that invoking blessings upon the Prophet—may blessings and peace be upon him—[during the ritual prayer] (1) is obligatory, as held by al-Shāfiʿī and by Ahmad in the second report from him.

Then, according to this report, is it an integral pillar, or an obligation that is waived if omitted inadvertently? (2) There are two reports from Ahmad.

Among those who hold that invoking blessings upon the Prophet—may blessings and peace be upon him—is obligatory, some require the transmitted wording; this is one of the two views in Ahmad’s school. According to this view, invoking blessings upon the family of Muhammad is obligatory. Others do not require that wording; indeed, some require only that blessings be invoked upon him, not upon his family, as is well known in the schools of al-Shāfiʿī and Ahmad. According to this view, invoking blessings upon his family is not obligatory.

Since it is known that there is a well-known disagreement over this issue, the response is:

Even assuming that invoking blessings upon the family of Muhammad is obligatory (3), this (4) invocation applies to the entire family of Muhammad. It is not confined (5) to the righteous among them (6), much less to someone who is infallible (7). Rather, it encompasses everyone included among the family of Muhammad, just as supplication for the believing men and women and the Muslim men and women encompasses everyone included among the believers and Muslims. Supplicating for the believers in general, or for the Prophet’s household in general, does not necessarily mean that every one of them is righteous and God-fearing. Rather, supplication is made for them in seeking Allah Most High’s kindness and favor toward them, and Allah’s bounty