The learned, godly imam who acted upon his knowledge, the illustrious scholar Abū al-ʿAbbās Ahmad ibn Taymiyyah—may Allah Most High have mercy on him—was asked:

“Is it permissible for people to rise and stand, as they customarily do, to honour a particular respected person upon his arrival? What if the person who remains seated considers it very likely that the newcomer will feel embarrassed or inwardly hurt, and that this may lead to hatred, hostility and resentment? Likewise, when meeting people at gatherings or elsewhere, is bending the neck towards the ground and lowering oneself permissible or forbidden? If a man does this out of habit and natural inclination, without any deliberate intention, is it forbidden for him, or is such conduct impermissible towards nobles and scholars? As for someone who appears continually at ease with this, does he incur sin for it or not? If he says, ‘I prostrated to Allah,’ is that valid or not?”

He replied:

All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.

It was not the custom of the early Muslims, during the time of the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—and his rightly guided caliphs, to stand up whenever they saw him, peace be upon him, as many people do. Rather, Anas ibn Mālik said:

“No one was more beloved to them than the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—yet when they saw him, they did not stand up for him, because they knew of his dislike