Q: What is the ruling on the men and women who let their nails grow long and what is the wisdom behind its prohibition, if it is in fact prohibited?

A: All praise be to Allah Alone, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger, and his family and Companions. Cutting the nails is from Sunan-ul-Fitrah (Islamic practices of personal hygiene), as the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “Five (practices) correspond to the Fitrah (natural disposition): circumcision, removing the pubic hair, trimming the moustache, clipping the nails, and plucking the armpit hair.” (Related by Al-Bukhari and Muslim). According to another Hadith, ten practices are part of the natural disposition of humans, including cutting the nails. Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) prescribed a time limit for us to cut our moustaches, clip our nails, shave our pubic hair and pluck our armpit hair: we should not leave them longer than forty days.” (Related by Ahmad, Muslim, and Al-Nasa'y; this is the wording of Ahmad and Al-Nasa'y). Therefore, anyone who does not clip their nails is going against Sunan-ul-Fitrah. The wisdom behind this is cleanliness and hygiene, because dirt may gather under the nails. It also serves the purpose of making us different from those among the Kuffar (disbelievers) who allow their nails to grow long, and from animals that have claws and talons.May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.