not imitate/resemble like them, because imitating/resembling like them on the outside will make us imitate them in their bad deeds and habits, and even in beliefs, which will result in befriending them in our hearts, just as loving them in our hearts will lead to imitating them on the outside.
If we read the hadith in arabic then we came across two arabic words ‘Tahleeq’ translated as “shaving” and ‘Tasmid/tasmeed’ translated as “uprooting the hair”, both can be taken as shaving of head and/or beard. but the hadith which quoted by you talk about a different incident. What I understood that that the hadith which quoted in post # talks about two different thing. Rest Almighty Allah knows best.
Allow me to add little detail as per my knowledge about the hadith you quoted above. Similar to that in another hadith where Abu Said Al-Khudri reported from Ali b. Abul Talib that Prophet Muhammad said there would arise a people from the progeny of man who had deep sunken eyes, prominent cheek bones, and elevated forehead, thick beard, shaven head, tucked up loin cloth, who would recite the Qur’an glibly, but it would not go beyond their throats; they would (hurriedly) pass through (the teachings of their) religion just as the arrow passes through the prey. I conceive that he (the Holy Prophet) also said this: If I find them I would certainly kill them as were killed the (people of) Thamud.
In another hadith it is reported that Abu Sai’d said: I testify to the fact that I heard it from the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him), and I testify to the fact that 'Ali b. Abu Talib fought against them and I was with him. He gave orders about that man who was sought for, and when he was brought in, and when I looked at him, he was exactly as the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) had described him.
Ali r.a. reported their (that of the Khwarij) distinctive mark is that there would be (among them) a person whose wrist would be without the arm, and the end of his wrist would be fleshy like the nipple of the breast on which there would be white hair. The army of Ali r.a., encountered the army of of the Abdulla b. Wahab Al-Rasibi who was the head of the Khawariji, as acknowledged by Zaid b. Wahb Jahani who was among the squadron under the command of Ali r.a.. At the end 'Ali r.a., himself stood up and (walked) till He came to the people who had been killed one after another. He ('Ali) said: Search them to the last, and then ('Ali’s companions) found him (the dead body of the maimed). Ali r.a., then pronounced Allah-O-Akbar (Allah is the Greatest) and then said, Allah told the Truth and His Messenger .
So basically there are many hadiths about it which talks about Hazrat Ali r.a., and Muawiya, Yemen, Syria and Iraq too.
Here I’ll say my knowledge is limited so needed further details/interpretation/explanations as wrote at top in post #1 and whatever error found in my any post, that is from my side due to my bad judgement/understanding and it has nothing to do with the authenticity of any hadith.
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