The Shaykh’s remarks on the issue of kissing a scholar’s hand.

The Shaykh : This brings us to the question of kissing a scholar’s hand. This is a kiss, and its ruling is most similar, in terms of specific application, to embracing while traveling. Just as embracing while traveling is established from the Companions, so too is the kissing of the hand of a learned man among them, occasionally and rarely, established. This is also established. This is a kiss of reverence, much like the etiquette of a young person not speaking in the presence of an elder unless the elder has stopped speaking. Similarly, kissing the hand of a scholar is a form of reverence for him, but it is rare, not constant. Why? Because the most noble of all people is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and the most noble of all his Companions is Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, then 'Umar, then 'Uthman, then 'Ali, then the rest of the Ten Promised Paradise, and so on, the people of Badr and others. It was never reported that any of these noble ones kissed the hand of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), not even once. The kissing only came from some of the Companions whose companionship with the Messenger (peace be upon him) was not extensive. This companionship enabled the companion to know his character and his morals. He would love the Messenger (peace be upon him), and this love would manifest by him rushing forward to kiss the hand of the Messenger (peace be upon him). And the Prophet, out of his etiquette and his mercy toward his Ummah, did not prevent them. He only rebuked and restrained them from something blameworthy. As for a matter that is permissible, even if it is a weaker form of permissibility—meaning he did not want this to become widespread—therefore, the great Companions, as we said, did not do any of that. But he approved the kissing of his hand by those Companions with little companionship with him (peace be upon him). His approval indicates the permissibility of that, but it is not recommended. If a Muslim student of knowledge did not kiss the hand of a scholar in his entire life, not even once, that would not diminish anything in his religion. But from the perspective of spreading good character, as they say today, and considering people’s emotions, especially if they are uncontrolled, the important thing is... that a man should kiss the hand of a scholar occasionally, as we said. As for making this kissing of the hand a continuous Sunnah, such that the student does not meet his Shaykh without his greeting being accompanied by kissing his hand, this is a foreign, non-Arabic innovation with no basis in the Muhammadan Sunnah. So, this kissing of the scholar’s hand, in the previous form of rarity, is an exception to the kissing that is prohibited. Therefore, there is no way for women to take an excuse for one another in this kissing that is prevalent among them, because it was not originally done by any of the Companions, meaning the women among them, at all. And it is contrary to the generality of the hadith: "Do we kiss one another?" He said: And this is sufficient, and praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.