What are the decisive proofs for the obligation of the greeting of the mosque?
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The questioner : Your Eminence, you mentioned, may Allah preserve you, that you used to hold the view that the greeting of the mosque is obligatory, and then you retracted that view. What are the decisive proofs against its being obligatory?
The Shaykh : Yes, the decisive proofs against its being obligatory are that the preacher on Friday comes and attends but does not pray the greeting of the mosque; that is one. Also, the apparent meaning of the hadith of the three men who came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) while he was in a gathering: one of them sat down, the second stood behind them, and the third turned away, indicates that it is not obligatory. Likewise, the story of Ka'b ibn Malik when he entered the mosque after Allah's acceptance of his repentance does not mention that he prayed the greeting of the mosque. It is possible that these three men and Ka'b ibn Malik were not in a state of ritual purity, so there is a possibility there. But the case of the preacher is clear, and that is what made me say that I retract the ruling of obligation. By obligation, I do not mean that we do not urge a person to pray the two rak'ahs; rather, it means that we do not declare him sinful if he leaves it. So we urge him strongly not to sit until he prays two rak'ahs, whether it is a time of prohibition or not. But for us to declare him sinful if he does not do this, we need a proof that the soul finds reassuring. Yes.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : The original ruling is that there is no specific obligation, but it indicates that it is emphasized, though not obligatory. The important point is that declaring someone sinful for leaving it requires a proof that a person can rely on. Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes, the decisive proofs against its being obligatory are that the preacher on Friday comes and attends but does not pray the greeting of the mosque; that is one. Also, the apparent meaning of the hadith of the three men who came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) while he was in a gathering: one of them sat down, the second stood behind them, and the third turned away, indicates that it is not obligatory. Likewise, the story of Ka'b ibn Malik when he entered the mosque after Allah's acceptance of his repentance does not mention that he prayed the greeting of the mosque. It is possible that these three men and Ka'b ibn Malik were not in a state of ritual purity, so there is a possibility there. But the case of the preacher is clear, and that is what made me say that I retract the ruling of obligation. By obligation, I do not mean that we do not urge a person to pray the two rak'ahs; rather, it means that we do not declare him sinful if he leaves it. So we urge him strongly not to sit until he prays two rak'ahs, whether it is a time of prohibition or not. But for us to declare him sinful if he does not do this, we need a proof that the soul finds reassuring. Yes.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : The original ruling is that there is no specific obligation, but it indicates that it is emphasized, though not obligatory. The important point is that declaring someone sinful for leaving it requires a proof that a person can rely on. Yes.