His statement: (And you greet with peace those you know and those you do not know) Does this exclude the People of the Book?
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The questioner : Greeting with peace those you know and those you do not know... So are the Zoroastrians included?
The Shaykh : Everyone who is not a Muslim is included. Since the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade us from greeting the Jews and the Christians, even though they are treated with a special status among the disbelievers, in that their women and food are lawful to us, how much more so is this the case with others?
The questioner : And if he greets you, do you return the greeting?
The Shaykh : If he greets you, return the greeting. It has not come to our attention, meaning it seems you want us to discuss the greeting. If he greets you, say "Peace be upon you" if he used the explicit phrase "Peace be upon you." If he used a phrase that could be interpreted as saying "The peace is upon you" or simply "Peace," then say "And upon you."
The Shaykh : Everyone who is not a Muslim is included. Since the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade us from greeting the Jews and the Christians, even though they are treated with a special status among the disbelievers, in that their women and food are lawful to us, how much more so is this the case with others?
The questioner : And if he greets you, do you return the greeting?
The Shaykh : If he greets you, return the greeting. It has not come to our attention, meaning it seems you want us to discuss the greeting. If he greets you, say "Peace be upon you" if he used the explicit phrase "Peace be upon you." If he used a phrase that could be interpreted as saying "The peace is upon you" or simply "Peace," then say "And upon you."