An objection to the fatwa on saying “ʿalayhi al-salam” of Sayyiduna Husayn ﵁, and the reply

Question

To the honourable Chief Mufti, Dar al-ʿUlum Deoband. Al-salamu ʿalaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh. That a fatwa permitting one to say “ʿalayhi al-salam” (عليه السلام) of Sayyiduna Husayn ﵁ should have been issued by the Dar al-ʿUlum is a cause of great astonishment. Most likely some novice student drafted the fatwa, and you, honourable sirs, endorsed it without deep consideration and so harmed the cause of Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jamaʿa. (1)

Answer

Salam is a greeting (tahiyya) and a supplication (duʿaʾ), both for the living and for the dead; it has been taught for the time of meeting: “Al-salamu ʿalaykum”, “Wa ʿalaykum al-salam”, and along with this “wa rahmatullah” and “wa barakatuh” are also established.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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