Tafseer of The Light · An-Noor · 24:61
There is not upon the blind [any] constraint nor upon the lame constraint nor upon the ill constraint nor upon yourselves when you eat from your [own] houses or the houses of your fathers or the houses of your mothers or the houses of your brothers or the houses of your sisters or the houses of your father's brothers or the houses of your father's sisters or the houses of your mother's brothers or the houses of your mother's sisters or [from houses] whose keys you possess or [from the house] of your friend. There is no blame upon you whether you eat together or separately. But when you enter houses, give greetings of peace upon each other - a greeting from Allah, blessed and good. Thus does Allah make clear to you the verses [of ordinance] that you may understand.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
Abū Jaʿfar said: the exegetes (ahl al-taʾwīl) differed concerning this verse — concerning the occasion on which it was sent down. Some said: this verse was sent down as a dispensation for the Muslims to eat together with the blind, the lame, the sick, and the disabled, because they had refrained from eating with them out of fear that, by eating together with them, they might do something that Allah had forbidden them with His word: يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَكُمْ بَيْنَكُمْ بِالْبَاطِلِ إِلا أَنْ تَكُونَ تِجَارَةً عَنْ تَرَاضٍ مِنْكُمْ .
We mention here those who said this:
ʿAlī related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh related to me, saying: Muʿāwiya related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās — concerning لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا from your houses ... up to أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا . He said: "When Allah sent down يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَكُمْ بَيْنَكُمْ بِالْبَاطِلِ , the Muslims said: Allah has forbidden us to consume one another's property unlawfully, and food is the foremost of property — so it is not permitted for any of us to eat at another's. The people thereupon refrained. Then Allah afterwards sent down لَيْسَ عَلَى الأعْمَى حَرَجٌ ... up to أَوْ مَا مَلَكْتُمْ مَفَاتِحَهُ ."
It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn, who said: I heard Abū Muʿādh say: ʿUbayd informed us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk say concerning the word لَيْسَ عَلَى الأعْمَى حَرَجٌ ... the verse — "the people of Medina, before the mission of the Prophet ﷺ, would not let themselves be accompanied at eating by a blind man or a sick man." Some said: they avoided this out of repugnance and disgust. Others said: the sick man does not eat as much as the healthy one; the lame man who stands still cannot squeeze himself in at the eating; and the blind man does not see the good portions of the food. Then Allah sent down لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ — there is no objection in eating together with a sick, a blind, or a lame person. The meaning of the text according to the interpretation of these people is: there is no objection upon you, O people, regarding [dealing with] the blind man, that you eat at his place and with him, nor regarding [dealing with] the lame man any objection, nor regarding [dealing with] the sick man, nor in eating from your own houses. They gave the word "upon" (ʿalā) in this place the meaning of "in" (fī).
Others said: this verse was sent down as a dispensation for the disabled to eat from the houses of those whom Allah has named in this verse, because a group of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ — when they had nothing at home with which to feed them — would take the disabled along to the house of their father, mother, or whoever of those named by Allah. The disabled would then fear that they would be eating that food which belonged to someone other than the one inviting them.
We mention here those who said this:
Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us — and al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us — both from Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid — concerning وَلا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا مِنْ بُيُوتِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ آبَائِكُمْ : he said: "there were people who were disabled." Ibn ʿAmr mentions in his report: "the blind and the lame." Al-Ḥārith mentions: "the blind and the lame who were in need and were taken along by men to their houses. If they found no food, they were taken along to the houses of their fathers, or the houses they named. The people taken along found this burdensome, and Allah sent down لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ and made eating permissible for them, wherever they found it."
Al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, who said: "a man would take a blind man, a sick man, or a lame man along to the house of his father, or to the house of his brother, paternal uncle, maternal uncle, or maternal aunt. The disabled found this burdensome and said: 'They take us along to other people's houses.' Then this verse was sent down as a dispensation for them."
Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of Mujāhid — to the same effect as the report of Ibn ʿAmr on the authority of Abū ʿĀṣim.
Others said: it was sent down as a dispensation for the disabled whom Allah has described in this verse to eat from the houses of those whom the fighters had left behind at their houses as those remaining behind.
We mention here those who said this:
Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, on the authority of Maʿmar, who said: I asked al-Zuhrī about the word لَيْسَ عَلَى الأعْمَى حَرَجٌ — "why are the blind, the lame, and the sick mentioned here?" He answered: "ʿUbayd Allāh ibn ʿAbd Allāh informed me that the Muslims, when they went out to fight, would leave their disabled behind and hand them the keys to their doors, saying: 'We have permitted you to eat from what is in our houses.' Those remaining behind found this burdensome and said: 'We will not enter their houses while they are absent.' Then this verse was sent down as a dispensation."
Others said: the word لَيْسَ عَلَى الأعْمَى حَرَجٌ وَلا عَلَى الأعْرَجِ حَرَجٌ وَلا عَلَى الْمَرِيضِ حَرَجٌ concerns remaining behind from jihad (the armed struggle; al-jihād) in the path of Allah. They held: the word وَلا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا مِنْ بُيُوتِكُمْ is separate from what precedes it.
