وَسِیقَ ٱلَّذِینَ ٱتَّقَوۡا۟ رَبَّهُمۡ إِلَى ٱلۡجَنَّةِ زُمَرًاۖ حَتَّىٰۤ إِذَا جَاۤءُوهَا وَفُتِحَتۡ أَبۡوَ ٰبُهَا وَقَالَ لَهُمۡ خَزَنَتُهَا سَلَـٰمٌ عَلَیۡكُمۡ طِبۡتُمۡ فَٱدۡخُلُوهَا خَـٰلِدِینَ

And those who were mindful of their Lord will be led to Paradise in ˹successive˺ groups. When they arrive at its ˹already˺ open gates, its keepers will say, “Peace be upon you! You have done well, so come in, to stay forever.”

39:73

The importance of the greeting of “salam” is often underestimated. As with many of the miraculous blessings we are graced with, we can easily forget its value. The value of salam is such that it is directly connected to mutual love among the believers, which is connected to faith:

قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏:‏ والذي نفسي بيده لا تدخلوا الجنة حتى تؤمنوا ولا تؤمنوا حتى تحابوا أولا أدلكم على شيء إذا فعلتموه تحاببتم‏:‏ أفشوا السلام بينكم

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “By Him in Whose Hand my soul is! You will not enter Jannah until you believe, and you shall not believe until you love one another. May I inform you of something, if you do, you love each other. Promote greeting of peace amongst yourselves (by saying As-salamu ‘alaikum to one another)”.

Riyadh as Salihin, 378

Although it is a simple and routine action, it is at the same time a supplication for several things. First, “as-Salam” is one of the names of Allah, subhanahu wa t’ala. This means we are literally asking that the Lord of all Creation be with the one for whom the supplication is made. It is also a supplication for spiritual tranquility, which is one of the meanings of salam. When a person has a strong connection with their Lord, they will not fear, because they understand that everything is completely in the control of the Most Merciful and Most Generous Creator. This leads to an emotional and mental tranquility. It is also a supplication for physical safety of the one receiving it, which is yet another dimension of the word’s meaning.

The greeting itself is thus a powerful form of community service.

وعن عبد الله بن عمرو بن العاص رضي الله عنهما أن رجلا سأل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم‏:‏ أي الإسلام خير‏؟‏ قال‏:‏ ‏ “‏تطعم الطعام، وتقرأ السلام على من عرفت ومن لم تعرف‏”‏‏

Abdullah bin ‘Amr bin Al-‘as (May Allah be pleased with them) reported that a man asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: “Which act in Islam is the best?” He ﷺ replied, “To give food, and to greet everyone, whether you know or you do not.”

Riyadh as Salihin 844

The greeting is also a means of purifying sins, both of the one who greets and the one who is greeted.

عَنْ حُذَيْفَةَ بْنِ الْيَمَانِ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ إِنَّ الْمُؤْمِنَ إِذَا لَقِيَ الْمُؤْمِنَ فَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ وَأَخَذَ بِيَدِهِ فَصَافَحَهُ تَنَاثَرَتْ خَطَايَاهُمَا كَمَا يَتَنَاثَرُ وَرَقُ الشَّجَرِ

Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman reported that the Prophet ﷺ said, “Verily, when the believer meets another believer, greets him with peace, and shakes his hand, the sins of them both will shed like leaves falling from a tree.”

al-Muʻjam al-Awsaṭ, 253

The reward of simply pronouncing the salam was defined by the Prophet ﷺ.

عَنْ سَهْلِ بْنِ حُنَيْفٍ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مَنْ قَالَ السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ كُتِبَ لَهُ عَشْرُ حَسَنَاتٍ وَمَنْ قَالَ السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ كُتِبَ لَهُ عِشْرُونَ حَسَنَةً وَمَنْ قَالَ السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ كُتِبَ لَهُ ثَلَاثُونَ حَسَنَةً

Sahl ibn Hunayf reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Whoever greets with peace, ten goods are recorded for him. Whoever greets with peace and the mercy of Allah, twenty good deeds are recorded for him. Whoever greets with peace, the mercy of Allah, and his blessings, thirty good deeds are recorded for him.”

al-Mu’jam al-Kabīr, 5563

The Prophet ﷺ was not stingy with bringing this benefit to others, nor was he shy about accepting the bounty of Allah. He used to repeat the greeting multiple times:

وعن أنس رضي الله عنه أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم، كان إذا تكلم بكلمة أعادها ثلاثًا حتى تفهم عنه، وإذا أتى على قوم فسلم عليهم سلم عليهم ثلاثًا‏

Anas radhi Allahu anhu reported that the Prophet ﷺ used to repeat his words thrice so that the meaning thereof would be fully understood, and whenever he came upon a gathering of people, he would greet them. He would repeat Salam thrice.

