Replying to Salām During Prayer: Clarification in the Light of Hadith
Compiled by: Muhammad Nadeem Zaheer Baloch
◈ The Initial Ruling
In the early period of Islam, the Prophet (ﷺ) used to reply verbally to salām even while in prayer. Later, this ruling was abrogated, and now the instruction is that the praying person should respond by gesture (ishārah), not by speech.
◈ Hadith on Abrogation of Verbal Response
‘Abdullāh ibn Mas‘ūd (رضي الله عنه) said:
«كنّا نُسلِّمُ على النَّبيِّ ﷺ وهو في الصَّلاةِ فيرُدُّ علينا قبْلَ أنْ نأتيَ أرضَ الحبشةِ، فلمّا رجَعْنا مِن عندِ النَّجاشيِّ أتَيْتُه وهو يُصلِّي فسلَّمْتُ عليه فلم يرُدَّ علَيَّ السَّلامَ…»
“…We used to greet the Prophet (ﷺ) with salām while he was praying, and he would reply to us until we went to Abyssinia. When we returned, I gave him salām while he was praying, but he did not respond…”
The Prophet (ﷺ) later explained:
«إنَّ اللهَ يُحدِثُ مِن أمرِه ما يشاءُ وقد أحدَث أنْ لا نتكلَّمَ في الصَّلاةِ»
“Indeed, Allah ordains what He wills, and He has now decreed that we should not speak during prayer.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān: 2244, Abū Dāwūd: 924, Bukhārī: 1216, Muslim: 1201]
◈ The Current Ruling: Reply by Gesture
After verbal response was prohibited, the Sunnah method is to respond by gesture of the hand or finger.
Ṣuhayb (رضي الله عنه) narrated:
«مررت على رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وهو يصلي فسلمت عليه , فرد علي إشارة , ولا اعلم , إلا انه قال: بإصبعه»
“I passed by the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) while he was praying and greeted him with salām. He replied with a gesture, and I think he gestured with his finger.”
[Sunan al-Nasā’ī: 1187]
(Takhrīj: Abū Dāwūd: 925, Tirmidhī: 367, Musnad Aḥmad: 4/332, Dārimī: 1401 – ḥadīth ṣaḥīḥ)
Authenticity:
- Shaykh al-Albānī: Ṣaḥīḥ
- Shaykh Zubair ‘Alī Zai: Ṣaḥīḥ
◈ Conclusion
- Verbal response during prayer was practiced in the beginning but later abrogated.
- Now the Sunnah is that if someone greets a person in prayer, the praying person should reply with a gesture (ishārah) using the hand or finger, not by speech.
