Question: What is the definition of the "beard" (lihya) according to the ijtihad of the Hanafi 'ulema? Is it "that which grows on the chin", as with the Shafi'i and Maliki schools, or is it broader than that?
Answer: The beard is the hair on the chin, cheeks and the area beside the ear (i.e. sideburns). I do not think that anyone does not consider the hair of the chin to be from the beard. This is because the definition of the linguists for beard includes this part. Al-^Asqalaaniy even narrates this explicitly from Al-Nawawiy in his explanation of Al-Bukhaariy. In Lisaan Al-Arab it states that the ^i dhaar (the area of sideburns) is the "side of the beard."