Riyadh as Salihin, 852

The value of the greeting of salam is such that the Prophet ﷺ told us to repeat the greeting even during a single meeting with a Muslim brother who leaves our line of sight for a moment.

وعنه عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، قال‏:‏ ‏ “‏إذا لقي أحدكم أخاه، فليسلم عليه، فإن حالت بينهما شجرة، أو جدار، أو حجر، ثم لقيه، فليسلم عليه‏”‏ 

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “When one of you meets a brother (in Faith) he should greet him. Then if a tree or a wall or a stone intervenes between them and then he meets him again, he should greet him.”

Riyadh as Salihin, 860

He disliked returning the salam when he was not in a state of wudhu, because salam is one of the names of Allah, subhanahu wa t’ala.

حَدَّثَنَا جَعْفَرُ بْنُ مُسَافِرٍ، حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ يَحْيَى الْبُرُلُّسِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا حَيْوَةُ بْنُ شُرَيْحٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ الْهَادِ، أَنَّ نَافِعًا، حَدَّثَهُ عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ، قَالَ أَقْبَلَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم مِنَ الْغَائِطِ فَلَقِيَهُ رَجُلٌ عِنْدَ بِئْرِ جَمَلٍ فَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ فَلَمْ يَرُدَّ عَلَيْهِ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم حَتَّى أَقْبَلَ عَلَى الْحَائِطِ فَوَضَعَ يَدَهُ عَلَى الْحَائِطِ ثُمَّ مَسَحَ وَجْهَهُ وَيَدَيْهِ ثُمَّ رَدَّ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم عَلَى الرَّجُلِ السَّلاَمَ ‏.‏

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came from the privy. A man met him near Bir Jamal and saluted him. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) did not return the salutation until he came to a wall and placed his hands on the wall and wiped his face and hands; he then returned the man’s salutation.

Sunan Abi Dawud 331

The Prophet ﷺ used to greet children, as well as adults, with salam.

عن أنس رضي الله عنه أنه مر على صبيان، فسلم عليهم، وقال‏:‏ كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يفعله”

Anas (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that he passed by some children and greeted them. Then he said:

“Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to do the same.”

Riyadh as Salihin 862

The greeting was commanded by the Prophet alongside a number of important duties.

وعن أبي عمارة البراء بن عازب رضي الله عنهما قال‏:‏ أمرنا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بسبع‏:‏ بعيادة المريض، واتباع الجنائز، وتشميت العاطس، ونصر الضعيف، وعون المظلوم، وإفشاء السلام وإبرار المقسم‏.‏

Al-Bara’ bin ‘Azib (May Allah be pleased with them) reported:

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ commanded us to do seven things: to visit the sick, to follow the funeral (of a dead believer), to invoke the Mercy of Allah upon one who sneezes (i.e., by saying to him: Yarhamuk- Allah), to support the weak, to help the oppressed, to promote the greeting of ‘As-Salamu ‘Alaikum’, and to help those who swear to do something to keep their oaths.

Riyadh as Salihin, 846

وعن أبي يوسف عبد الله بن سلام رضي الله عنه قال‏:‏ سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول‏:‏ ‏ “‏يا أيها الناس أفشوا السلام، وأطعموا الطعام، وصلوا الأرحام وصلوا والناس نيام، تدخلوا الجنة بسلام‏”

I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saying, “O people, exchange greetings of peace (i.e., say: As-Salamu ‘Alaikum to one another), feed people, strengthen the ties of kinship, and be in prayer when others are asleep, you will enter Jannah in peace.”

Riyad as-Salihin, 848

When people consider the advantages of living in a kafir land, they usually mention education, health care, the court system, or other worldly benefits. It seems that they rarely think about the blessings of being surrounded by Muslims. In a kafir country, even a strongly practicing Muslim who prays all of his salah in the masjid will probably give and receive the greeting of salam less than 100 times per day.

In a Muslim country, the salams are exchanged much more frequently. In a kafir country, even when you meet a Muslim in public, if you don’t know them personally, you often won’t know based on their appearance that they are Muslim so that you can give them salam. The tremendous reward of salam is one of many types of reward that are severely reduced or disappear when living among mushrikeen.

The greeting of salam is a simple but powerful way of building community. If we go to a place where this greeting is less prevalent, we weaken our connection to the ummah and deprive ourselves of many blessings. Righteous actions increase faith, and the greeting of salam is a righteous action that increases the love among the believers, and this love is connected to faith.

If we intentionally move from an environment with more greetings of salam to an environment with less greetings of salam, we may very well be taking a loss in our level of faith. Likewise, moving from an environment with less greetings of salam to an environment with more greetings of salam may very well lead to an improvement in the condition of our faith.