—and His blessings.” The reply should match it; initiating the greeting is a sunnah, whereas returning it is obligatory. These two rulings—beginning and responding—apply equally to those you know and those you do not.
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Maintaining the bonds of kinship: this includes relatives in the ascending and descending lines as well as collateral relations, whether near or distant, each according to his degree. Allah praises those who uphold these ties, saying, “Those who maintain what Allah has commanded to be joined …” (Q 13:21), up to His words, “Such people shall have the excellent outcome of the abode” (13:22). He censures and threatens those who sever them: “And they sever what Allah has commanded to be joined …” (Q 2:27), up to His words, “They are the ones upon whom is the curse, and for them is the evil end of the abode” (13:25). Textual evidences on this subject are exceedingly numerous.
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Providing food: this embraces both obligatory and recommended expenditures—feeding the poor, the destitute, and the needy. The Most High says, “They give food, despite loving it, to the poor, the orphan, and the captive” (Q 76:8). Many other verses and reports speak of the virtue of charity.
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The night prayer, whose best time is the latter part of the night, when the Lord, glorified is He, descends to the lowest heaven to answer those who call upon Him, grant to those who ask, and show kindness to those deprived. He says, “They used to sleep but little of the night” (Q 51:17); “Stand [in prayer] during the night, except for a little” (Q 73:2); and “Their sides forsake their beds as they call upon their Lord in fear and in hope” (Q 32:16). Muslim (1163) records, on the authority of Abū Hurayrah, that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “The best prayer after the obligatory ones is the night prayer.”
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Whoever carries out these righteous deeds, Allah will enable him to desist from what is forbidden and to fulfil all the other acts of obedience; he will therefore enter Paradise safe from the punishment of Allah, exalted be He.