What is the ruling on shaking hands from time to time after parting and meeting, and what is the difference between greeting and shaking hands?
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The questioner : We prayed with you.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : We prayed Maghrib.
The Shaykh : In congregation.
The questioner : And after the prayer.
The Shaykh : Good.
The questioner : We went out to the door of the shop opposite the mosque, and we talked and prolonged the conversation about worldly affairs. After that, I was wearing a shirt and trousers.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you.
The questioner : So I left them and went to my house, and I changed from the trousers and shirt to this thobe, which is according to my status.
The Shaykh : Yes, indeed.
The questioner : When Shaykh Taysir came to me and I wanted to talk on the phone, the guests who were with me, by Allah, delayed. I wanted to call your phone, but I did not pick up the phone until the brother was coming, so I had not missed them yet.
The Shaykh : What do you mean?
The questioner : I had not missed the group who were sitting with me to the extent that I would shake their hands and greet them.
The Shaykh : I am speaking on their behalf: May Allah forgive you.
The questioner : ... all of them ... .
The Shaykh : And I am saying "Ameen" as I say "Ameen."
The questioner : Now, there are some matters that if they become frequent, their value decreases, meaning, as they say in the proverbs, the Levantines: "Visit in secret, and love increases"
The Shaykh : This is not a proverb; this is a noble Prophetic hadith.
The questioner : So this noble Prophetic hadith, and I am sorry because I did not know that it was a noble Prophetic hadith.
The Shaykh : No problem.
The questioner : Does it apply to my situation and these relatives of mine?
The Shaykh : No, it does not apply, but I am not cutting off your speech so that you can say I am finished.
The questioner : Okay, I will clarify.
The Shaykh : Okay?
The questioner : Please go ahead.
The Shaykh : I thought you were going to offer an excuse for not shaking hands with these brothers of yours, and if it is an excuse, the problem is not yours.
The questioner : May Allah forgive you.
The Shaykh : O Allah, Ameen. Say "Ameen." But do you want to ask me why?
The questioner : And I will not ask you; I ask Allah to take revenge on you.
.
The Shaykh : Very well.
The questioner : So that the reward is established.
The Shaykh : No problem, if you do not ask me and I speak from my own side, will you listen to me?
The questioner : Yes, I am listening.
The Shaykh : Very well.
The questioner : And I count that for Allah.
The Shaykh : But I am telling you, if you had asked me, it would have been better for you, because you are counting with Allah something you do not know. Do you know what I am saying?
The questioner : No, but it is an attack on me.
The Shaykh : But what? That one who advises you and reminds you is attacking you? May Allah forgive you once again, say "Ameen."
The questioner : Amen.
The Shaykh : What do they call you, Abu what?
The questioner : Abu Abdullah.
The Shaykh : Welcome.
Another questioner : Our brother, Dr. 'Atiyyah Sarhan.
The Shaykh : Abu Abdullah, welcome and peace be upon you.
The questioner : Welcome, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : I am going to tell you that the speech you made is an argument against you, not for you, because I imagined that you were with a group in the mosque and you went out together, and you delayed behind them, so you were recently separated from what? From shaking their hands. That is how I imagined it when you told me, "Well, we were together."
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And then you give me a lecture that you went to the house and changed your trousers, ... .
The questioner : In one minute.
The Shaykh : My dear, we are not judging you, we are not judging you in one minute or five or half an hour. The important thing is that it is contrary to what I imagined. You went out of the mosque, some things happened and some things were delayed. And then you went to the house and changed your clothes and garments, and so on. It means the distance was long, do you see? The distance was longer than what I had imagined. Now, I am telling you, after I narrated to you the hadith from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), "We did not meet except that we shook hands," what does this hadith mean?
The questioner : The meaning of this hadith is that the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) used to separate from him for work, so they would pray the Fajr prayer and then set out to their jobs. When the time for the Zuhr prayer came, they would meet the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he would shake their hands. And who among us is like the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in the nobility of his character and habits?
The Shaykh : ... in the end, the first speech is valid, but a question is raised to you: Where did you get the idea that they would pray and not meet with them except at Zuhr, and pray Zuhr and not meet with them except at 'Asr? Where did you get this speech from?
