Getting Reward by Greeting

The greeting is a very traditional way of interacting. Have you ever noticed that when we interact with someone, our first move is to greet them, this is the first step to getting attention from someone and it drops a pleasant moment between us. In Islam, we have a beautiful phrase to greet someone and that is AssalamoAlykum warehmatullahi wabarakatuh. It means ‘peace be with you’ and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The root word of this phrase is ‘ Salema’, which infers to detach oneself from bad and suffering. And the receiver should answer this phrase as ‘ walykumus salam wa rehmatullahi wabarakatuh’ which means ‘ And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. How adorable this mode of communication is. We are exchanging a kind of dua. With time it is replaced by Hi, Hello Hey, etc, and struggling to be a progressive individuals but we should remember that we have a decent manner of greeting and showing our affection.

Islam teaches us to greet others even if we do not know them or he is a stranger to us. This is the beauty of Islam. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: Narrated ‘Abdullah bin ‘Amr: A man asked the Prophet, What sort of deeds or (what qualities of) Islam are good? The Prophet replied, ‘To feed (the poor) and greet those whom you know and those whom you do not know’. ( Sahih Bukhari # 12 ) Ibn al-Qayyim says: “Allah, the Sovereign, the Most Holy, the Peace, prescribed that the greeting among the people of Islam should be ‘As-Salaamu Alaikum’, which is better than all the greetings of other nations which include impossible ideas or lies, such as saying, ‘May you live for a thousand years,’ or things that are not accurate, such as ‘An’im sabaahan (Good morning),’ or actions that are not right, such as bowing in greeting.

Thus the greeting of salaam is better than all of these because it has the meaning of safety which is life, without which nothing else can be achieved….” (Badaa’i’ al-Fawaa’id) The answer is the question of why you should use Salam as a greeting.

1: To say Salam is amply rewarding. A man passed by the Messenger of Allaah (S.W) while he was sitting with others, and said “As-salaam alaykum.” The Prophet (PBUH) said, “[He will have] ten hasanaat.” Another man passed by and said “As-Salaamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullaah (peace be upon you and the mercy of Allaah).” The Prophet (pbuh) said, “[He will have] twenty hasanaat.” Another man passed by and said “As-Salaamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullaahi wa Barakaatuh (peace be upon you and the mercy of Allaah and His blessings).” The Prophet (Sal Allaahu Alaihi wa Sallam) said, “[He will have] thirty hasanaat.” ( Dawood # 5195) You can see how reasonable a reward we can gain by dealing with three words. Wallahi we should not compromise on this compensation.

2: It is the decree of Allah. In the Quran, Allah says: There is no blame upon you whether you eat together or separately. But when you enter houses, give greetings of peace upon each other – a greeting from Allah, blessed and good. Thus does Allah make clear to you the verses [of ordinance] that you may understand. (24:61) O you who have believed, do not enter houses other than your own houses until you ascertain welcome and greet their inhabitants. That is best for you; perhaps you will be reminded. ( 24:27)

3:Greeting is the Sunnah of Allah( SW) and His angels. He sends the Salam to His Prophet Muhammad( PBUH): ‘ Indeed, Allah confers blessing upon the Prophet, and His angels [ask Him to do so]. O you who have believed, ask [ Allah to confer] blessing upon him and ask [ Allah to grant him] peace ( surah Ahzab:56) Narrated Abu Salama: Aisha said that the Prophet said to her OAisha’ This is Gabriel and he sends his (greetings) salutations to you. `Aisha said, Salutations (Greetings) to him, and Allah’s Mercy and Blessings be on him, and addressing the Prophet she said, You see what I don’t see. ( Sahih Bukhari # 3217) Allah has sent Salam to Haroon, Moosa, Nooh, Ibrahim, and those who are on the righteous path.

4:Greeting is the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad( PBUH). Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet said, The young should greet the old, the passer by should greet the sitting one, and the small group of persons should greet the large group of persons. (Bukhari #6231) Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah’s Apostle said, The riding one should greet the walking one, and the walking one should greet the sitting one, and the small number of persons should greet a large number of persons. ( Bukhari #6232) How should we answer the salam? Is it obligatory to respond? Read what Allah( SW) says in the Quran: ‘ And when you are greeted with a greeting, greet [in return] with one better than it or [at least] return it [in a like manner].

Indeed, Allah is ever, over all things, an Accountant. (4:86) It is also a right of a Muslim to answer with promising words and Alhamdulillah we have a proper answer as ‘ walaikum us salam’. Narrated Abu Huraira: I heard Allah’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم (saying, “The rights of a Muslim on the other Muslim are five: to respond to the salaam, visit the sick, to follow the funeral processions, to accept an invitation, and to reply to those who sneeze. ( Bukhari # 1240)

Is it mandatory to say salam as ‘AssalamoAlykum warehmatullahi wabarakatuhu?” Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet said, Allah created Adam, making him 60 cubits tall. When He created him, He said to him, Go and greet that group of angels, and listen to their reply, for it will be your greeting (salutation) and the greeting (salutations of your offspring. So, Adam said (to the angels), As-Salamu Alaikum (i.e. Peace be upon you). The angels said As-salamu Alaika was Rahmatu-l-lahi (i.e. Peace and Allah’s Mercy be upon you). Thus the angels added to Adam’s salutation the expression, ‘Wa Rahmatu-l-lahi,’ Any person who will enter Paradise will resemble Adam (in appearance and figure). People have been decreasing in stature since Adam’s creation. ( Bukhari # 3326).

We have noticed and considered how salam as a greeting is glorious and immensely rewarded. Hopefully, here we resolve this issue why do we say salam as a greeting? In the contemporary era, we are trying to make ourselves more magnified and show as a modern one. Modernism is not concerned with using hello, hi, hey, etc, and wallahi. We will not be able to get this one by unfastening our cultures and teachings. If we separate ourselves from our teachings, we will not have any path to follow and in the end, our identity will be crushed.

We should remember that identity is made by culture. This is not only our culture but also a means of reward and satisfaction. We are hesitating to adopt our culture and do not consider the beauty of Deen. Allah ( SW) showers us with more and more wisdom about Islam, assigned us on a pious route, and counted us as a beloved one among his obedient servants.
(Ameen)

By Eeza Rasheed