The Salam is Obligatory

The Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta

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The third question of Fatwa No. ( 2294 )
Q3: What is the ruling regarding the salam in prayer, which is: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh. As-salamu alaykum." Is it once?
A3: First: The salam is obligatory; based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)

And its release is the salam

وتحليلها التسليم

narrated by the five except al-Nasa'i, and al-Tirmidhi said: This is the most authentic thing in this chapter and the best, and based on the long hadith of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) in which it says

He used to finish prayer with uttering the salutation.

وكان يختم الصلاة بالتسليم

Sunan Abi Dawud 783Sahih (Al-Albani)

narrated by Muslim in his Sahih. Second: The one praying says the salam from the prayer to his right and left; this is what is preserved from his (peace and blessings be upon him) practice in the prayers, narrated by the five and authenticated by al-Tirmidhi from Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him)

That the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to say the salam to his right and left: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi, As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi" until you could see the whiteness of his cheek

أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم كان يسلم عن يمينه ويساره السلام عليكم ورحمة الله السلام عليكم ورحمة الله حتى يرى بياض خده

. /50 And from Amir ibn Sa'd from his father who said:

he used to see God’s Messenger giving the salutation* to his right and his left, so that he could see the whiteness of his cheek

كنت أرى النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يسلم عن يمينه وعن يساره حتى يرى بياض خده

Mishkat al-Masabih 943

, narrated by Ahmad and Muslim and al-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah . These two hadiths and what is in their meaning were used as evidence by those who said for the prescription of the two salams. Al-Shawkani said: And this is the truth due to the abundance of hadiths coming regarding the two salams, the authenticity of some of them, the goodness of some of them, and their containing an addition, and their being established, unlike the hadiths coming regarding the single salam, for they are few and weak and do not suffice for argument, and even if their sufficiency were conceded, they would not be suitable to oppose the hadiths of the two salams. End of quote. Third: The description of the salam is that one says: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi"; based on the aforementioned hadiths, and what Muslim narrated in his Sahih from Jabir ibn Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) who said:

When we prayed with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), we said: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi, As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi," and he indicated with his hand to both sides

كنا إذا صلينا مع النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قلنا: السلام عليكم ورحمة الله، السلام عليكم ورحمة الله، وأشار بيده إلى الجانبين

, and Abu Dawud narrated in his Sunan from Wa'il ibn Hujr (may Allah be pleased with him) who said:

I prayed with the Prophet (ﷺ) and he would give the Taslim (salutation) to his right side (saying), "Peace be upon you and the mercy and blessings of Allah"; and to his left side (saying), "Peace be upon you and

صليت مع النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فكان يسلم عن يمينه "السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته"، وعن يساره "السلام عليكم ورحمة الله"

Bulugh al-Maram 2:213

The Hafiz said in (al-Bulugh): Its chain is authentic, and it is understood that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did that at some times, and the majority is to restrict it to "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi"; to reconcile the hadiths coming regarding that.
And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his companions.

Source www.alifta.gov.sa

The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.

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