The ruling on standing up and kissing the hand of a scholar or an elder
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
ً
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when our master Sa'd ibn Mu'adh came to settle the matter of the people of Madinah,The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to them: If our master Sa'd was coming on his mount, stand up for your master. This is what we have read, if it is authentic. Then, what is your opinion that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) made his companions stand up for our master Sa'd ibn Mu'adh to help him dismount from his mount? And what is your opinion regarding kissing the hands of scholars? This is standing next to what you said about bowing to a scholar or an elder. Is the narration of our master Sa'd authentic, alongside kissing the hands of scholars, alongside bowing to someone we consider to be of higher status, knowledge, or otherwise?
As for Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him), when he approached the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he said: (Stand up for your master) because he was undoubtedly the master of his people,And the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to them: (Stand up for your master) and there is no objection to saying: the master of the sons of so-and-so, or the master of the family of so-and-so.
And as for standing up for him, there is no harm in that either. If a man entered from the door here and you stood up from your place to face him, there is no harm, just as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did when the delegation of Thaqif arrived while he was at al-Ji'ranah. He (peace and blessings be upon him) stood up when they approached, and there is no harm in that. But as for bowing, it is an apparent act of submission,The first: a form of honor in greeting, and this is undoubtedly an honor. But as for bowing, it is submission,Therefore: (The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was asked: about a man who meets his brother, should he bow to him?He said: No) because bowing is not permissible except for Allah, Lord of the worlds.
And as for kissing the hand of the father or the mother or the elder brother or the scholar or the elderly Shaykh out of respect, there is no harm in that and no issue with it.
The questioner: There is bowing involved.
The Shaykh: There is no bowing at all. Even if we assume that the man whose hand you want to kiss is short and you lower your head to kiss his hand, this is not bowing as an act of honor. This bowing is to reach the hand for the kiss, although it is possible for him to take his hand and raise it so you can kiss it while you are standing perfectly upright.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when our master Sa'd ibn Mu'adh came to settle the matter of the people of Madinah,The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to them: If our master Sa'd was coming on his mount, stand up for your master. This is what we have read, if it is authentic. Then, what is your opinion that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) made his companions stand up for our master Sa'd ibn Mu'adh to help him dismount from his mount? And what is your opinion regarding kissing the hands of scholars? This is standing next to what you said about bowing to a scholar or an elder. Is the narration of our master Sa'd authentic, alongside kissing the hands of scholars, alongside bowing to someone we consider to be of higher status, knowledge, or otherwise?
As for Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him), when he approached the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he said: (Stand up for your master) because he was undoubtedly the master of his people,And the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to them: (Stand up for your master) and there is no objection to saying: the master of the sons of so-and-so, or the master of the family of so-and-so.
And as for standing up for him, there is no harm in that either. If a man entered from the door here and you stood up from your place to face him, there is no harm, just as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did when the delegation of Thaqif arrived while he was at al-Ji'ranah. He (peace and blessings be upon him) stood up when they approached, and there is no harm in that. But as for bowing, it is an apparent act of submission,The first: a form of honor in greeting, and this is undoubtedly an honor. But as for bowing, it is submission,Therefore: (The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was asked: about a man who meets his brother, should he bow to him?He said: No) because bowing is not permissible except for Allah, Lord of the worlds.
And as for kissing the hand of the father or the mother or the elder brother or the scholar or the elderly Shaykh out of respect, there is no harm in that and no issue with it.
The questioner: There is bowing involved.
The Shaykh: There is no bowing at all. Even if we assume that the man whose hand you want to kiss is short and you lower your head to kiss his hand, this is not bowing as an act of honor. This bowing is to reach the hand for the kiss, although it is possible for him to take his hand and raise it so you can kiss it while you are standing perfectly upright.