On the taslim in prayer: Some of the imams of the mosques say "As-salamu alaykum," then turn their heads, then say "wa rahmat Allah," and they do the same on the other side.
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : The questioner says: Regarding the taslim in prayer, some of the imams of the mosques say: "As-salamu alaykum," then they turn their heads, then they say: "wa rahmat Allah," and they do the same on the left side?
The Shaykh : This has no basis, meaning that he says "As-salamu alaykum" while facing the qiblah, then says "wa rahmat Allah" while his head is turned. This has no basis and no justification either; it has no share of the Sunnah and no share of sound reasoning.
From the moment a person says "As-salamu alaykum," he begins to turn his head until the letter kaf of the address is fully pronounced when he turns, because he is addressing the ma'mums behind him. So from the moment he says "As-salam," from the moment he begins with the hamzah, he begins to turn until he finishes with "wa barakatuh." Then he also turns continuously to the left side and says: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh."
I have also seen some imams, when they want to perform the taslim, nod their heads: "As-salamu alaykum," nodding their heads two or three times, then turning. This also has no basis.
I have also seen some imams say "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah" to the right, and "As-salamu alaykum" also to the right, because the loudspeaker is on their right, and they fear that if they say "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah" to the left, the loudspeaker's sound will weaken. This also has no basis, and it is not appropriate to pay attention to this. Rather, he should say the taslim: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah" to the right, then turn to the left and say: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh." Even if the loudspeaker is on his right or on his left, he should not care about this; the important thing is to perform the Sunnah. He must ensure that the people hear, unless the voice weakens.
The Shaykh : This has no basis, meaning that he says "As-salamu alaykum" while facing the qiblah, then says "wa rahmat Allah" while his head is turned. This has no basis and no justification either; it has no share of the Sunnah and no share of sound reasoning.
From the moment a person says "As-salamu alaykum," he begins to turn his head until the letter kaf of the address is fully pronounced when he turns, because he is addressing the ma'mums behind him. So from the moment he says "As-salam," from the moment he begins with the hamzah, he begins to turn until he finishes with "wa barakatuh." Then he also turns continuously to the left side and says: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh."
I have also seen some imams, when they want to perform the taslim, nod their heads: "As-salamu alaykum," nodding their heads two or three times, then turning. This also has no basis.
I have also seen some imams say "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah" to the right, and "As-salamu alaykum" also to the right, because the loudspeaker is on their right, and they fear that if they say "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah" to the left, the loudspeaker's sound will weaken. This also has no basis, and it is not appropriate to pay attention to this. Rather, he should say the taslim: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah" to the right, then turn to the left and say: "As-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh." Even if the loudspeaker is on his right or on his left, he should not care about this; the important thing is to perform the Sunnah. He must ensure that the people hear, unless the voice weakens.