be upon you, O my father,” after which he would depart (1); this was exactly how the Companions used to greet him.
If, in his salutation (2), one says, “Peace be upon you, O Messenger of Allah; peace be upon you (3), O Prophet of Allah, O Elect of Allah from among His creation, O noblest of creation in the sight of his Lord, O leader of the God-fearing,” all of that (4) is part of his attributes—may my father and mother be ransomed for him, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.
Likewise (5), when (6) one sends blessings upon him together with the greeting, this is among what Allah has commanded.
He should greet them (7) while facing the Chamber and turning his back to the qibla (8), according to the majority of scholars such as Malik, al-Shafiʿi, and Ahmad (9).
(1) Reported by Abd al-Razzaq, no. 6724, and judged authentic by al-Albani in Fadl al-Salat, p. 24.
(2) The words “fi salamihi” (in his greeting) are missing in MS B.
(3) The phrase “al-salam ‘alayk” (peace be upon you) is omitted in MSS C and D.
(4) Copy D adds the term “ja’iz” (permissible).
(5) The passage enclosed in brackets is absent from MS B.
(6) The expression reads in MSS A and B simply “wa idha” (and when), without “wa kadhalika” (and likewise).
(7) The wording “wa yusallim ‘alayhim” (and he offers salutations upon them) is not found in D; B reads “wa yusallim ‘alayh” (upon him), while C has “wa yusallimuna ‘alayh” (they offer salutations upon him).
(8) MSS C and D read: “mustaqbili al-hujra mustadbirī …” (“facing the chamber and turning their backs …”).
(9) See: Ibn al-Hajj, al-Madkhal 1/261; al-Majmu‘ 8/273; Sharh al-Muntaha 1/594.