When I am reading the Noble Qur'an and I hear the salutation upon the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), do I interrupt my reading and send salutations upon the Messenger, or do I return the greeting?
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The questioner : The questioner says: When I am reading the Noble Qur'an and I hear the salutation upon the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), do I interrupt my reading and send salutations upon the Messenger, or do I return the greeting, or do I respond to the sneezer, and so on?
The Shaykh : Yes. However, if she is reading during the prayer, she does not interrupt her reading for anyone, neither for sending salutations upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) nor for responding to the sneezer. As for if she is not in prayer, if she is listening to someone mentioning the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), let her send salutations upon him. If she is hearing but not listening, then no. The same is said regarding responding to the sneezer: if she hears a sneezer praise Allah, let her respond to him, because responding to the sneezer is obligatory, either a collective obligation or an individual obligation, according to the disagreement among scholars regarding that. Then, it is recommended for the one who reads the Qur'an to focus on his reading by keeping in his heart what he says with his tongue, because that is closer to benefiting from the Qur'an, and not to listen to or pay attention to anyone around him. It is known that if a person does not listen to or pay attention to anyone around him, and the one around him is mentioning the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he will not know what he is saying because he is unaware of it. So, let her focus on her reading in order to reflect upon it, so that Allah may open it up to her.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : Yes. However, if she is reading during the prayer, she does not interrupt her reading for anyone, neither for sending salutations upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) nor for responding to the sneezer. As for if she is not in prayer, if she is listening to someone mentioning the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), let her send salutations upon him. If she is hearing but not listening, then no. The same is said regarding responding to the sneezer: if she hears a sneezer praise Allah, let her respond to him, because responding to the sneezer is obligatory, either a collective obligation or an individual obligation, according to the disagreement among scholars regarding that. Then, it is recommended for the one who reads the Qur'an to focus on his reading by keeping in his heart what he says with his tongue, because that is closer to benefiting from the Qur'an, and not to listen to or pay attention to anyone around him. It is known that if a person does not listen to or pay attention to anyone around him, and the one around him is mentioning the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he will not know what he is saying because he is unaware of it. So, let her focus on her reading in order to reflect upon it, so that Allah may open it up to her.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.