Fath al-Rabbani

Sayyiduna Abu Tamimah Hijimi (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates from a man of his tribe, who says: I met the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) on a road in Madinah. He was wearing a cotton waistcloth, the edge of which was spread out. I said: ‘Alaika as-salaam, O Messenger of Allah!’ (Peace be upon you, O Messenger of Allah!) But the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Indeed, ‘Alaika as-salaam’ is the greeting for the dead. Indeed, ‘Alaika as-salaam’ is the greeting for the dead. Indeed, ‘Alaika as-salaam’ is the greeting for the dead. Say ‘Salaamun ‘alaikum’, say ‘Salaamun ‘alaikum’. He repeated these words two or three times.