The questioner : Do you have anything that contradicts it?
The Shaykh : Of course.
The questioner : Bring it.
The Shaykh : The same hadith: "We did not meet" What does "we did not meet" mean?
The questioner : We did not separate and we met ...
The Shaykh : It means whenever we met, there was no separation, because meeting is driven by separation.
The questioner : Yes, yes.
The Shaykh : Ah, but this separation, where did you define it as four hours or five hours?
The questioner : And perhaps three days.
The Shaykh : Or two hours, and perhaps minutes.
The questioner : ... weak.
The Shaykh : Why?
The questioner : Because it does not work ... talk until the meaning of meeting occurs.
The Shaykh : My dear, why am I asking you? There is no need to repeat the understood speech, but to understand the unknown thing. Why? Did you not meet with the group?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Okay, you separated, is it true that you separated or not?
The questioner : We separated, but it is not considered a separation in the sense of separation ...
The Shaykh : Listen to me, my dear, one word and cover it: Did you separate from them or not?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Okay, will what happened between you and your companions not happen between the Messenger and his Companions?
The questioner : Very possible.
The Shaykh : Correct?
The questioner : Yes, yes.
The Shaykh : Keep this word in mind. So if the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) separated from his Companions as you and your companions separated, and there is no comparison as it is said, then he met them, does the hadith not hold true: "We did not meet except that we shook hands" ?
The questioner : This is correct, but there is something there, meaning ...
The Shaykh : So, so, please allow me to complete my speech.
The questioner : Please go ahead.
The Shaykh : Because one person asks a question in order to receive the answer and build upon this answer, and in reality, we differ in it.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So since it is correct and yes, what you said is correct, let us build upon it. So do not define the distance of separation, because you will fall into a problem now that you do not have the capacity to return to, which is: what is the distance that you estimate from the separation until you meet some of your companions and you say shaking hands is permissible, shaking hands is good? No, it is not good, because the duration is what? Short. What is this distance? Can you bring a distance from your mind?
The questioner : Again, you cannot define a minimum limit and a maximum limit for it.
The Shaykh : I did not define it, my brother.
The questioner : It remains open, meaning the separation in the sense of ...
The Shaykh : We can from the open one that we want ...
The questioner : It is difficult, it is difficult to define it.
The Shaykh : My dear, you are the one defining it.
The questioner : I am now experiencing a simple incident that we were separated from each other for minutes. Let us not call it separation, because separation means days.
The Shaykh : Why are you defining it? Why are you defining it? On one hand, you say it is difficult to define, and on the other hand, how easy is the definition for you?
The questioner : No, no, no, I am saying that ...
The Shaykh : So we agreed on a common word that we do not define.
The questioner : We agreed, but there is a more important question than this.
The Shaykh : No problem, let us finish, we do not lose the whole research. We agreed on a common word that it cannot be defined, correct? -Thank you- Correct?
The questioner : Correct.
The Shaykh : It cannot be defined. So if it cannot be defined, take the hadith: "We did not meet except that we shook hands" , meaning whenever you separate from a companion of yours, or from companions of yours, and then you meet them as you greet them, what do you do? You shake their hands. As you greet them, you shake their hands. There is no need at all for you to define what? The distance, because we agreed that this distance cannot be defined.
And finally, a very great hadith will come to us, which is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him), and this is the crux of the hadith that was a bit longer than necessary.
The questioner : No, take your time, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : And it is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him) , this virtue, as it is said, is one to which journeys are made. So if our Lord (Mighty and Majestic), on the tongue of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), has made it easy for us to obtain forgiveness simply by meeting your brother and saying to him "As-salamu alaykum" and shaking his hand, the sins fall off as leaves fall in autumn, as is known, meaning the leaves dry up and fall to the ground.
So this is a virtue that it is not befitting, may Allah bless you, O Abu Abdullah, that we lose it and waste it for defining the duration of the meeting, and we have agreed that it cannot be defined. This is all I have, and we ask Allah (Mighty and Majestic) to inspire us with the truth in what we say and what we do.
