Hadith 6221

حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ كَثِيرٍ ، حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ ، حَدَّثَنَا سُلَيْمَانُ ، عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ، قَالَ : عَطَسَ رَجُلَانِ عِنْدَ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ، فَشَمَّتَ أَحَدَهُمَا وَلَمْ يُشَمِّتِ الْآخَرَ فَقِيلَ لَهُ ، فَقَالَ : " هَذَا حَمِدَ اللَّهَ ، وَهَذَا لَمْ يَحْمَدِ اللَّهَ " .
Narrated Anas bin Malik: Two men sneezed before the Prophet. The Prophet said to one of them, "May Allah bestow His Mercy on you," but he did not say that to the other. On being asked (why), the Prophet said, "That one praised Allah (at the time of sneezing), while the other did not praise Allah."
Hadith Reference صحيح البخاري / كتاب الأدب / 6221
Hadith Grading محدثین: أحاديث صحيح البخاريّ كلّها صحيحة
Related hadith on this topic
Explanation & Benefits
Shaykh Abdul Sattar al-Hammad
Hadith Commentary:
(1)
The one who sneezes becomes deserving of a response only after saying "alhamdulillah." A man said "alhamdulillah," so the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) responded to him, and another neglected to do so, so he (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) did not respond to him.

(2)
Sneezing is a cause of health, balance of temperament, and cleansing of the mind. For this, expressing gratitude to Allah—that is, saying "alhamdulillah"—is Sunnah, and it is incumbent upon the listener to respond to it. Thus, making supplication and informing him is necessary, because by fulfilling the obligations and rights, he has become deserving of this gift.
Source: Hidayat al-Qari: Commentary on Sahih Bukhari, Urdu, Page: 6221
Shaykh Dr. Abdur Rahman Freywai
Explanation:
1:
From this it is understood that only the one who says (Alhamdulillah) upon sneezing, according to the Sunnah, is deserving of the supplication of goodness. If he does not say (Alhamdulillah), then there is no need to respond. However, if the person sneezing is unaware of this ruling, he should be informed and made to understand.
Source: Sunan al-Tirmidhi – Majlis ‘Ilmi Dar al-Da‘wah, New Delhi Edition, Page: 2742