Riyadh al-Salihin, from the words of the Master of the Messengers, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
Chapter: The desirability of shaking hands upon meeting, having a cheerful face, kissing the hand of a righteous person, and kissing one's child out of affection.
And embracing one who has returned from a journey, and the dislike of bowing.
On the authority of Abu al-Khattab Qatadah, who said: I asked Anas, "Did the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, shake hands?"
He said, "Yes." Narrated by al-Bukhari. From the benefits of the hadith:
Shaking hands is a recommended Sunnah and a legislated custom that contains no harm and no opposition to the law.
Rather, it is a Sunnah upon which there is consensus when meeting.
On the authority of Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, who said: When the people of Yemen arrived, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"The people of Yemen have come to you, and they are the first to introduce handshaking."
Narrated by Abu Dawud.
From the benefits of the hadith: The desirability of mentioning a Muslim's good qualities so that others may emulate them.
On the authority of al-Bara', may Allah be pleased with him, who said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"There are no two Muslims who meet and shake hands but that they are forgiven before they part."
Narrated by Abu Dawud.
On the authority of Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, who said: A man said, "O Messenger of Allah,
if one of us meets his brother or friend, should he bow to him?" He said, "No."
He asked, "Should he embrace him and kiss him?"
He said, "No."
He asked, "Should he take his hand and shake it?"
He said, "Yes."
Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The obligation to ask about a legal ruling for one who is ignorant of it and fears falling into what is forbidden.
It teaches callers to the path of Allah not to become angry when asked about a ruling involving a prohibition.
Rather, one should answer the questioner according to the scope of his question.
A scholar should not become annoyed by the frequency of people's questions regarding legal rulings,
even if the question is repeated regarding the same ruling.
The prohibition of bowing to someone arriving, even if he is a leader of the people or otherwise.
Al-iltizam, which is embracing,
is not permissible except in situations exempted by the Shari'ah,
such as bidding farewell to a traveler or welcoming him.
The legitimacy of shaking hands, and that it is done with the hand.
On the authority of Safwan ibn 'Assal, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
A Jew said to his companion,
"Take us to this Prophet."
So they came to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and asked him about nine clear signs.
He mentioned the hadith until the point where he said:
"So they kissed his hand and his foot and said,
'We bear witness that you are a Prophet.'"
Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.
The nine clear signs
are what were mentioned in the same hadith according to al-Tirmidhi:
"Do not associate anything with Allah,
do not steal, do not commit adultery,
do not kill a soul which Allah has forbidden except by right,
do not falsely accuse an innocent person to a ruler so that he may kill him,
do not practice sorcery, do not consume usury,
do not slander a chaste woman,
and do not flee from the battlefield."
"And specifically for you, O Jews,
do not transgress the Sabbath."
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, answered
regarding the nine things they asked about,
which were shared between the Muslims and the Jews,
and he added the tenth, which was specific to them.
They had kept it hidden in their hearts,
so he answered them regarding it as an increase in the evidence of his miracle.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The permissibility of kissing the hands or feet of those who are believed to be pious and righteous,
and from whom blessings are hoped for,
as this was done with him, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and he did not disapprove of it.
On the authority of Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both, there is a story in which he said:
"We drew near to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and we kissed his hand."
Narrated by Abu Dawud.
The story
is what was narrated by Abu Dawud at the end of the Book of Jihad,
on the authority of Abu Layla,
that Ibn 'Umar narrated
that he was in one of the military expeditions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
He said:
"The people fled in a panic,
and I was among those who fled."
This was during the Battle of Mu'tah.
"When we emerged, we said,
'What shall we do? We have fled from the battlefield
and incurred the wrath of Allah.'
So we said,
'Let us enter Medina and sneak into it so we can go,
and no one will see us.'"
He said:
"So we entered,
and we said,
'If we present ourselves to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and if there is a repentance for us, we shall stay;
and if it is otherwise, we shall leave.'"
He said:
"So we sat for the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, before the dawn prayer.
When he came out, we stood up to him and said,
'We are the ones who fled.'
He turned to us and said,
'Rather, you are the ones who return to fight (al-'akkarun).'"
The rest of it is what was mentioned in the hadith.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The permissibility of kissing the hand of a godly scholar and one's parents,
provided it is not taken as a constant habit.
On the authority of 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said:
Zayd ibn Harithah arrived in Medina,
and the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was in my house.
He came to him and knocked on the door,
and the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, stood up to him, dragging his garment,
and embraced him and kissed him.
Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The permissibility of kissing and embracing one who has arrived from a journey,
unless there is a fear of temptation.
Hastening to meet those one loves
when one senses their arrival.
The virtue of Zayd ibn Harithah, may Allah be pleased with him,
and the love of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, for him.
On the authority of Abu Dharr, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to me:
"Do not belittle any good deed,
even if it is meeting your brother with a cheerful face."
Narrated by Muslim.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, kissed al-Hasan ibn 'Ali, may Allah be pleased with them both.
Al-Aqra' ibn Habis said,
"I have ten children,
and I have never kissed any of them."
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said,
"He who does not show mercy will not be shown mercy."
Agreed upon.
Riyadh al-Salihin.