The questioner : Amen.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : We prayed Maghrib.
The Shaykh : In congregation.
The questioner : And after the prayer.
The Shaykh : Good.
The questioner : We went out to the door of the shop opposite the mosque, and we talked and prolonged the conversation about worldly affairs. After that, I was wearing a shirt and trousers.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you.
The questioner : So I left them and went to my house, and I changed from the trousers and shirt to this thobe, which is according to my status.
The Shaykh : Yes, indeed.
The questioner : When Shaykh Taysir came to me and I wanted to talk on the phone, the guests who were with me, by Allah, delayed. I wanted to call your phone, but I did not pick up the phone until the brother was coming, so I had not missed them yet.
The Shaykh : What do you mean?
The questioner : I had not missed the group who were sitting with me to the extent that I would shake their hands and greet them.
The Shaykh : I am speaking on their behalf: May Allah forgive you.
The questioner : ... all of them ... .
The Shaykh : And I am saying "Ameen" as I say "Ameen."
The questioner : Now, there are some matters that if they become frequent, their value decreases, meaning, as they say in the proverbs, the Levantines: "Visit in secret, and love increases"
The Shaykh : This is not a proverb; this is a noble Prophetic hadith.
The questioner : So this noble Prophetic hadith, and I am sorry because I did not know that it was a noble Prophetic hadith.
The Shaykh : No problem.
The questioner : Does it apply to my situation and these relatives of mine?
The Shaykh : No, it does not apply, but I am not cutting off your speech so that you can say I am finished.
The questioner : Okay, I will clarify.
The Shaykh : Okay?
The questioner : Please go ahead.
The Shaykh : I thought you were going to offer an excuse for not shaking hands with these brothers of yours, and if it is an excuse, the problem is not yours.
The questioner : May Allah forgive you.
The Shaykh : O Allah, Ameen. Say "Ameen."
The Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) laughed
ضحك الشيخ رحمه اللهThe questioner : And I will not ask you; I ask Allah to take revenge on you.
The Shaykh laughed
ضحك الشيخThe Shaykh : Very well.
The questioner : So that the reward is established.
The Shaykh : No problem, if you do not ask me and I speak from my own side, will you listen to me?
The questioner : Yes, I am listening.
The Shaykh : Very well.
The questioner : And I count that for Allah.
The Shaykh : But I am telling you, if you had asked me, it would have been better for you, because you are counting with Allah something you do not know. Do you know what I am saying?
The questioner : No, but it is an attack on me.
The Shaykh : But what? That one who advises you and reminds you is attacking you? May Allah forgive you once again, say "Ameen."
The questioner : Amen.
The Shaykh : What do they call you, Abu what?
The questioner : Abu Abdullah.
The Shaykh : Welcome.
Another questioner : Our brother, Dr. 'Atiyyah Sarhan.
The Shaykh : Abu Abdullah, welcome and peace be upon you.
The questioner : Welcome, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : I am going to tell you that the speech you made is an argument against you, not for you, because I imagined that you were with a group in the mosque and you went out together, and you delayed behind them, so you were recently separated from what? From shaking their hands. That is how I imagined it when you told me, "Well, we were together."
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And then you give me a lecture that you went to the house and changed your trousers, ... .
The questioner : In one minute.
The Shaykh : My dear, we are not judging you, we are not judging you in one minute or five or half an hour. The important thing is that it is contrary to what I imagined. You went out of the mosque, some things happened and some things were delayed. And then you went to the house and changed your clothes and garments, and so on. It means the distance was long, do you see? The distance was longer than what I had imagined. Now, I am telling you, after I narrated to you the hadith from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), "We did not meet except that we shook hands," what does this hadith mean?
The questioner : The meaning of this hadith is that the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) used to separate from him for work, so they would pray the Fajr prayer and then set out to their jobs. When the time for the Zuhr prayer came, they would meet the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he would shake their hands. And who among us is like the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in the nobility of his character and habits?
