238 — Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “A Muslim has five rights over another Muslim: returning the greeting, visiting the sick, following funeral corteges, accepting an invitation, and invoking mercy for one who sneezes.” Agreed upon.

In another wording collected by Muslim: “A Muslim has six rights over his fellow Muslim: when you meet him, offer him salam; when he invites you, respond; when he seeks your counsel, give him sincere advice; when he sneezes and praises Allah, pray for mercy for him; when he becomes ill, visit him; and when he dies, accompany his funeral.”

[Explanation]

The author—may Allah have mercy on him—cites here what Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) transmitted to clarify the rights one Muslim owes another. Those rights are many, yet the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would sometimes highlight specific ones to stress their importance and draw special attention to them. Among the matters Abu Hurayrah related is the Prophet’s statement: “A Muslim has five rights over another Muslim: returning the greeting,” that is, if he greets you, you must return his greeting. The other narration says, “A Muslim has six rights… when you meet him, offer him salam.”

Thus two duties emerge: initiating the greeting—derived from his words, “when you meet him, offer him salam,”—and returning the greeting—taken from his words, “returning the greeting.” Initiating the greeting is an emphasized sunnah,