What Nullifies Ablution
Man Lā Yaḥḍuruh al-Faqīh|Volume 1|Book 1|Chapter 16
وَ سَأَلَ زُرَارَةُ أَبَا جَعْفَرٍ عَلَيْهِ اَلسَّلاَمُ: عَنِ اَلرَّجُلِ يُقَلِّمُ أَظَافِيرَهُ وَ يَجُزُّ شَارِبَهُ وَ يَأْخُذُ مِنْ شَعْرِ لِحْيَتِهِ وَ رَأْسِهِ هَلْ يَنْقُضُ ذَلِكَ اَلْوُضُوءَ فَقَالَ «يَا زُرَارَةُ كُلُّ هَذَا سُنَّةٌ وَ اَلْوُضُوءُ فَرِيضَةٌ وَ لَيْسَ شَيْءٌ مِنَ اَلسُّنَّةِ يَنْقُضُ اَلْفَرِيضَةَ وَ إِنَّ ذَلِكَ لَيَزِيدُهُ تَطْهِيراً.
Zurarah asked Imam Muhammad ibn Ali Al-Baqir عليه السلام about a man who trims his nails, clips his mustache, and cuts some of the hair from his beard and head. Does that nullify his ablution? Imam عليه السلام said: 'O’ Zurarah, all of this is Sunnah (recommended practice), while ablution is an obligation (fardh). None of the Sunnah practices invalidate an obligation. In fact, such practices increase one's purity.'.
- Ṣaḥīḥ al-Faqīh, p. 24