The Shaykh : ... in the end, the first speech is valid, but a question is raised to you: Where did you get the idea that they would pray and not meet with them except at Zuhr, and pray Zuhr and not meet with them except at 'Asr? Where did you get this speech from?
The questioner : Do you have anything that contradicts it?
The Shaykh : Of course.
The questioner : Bring it.
The Shaykh : The same hadith: "We did not meet" What does "we did not meet" mean?
The questioner : We did not separate and we met ...
The Shaykh : It means whenever we met, there was no separation, because meeting is driven by separation.
The questioner : Yes, yes.
The Shaykh : Ah, but this separation, where did you define it as four hours or five hours?
The questioner : And perhaps three days.
The Shaykh : Or two hours, and perhaps minutes.
The questioner : ... weak.
The Shaykh : Why?
The questioner : Because it does not work ... talk until the meaning of meeting occurs.
The Shaykh : My dear, why am I asking you? There is no need to repeat the understood speech, but to understand the unknown thing. Why? Did you not meet with the group?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Okay, you separated, is it true that you separated or not?
The questioner : We separated, but it is not considered a separation in the sense of separation ...
The Shaykh : Listen to me, my dear, one word and cover it: Did you separate from them or not?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Okay, will what happened between you and your companions not happen between the Messenger and his Companions?
The questioner : Very possible.
The Shaykh : Correct?
The questioner : Yes, yes.
The Shaykh : Keep this word in mind. So if the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) separated from his Companions as you and your companions separated, and there is no comparison as it is said, then he met them, does the hadith not hold true: "We did not meet except that we shook hands" ?
The questioner : This is correct, but there is something there, meaning ...
The Shaykh : So, so, please allow me to complete my speech.
The questioner : Please go ahead.
The Shaykh : Because one person asks a question in order to receive the answer and build upon this answer, and in reality, we differ in it.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So since it is correct and yes, what you said is correct, let us build upon it. So do not define the distance of separation, because you will fall into a problem now that you do not have the capacity to return to, which is: what is the distance that you estimate from the separation until you meet some of your companions and you say shaking hands is permissible, shaking hands is good? No, it is not good, because the duration is what? Short. What is this distance? Can you bring a distance from your mind?
The questioner : Again, you cannot define a minimum limit and a maximum limit for it.
The Shaykh : I did not define it, my brother.
The questioner : It remains open, meaning the separation in the sense of ...
The Shaykh : We can from the open one that we want ...
The questioner : It is difficult, it is difficult to define it.
The Shaykh : My dear, you are the one defining it.
The questioner : I am now experiencing a simple incident that we were separated from each other for minutes. Let us not call it separation, because separation means days.
The Shaykh : Why are you defining it? Why are you defining it? On one hand, you say it is difficult to define, and on the other hand, how easy is the definition for you?
The questioner : No, no, no, I am saying that ...
The Shaykh : So we agreed on a common word that we do not define.
The questioner : We agreed, but there is a more important question than this.
The Shaykh : No problem, let us finish, we do not lose the whole research. We agreed on a common word that it cannot be defined, correct? -Thank you- Correct?
The questioner : Correct.
The Shaykh : It cannot be defined. So if it cannot be defined, take the hadith: "We did not meet except that we shook hands" , meaning whenever you separate from a companion of yours, or from companions of yours, and then you meet them as you greet them, what do you do? You shake their hands. As you greet them, you shake their hands. There is no need at all for you to define what? The distance, because we agreed that this distance cannot be defined.
And finally, a very great hadith will come to us, which is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him), and this is the crux of the hadith that was a bit longer than necessary.
The questioner : No, take your time, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : And it is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him)
No two Muslims meet and shake hands except that their sins fall off them as leaves fall from trees in autumn.
ما من مسلمين يلتقيان فيتصافحان إلا تحاتت عنهما ذنوبهما كما يتحات الورق عن الشجر في الخريفSo this is a virtue that it is not befitting, may Allah bless you, O Abu Abdullah, that we lose it and waste it for defining the duration of the meeting, and we have agreed that it cannot be defined. This is all I have, and we ask Allah (Mighty and Majestic) to inspire us with the truth in what we say and what we do.
The questioner : Amen.