This excerpt is taken from the book of Sheikh al-Islam Imam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, Al-Jawab al-Bahir fi Zuwar al-Maqabir, translated by Sheikh Ataullah Saqib.
The Method of Sending Salutations upon the Messenger of Allah in Prayer
As for the matter of sending salutations upon you, peace be upon you, it is obligatory upon every Muslim that he sends blessings and salutations upon you, peace be upon you, during prayer, when entering the mosque, and when leaving the mosque. The words of salutations in prayer are:
السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ السَّلَامُ عَلَيْنَا وَعَلَىٰ عِبَادِ اللَّهِ الصَّالِحِينَ
"O Prophet of Allah! Peace be upon you, and the mercy and blessings of Allah. May the mercy of Allah be upon us and upon all the righteous servants of Allah."
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said that when you say this, the mercy of Allah will be upon all the righteous servants of Allah in the heavens and the earth. Therefore, it is obligatory for every Muslim to send salutations especially upon the Mercy to the Worlds, peace be upon him, in every prayer, and generally upon the righteous, angels, humans, and jinn.
In the Sahihs, it is narrated from Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, that he said: When we prayed behind the Noble Messenger, peace be upon him, we used to say: "Peace be upon so and so." Upon hearing this, the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ السَّلَامُ فَإِذَا قَعَدَ أَحَدُكُمْ فِي الصَّلَاةِ فَلْيَقُلْ التَّحِيَّاتُ لِلَّهِ وَالصَّلَوَاتُ وَالطَّيِّبَاتُ السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ السَّلَامُ عَلَيْنَا وَعَلَىٰ عِبَادِ اللَّهِ الصَّالِحِينَ أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ
"Indeed, Allah is Peace, and when any one of you sits in the Tashahhud during prayer, he should say this supplication: All greetings, all acts of worship, and all good things are for Allah. O Prophet! Peace be upon you and the mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you. Peace be upon us and upon all the righteous servants of Allah. I bear witness that there is no deity except Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger."
Reference: (Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Adhan: Chapter on the final Tashahhud, Hadith: 831; Sahih Muslim, Book of Prayer: Chapter on the final Tashahhud in prayer, Hadith: 402)
According to a hadith narrated in Sahih Muslim from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, the words of Tashahhud narrated from Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, are more than the above words. Also, Ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both, used to teach people the Tashahhud.
Reference: (Sahih Muslim, Book of Prayer: Chapter on the final Tashahhud in prayer, Hadith: 403)
Imam Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him, only transmitted the Tashahhud narrated from Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him. All the words of Tashahhud that have been narrated are permissible because the Qur'an was revealed in seven readings. If the words of Tashahhud differ, there is no harm; rather, they are more permissible. The purpose of our discussion is that when a Muslim performing prayer says ”السَّلَامُ عَلَيْنَا وَعَلَى عِبَادِ اللَّهِ الصَّالِحِينَ“, his reward reaches every righteous person whether they are in the heavens or on the earth, such as angels, righteous people, and jinn. Regarding these jinn, Allah Almighty says:
وَأَنَّا مِنَّا الصَّالِحُونَ وَمِنَّا دُونَ ذَٰلِكَ ۖ كُنَّا طَرَائِقَ قِدَدًا
"And among us are the righteous, and among us are [others] not so; we were [of] divided ways."
Reference: (72-Al-Jinn:11)
"And among us are some righteous and some inferior to that. We were of different sects."
