(243) Chapter: The Obligation of Supplicating Allah to Exalt His Mention and its Excellence, and its Manner

Abu Mas'ud Al-Badri (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: We were sitting in the company of Sa'd bin 'Ubadah (May Allah be pleased with him), when the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) came to us. Bashir bin Sa'd said: "O Messenger of Allah! Allah has commanded us to supplicate for you, but how should we do that?" The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) kept silent. We were much perturbed over his silence and we wished he did not asked him this question. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Say: 'O Allah, exalt the mention of Muhammad and the family of Muhammad as you exalted the family of Ibrahim. And bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad as You blessed the family of Ibrahim. You are the Praised, the Glorified,' and the method of greeting (i.e., Salam) is as you know." [Muslim]. Commentary: In this Hadith, the Prophet (PBUH) has showed us that the manner of offering Salam was the same as the one mentioned in the previous Hadith. "Al'' means the wives of the Prophet (PBUH) and those of his relatives who were from Banu Hashim and Banu `Abdul-Muttalib and had embraced Islam. Some scholars are of the opinion that it is general and applies to all his followers. This Hadith also teaches us that if one does not have knowledge of a religious matter, he must seek guidance from the knowledgeable scholars of Islam about it, rather than going by his opinion. Knowledgeable persons (scholars) here means persons who are well-versed in the Qur'an and Hadith and can answer questions in the light of them, and not from the sayings of others or from their own intelligence.