Continuation of the explanation of the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him): (… and spread the greeting of peace among yourselves so that you will love one another …)

The Shaykh : The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) mentions here that this Islam, which is the cause for entering Paradise, is not completed for a Muslim unless he loves his Muslim brother. Then he draws attention to the cause by which affection and love are realized among Muslims, saying: . Thus, the Messenger (peace be upon him) made spreading the greeting of peace a cause for realizing affection and love among Muslims. He made this affection and love a cause for realizing true faith and correct Islam, and this true faith and correct Islam is the cause for entering Paradise. We must look at this sequence to know that entering Paradise is also linked to lawful means and causes, confirming the Sunnah of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) on earth, which is that He links effects to their causes: . Here is a note: the Messenger (peace be upon him) did not make the cause for realizing affection and love among Muslims merely throwing the greeting of peace, but rather spreading it. We must remember this distinction between throwing the greeting and spreading it. Throwing the greeting is one thing, and spreading it is another. Spreading the greeting, as I think is clear to all present, is throwing the greeting plus more; it is repeating the throwing of the greeting. This is what spreading the greeting is. This spreading has almost become a forgotten matter, after even merely throwing the greeting has almost become a forgotten matter in this time. This is because many young Muslims who were not raised with an Islamic upbringing have abolished the greeting by throwing it; they do not greet you with the greeting of Islam, but rather they say "good morning" and "good evening" to you, while they are wishing you evil in the evening because they do not greet you with the greeting of Islam. Many people say "good morning" and "good evening" in their dealings, which has almost become a general thing, and few of the sincere Muslims remain who still preserve the etiquette, or rather the obligation, of throwing the greeting. As for spreading the greeting, which, as we mentioned, is frequently throwing the greeting on every occasion, this spreading has almost become a thing of the past in this time. For example, the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . ; thus, the greeting when leaving the gathering is obligatory, just as it is when entering the gathering. Many people still maintain throwing the greeting when entering the gathering, but when leaving, they say "in your thoughts" or "goodbye." This is a mistake. Rather, just as you entered with the greeting, you must leave with the greeting, because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: , meaning: the first greeting , meaning: the second greeting. The first is upon entering, and the second is upon leaving. This is a form, or one of the types, of spreading the greeting: that you greet not only upon entering, but upon entering and leaving. Also, from throwing the greeting is that you enter a house or a mosque and find your friend standing praying, so you enter upon him… as they say, in silence, you do not throw the greeting upon him on the pretext of what? On the pretext that he is praying, and they claim that it is not permissible to throw the greeting upon the one praying. This is a mistake that contradicts the correct Sunnah. It is established in several hadiths that the Messenger (peace be upon him) was greeted while he was praying, and he would return the greeting while praying, but by gesture, not by words. The gesture was sometimes with his hand and sometimes by nodding his head like this. This abrogated the returning of the greeting by the one praying with words. This was in the early days of Islam; when a man would enter upon the one praying, he would say "peace be upon you," and the one praying would immediately return the greeting with words while praying, saying "and upon you peace." This was in the early days of Islam. Then, the returning of the greeting by the one praying with words was abrogated by returning the greeting with a gesture of the head or hand like this. Many hadiths have come regarding this, and I am not now in a position to detail them, because I only want to comment by pointing out the difference between throwing the greeting and spreading it. From spreading the greeting is that you greet the one praying, and he returns it to you by gesture, not by words. Words are not permissible; rather, they invalidate the prayer. As for the gesture, it is a Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). Also, from spreading the greeting, and this is a profound lesson for those who neglected spreading the greeting, is that some people would walk on the road and a tree or a stone would block their path, and then they would go around it. The Companions of the Prophet would throw the greeting to one another merely because of this brief separation. A tree or a stone would separate the group, and then they would meet behind it, and you would find them, as if after their parting, throwing the greeting to one another. It is authentic that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) also commanded this; he commanded throwing the greeting when a tree or a stone separates you from a Muslim. This is also from spreading the greeting. And from spreading the greeting, if we know that the greeting is thrown upon the one praying, then it is even more so that the greeting is thrown upon the one reciting the Qur'an.