The greeting of salam

Ishaq bin Rahwayh relates: I asked Abu Usamah: Did Musa bin Ubaydah al-Rabadhi narrate to you, from Ya'qub bin Zayd, from Sayyiduna Abu Umamah bin Sahl bin Hunayf (may Allah be pleased with him), this hadith that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever says 'As-salamu 'alaykum' (Peace be upon you), ten good deeds are written for him; whoever says 'As-salamu 'alaykum wa rahmatullah' (Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah), twenty good deeds are written for him; and whoever says 'As-salamu 'alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh' (Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings), thirty good deeds are written for him"? Abu Usamah confirmed it and said: "Yes."
Abu Bakr bin Abi Shaybah said: Abu Usamah narrated this same report to us through Musa bin Ubaydah.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), a Companion from the Ansar, that he said: A group of us gathered and we said: O Messenger of Allah! We are people of the upper and lower districts, and we have certain sitting places where we sit and talk with one another. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Give these gatherings their due." We said: O Messenger of Allah! What is their due? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Lower your gaze, return the greeting of salam, guide the blind, enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil."
This chain is da'if (weak) because of Musa bin Ubaydah.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that a man came to the blessed presence of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: 'As-salamu 'alaykum' (Peace be upon you). In reply the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "He will get ten good deeds." Then another man came and said: 'As-salamu 'alaykum wa rahmatullah' (Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah). He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "He will get twenty good deeds." Then yet another man came and said: 'As-salamu 'alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh' (Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings). He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "He will get thirty good deeds."
The narrator Abu Harun in this chain is da'if (weak); however, there is a supporting report (shahid) for it in the hadith of Sayyiduna Imran bin Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him), which Imams Abu Dawud, al-Darimi and al-Tirmidhi have narrated.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah Almighty is Himself 'al-Salam' (the very embodiment and source of peace), so do not begin your speech with anything before His name. So when someone says to you 'As-salamu 'alaykum' (Peace be upon you), then you too say in reply 'As-salamu 'alaykum' (Peace be upon you)."
And in the narration of Abd al-Salam the wording is: "When one of you intends to give the greeting, let him say 'al-Salam', for Allah Almighty is Himself 'al-Salam'; so do not begin with anything before (the name of) Allah."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The greeting of salam comes before speaking, and do not invite anyone to food until he has given the greeting of salam."
Imam al-Tirmidhi recorded this report in his Jami'; however, its chain contains a narrator named Anbasah bin Abd al-Rahman, who is matruk (abandoned) and severely weak, on account of which the hadith scholars have declared this hadith weak or fabricated in its chain, although there are other authentic hadiths about the importance of the greeting of salam.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him), as a marfu' report, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The one riding should greet the one walking, and the one walking should greet the one sitting; and when two people walking meet, whichever of them is first to give the greeting of salam is the more virtuous."
Imam al-Harith narrated this hadith in his Musnad, and its basis is also found in Sahih Muslim.

Zayd bin Aslam (may Allah have mercy on him) relates: My father sent me to Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both), and I entered upon him (inside his house) without asking permission. (Zayd says that) he said, teaching me (the etiquette of social conduct): "When you wish to enter, first ask permission; then, if you are given permission, give the greeting of salam and enter." (Then Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him)) asked: What do you need? I said: My father has sent me to you with the request that you write for him the price of your share at Khaybar in exchange for aqit (dried curd). So he wrote that for him and asked: Did you stop (on hearing the instruction)? I said: Yes.
The chain of this report is sahih (authentic), and all its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy) and reliable.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna al-Bara' bin Azib (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Spread the greeting of salam abundantly among yourselves and make it common between one another."
In the narration of Imam Abu Bakr there is the additional wording "wa al-ashratu asharun" (and excessive exultation, or boastful pride, is sheer evil), while in the narration of Imams Ishaq and Ahmad bin Mani' its meaning is explained in these words: "ya'ni kathrat al-'anat" (that is, it means falling into great hardship, distress and sin). Imams Musaddad, Abu Bakr bin Abi Shaybah, Ishaq bin Rahwayh, Ahmad bin Mani' and Abu Ya'la al-Mawsili narrated this hadith, each with his own chains, through Qanan bin Abdullah al-Nahmi.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna al-Zubayr bin al-Awwam (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "By the One in whose hand is my soul! You cannot become people of complete faith until you love one another (purely for the pleasure of Allah). Shall I not tell you of something which, if you adopt it, you will love one another? (That deed is:) 'Afshu al-salama baynakum' (Spread the greeting of salam widely among yourselves and make it customary)."
The chain of this hadith is hasan (good). Imam Ahmad bin Mani' recorded it in his Musnad, and Allamah al-Busiri cited it in 'Ithaf al-Khiyarah al-Maharah'; moreover, a supporting report for it is also found in Sahih Muslim.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to me, and this was the very first advice that he (peace and blessings be upon him) gave me; he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O my dear son! Keep my secret hidden; you will become a complete believer." (Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) relates:) So my mother and the pure wives of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would ask me about some secret of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and I would not tell even them; and I will never tell anyone any secret of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He (peace and blessings be upon him) further said: "O my dear son! When you leave your house, greet with salam whomever your eye falls upon from the people of the qiblah, for in this way you will return (home) in a state in which you have been forgiven. O my dear son! When you enter your house, greet yourself and your family with salam. O my dear son! If you are able to spend your morning and evening such that there is no rancour or deceit in your heart towards anyone, then do so, for this will make the reckoning easier for you (on the Day of Resurrection). O my dear son! If you follow this advice of mine, then nothing will be dearer to you than death."
Imam Abu Ya'la and Imam Ahmad bin Mani' narrated it from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him). Moreover, Imam al-Tirmidhi narrated part of this hadith through Abdullah bin Anas from Ali bin Zayd, and mentioned that Abbad al-Minqari narrated it at length through Ali bin Zayd from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him), but without mentioning Sa'id bin al-Musayyib in it.