Allah has commanded the believers to invoke His blessings and greet Prophet Muhammad, may Allah grant and bless him peace, in the Qur’an:
“Indeed, Allah showers His blessings upon the Prophet, and His angels pray for him. O believers! Invoke Allah’s blessings upon him, and salute him with worthy greetings of peace.” (33:56)
Two Arabic words used in the verse, Salat (starting with the 18th letter of the Arabic alphabet) and Salam (starting with the 12th letter of the Arabic alphabet), require explanation.
Salat, particularly when it is used with the conjunction ala/alaihi (on/upon), has three meanings. To love, to praise, and to pray for somebody. Salam means saluting, greeting, and wishing peace to somebody.
The above-mentioned verse says that Allah and His angels say salat to the Prophet ﷺ. Then the verse commands the believers to say salat and salam to the Prophet ﷺ in a befitting manner. When the expression salat is used for Allah, its two initial meanings, those of loving and praising, apply. The third meaning of praying for him does not apply in this case. However, concerning angels and human beings, all three meanings are intended. In other words, the translation of the verse may be read as: “Allah loves and praises the Prophet, the angels love, praise, and pray for him, and the believers should love, praise, and pray for him and wish greetings in a manner that is most suitable.”
To differentiate between salat and salam in the English language, we may use the expression ‘prayers on’ and ‘greetings for’ for the Prophet ﷺ, respectively.
The normal form of greetings that Muslims practise between each other is to say, assalamualaikum, which means that I wish and announce your safety and well-being. Another meaning of salam is submission, and its derivative Islam means submission to Allah. When we say salam to the Prophet ﷺ, along with our good wishes, we also mean submission to him and willingness to follow him. This requirement of submission to the Prophet ﷺ has also been emphasised in the Qur’an. Allah says, “But no, by your Lord, they will not [truly] believe until they make you, [O Muhammad], judge concerning that over which they dispute among themselves and then find within themselves no discomfort from what you have judged and submit in [full, willing] submission.” (4:65)
The above-mentioned verse of the Qur’an commands the believers regarding prayer on and greetings for the Prophet ﷺ. Islamic scholars have discussed the issue of whether it is obligatory or not. The consensus is that although it is not obligatory, it is highly recommended to say these at least once in lifetime, and as many times as possible. In this regard, an interesting discussion is regarding the prayers on and the greeting for the Prophet ﷺ in the five-time obligatory prayers themselves.
Prayers on and Greetings for the Prophet ﷺ in Five-Time Obligatory Prayers
The format of five-time obligatory prayers is that it is divided into rak’ats (units), and one sits at the close of the second unit, and also in the case of the last unit. If the prayer comprises only two units, the second unit shall also be the final unit. Greetings for the Prophet ﷺ are said in the form of At-Tahiyat in the second and final sittings, while prayer on the Prophet ﷺ is only provided for in the final sitting. Hence, if the prayer comprises two units, as in Fajr (before sun-rise), the final sitting will be in the second unit, and so both the greetings for and prayers on the Prophet ﷺ will be said in it. The obligatory prayer in Maghrib (after sunset) comprises three units. The greetings for the Prophet ﷺ will be said both in the sitting after two units and the final sitting after the third unit. However, the prayers on the Prophet ﷺ are provided for only in the final sitting, after the third unit. The three other obligatory prayers have four units. Greetings for the Prophet ﷺ will be said in both the sittings, after the second unit and after the fourth unit of the prayer. However, prayers on the Prophet ﷺ will be said only in the final sitting after the fourth unit of prayer.
All the Islamic scholars agree that saying greetings for the Prophet ﷺ in the form of At-Tahiyat, is obligatory. The same agreement is not found in the case of the prayers on the Prophet. Some opine it is obligatory, others say it is Sunnat (the way of the Prophet ﷺ), while the rest take the position that it is highly recommended. The majority opinion is that it is not obligatory. Hence, if a person forgets to say the prayers on the Prophet ﷺ in the final sitting of the prayer, it will remain valid.
The position taken by Abu Jafar Muhammad, son of Hussain, may Allah be pleased with both of them, is worth mentioning in this regard. He said, “If I were to offer a prayer in which I did not ask blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ, I would think it was incomplete.”