We mention here those who said this:
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning لَيْسَ عَلَى الأعْمَى حَرَجٌ وَلا عَلَى الأعْرَجِ حَرَجٌ وَلا عَلَى الْمَرِيضِ حَرَجٌ : "this concerns the jihad in the path of Allah." Concerning وَلا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا مِنْ بُيُوتِكُمْ ... up to أَوْ صَدِيقِكُمْ he said: "this is a separate matter that was before it. In the beginning the houses had no doors; curtains hung there. Sometimes a man entered a house while there was no one there and then found food while he was hungry, and Allah permitted him to eat that. Now that is past — the houses of today have their inhabitants, and when they go out, they lock the doors. So that is past."
Others said: this verse was sent down as a dispensation for the Muslims who found it burdensome to eat at the homes of disabled people, as a permission for that when they wished.
We mention here those who said this:
Ibn Bashār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Qays ibn Muslim, on the authority of Miqsam — concerning لَيْسَ عَلَى الأعْمَى حَرَجٌ : he said: "they avoided eating at the home of the blind man and the lame man; then was sent down لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا جَمِيعًا أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا ."
Concerning the meaning of His word أَوْ مَا مَلَكْتُمْ مَفَاتِحَهُ ("or of that of which you hold the keys") they also differed. Some said: by this is meant a man's steward or estate-manager — there is no objection upon him to eat from the fruits of the estate that he manages, and the like.
We mention here those who said this:
ʿAlī related to me, saying: Abū Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to us, on the authority of ʿAlī, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās — concerning أَوْ مَا مَلَكْتُمْ مَفَاتِحَهُ : "it is the man to whom a man gives his estate in management. Allah has permitted him to eat from that food and those dates and to drink that milk."
Others said: by this is meant the man's own dwelling — there is no objection upon him to eat from it.
We mention here those who said this:
It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn, who said: I heard Abū Muʿādh say: ʿUbayd informed us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk say concerning أَوْ مَا مَلَكْتُمْ مَفَاتِحَهُ : "he means the house of each of them — for he owns that, and the slaves are among what he owns."
Al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Qatāda — concerning أَوْ مَا مَلَكْتُمْ مَفَاتِحَهُ : "of what you love, O son of man."
Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of Mujāhid — concerning أَوْ مَا مَلَكْتُمْ مَفَاتِحَهُ : he said: "storehouses for themselves, not for others."
The position that comes closest to the interpretation of لَيْسَ عَلَى الأعْمَى حَرَجٌ ... up to أَوْ صَدِيقِكُمْ is the position that we have mentioned on the authority of al-Zuhrī, on the authority of ʿUbayd Allāh ibn ʿAbd Allāh. The reason is that the most evident meaning of لَيْسَ عَلَى الأعْمَى حَرَجٌ وَلا عَلَى الأعْرَجِ حَرَجٌ is: there is no objection upon these persons named in the verse to eat from the houses of those whom Allah has mentioned therein, on the basis of the permission given to them. If that is its most evident meaning, then it is most fitting to follow it rather than a less well-known one. Consequently, every position that diverges from the interpretation "there is no objection in [dealing with] the blind man and the lame man" is more in accordance with what is correct. The same holds for the most evident interpretation of وَلا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا مِنْ بُيُوتِكُمْ : it means "and there is likewise no objection upon you, O people" — then the disabled mentioned and the people in the preceding portion of the text are taken together: "to eat from your own houses." The Arabs do thus when they join together a report about a third person and an addressed person: they let the addressed person predominate and say: "you and your brother arose" and "you and Zayd sat down" — not: "you and your brother arose [in the third person]." So too here: وَلا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ — while the report was dealing with the blind, the lame, and the sick — the addressed predominates, and it is said: "to eat" (an taʾkulū) in the second person, not in the third.
If someone says: "This eating from their own houses we already knew to be permitted for them, for it was their own property — was it also permitted for them to eat from the property of others?" We answer: the matter is not as you suppose, but it is as we have mentioned from ʿUbayd Allāh ibn ʿAbd Allāh: when they were on campaigns, they would leave their disabled behind, and the fighter would hand his key to the one remaining behind and give him permission to eat from the food that he had left at home. Those remaining behind found it burdensome to consume that food while the owner was absent. Allah informed them that there is no objection upon them in eating it, and granted them leave. If that is so, it becomes clear that there is no ground for the opinion of the one who said: this verse was sent down because of the scruples of the invited guest to eat from the food of someone other than the one who invited him — for if that were so, it would have been said: "there is no objection upon you to eat from the food of someone other than your host, or from the food of the fathers of the one who invited you." Nor is there any ground for the opinion of the one who said that لَيْسَ عَلَى الأعْمَى حَرَجٌ relates to remaining behind from jihad — for the governing verb أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا is the predicate of لَيْسَ , and the particle "that" stands in the accusative as the predicate of "there is not," with which it is connected. It thereby becomes clear that the meaning is: "there is no objection upon the blind man to eat from his house" — not what those said who claimed that it concerns "there is no objection upon him in remaining behind from jihad." If the matter is indeed as we have described, it becomes clear that the meaning of the text is: there is no objection upon the blind man, nor upon the lame man, nor upon the sick man, nor upon you, O people, to eat from your own houses, or the houses of your fathers, the houses of your mothers, the houses of your brothers, the houses of your sisters, the houses of your paternal uncles, the houses of your paternal aunts, the houses of your maternal uncles, the houses of your maternal aunts, the houses of which you possess the keys, or the houses of your friends — when they have given you permission to do so, in their presence or in their absence. Al-mafātiḥ ("keys") are al-khazāʾin ("storehouses/repositories"); the singular is miftaḥ when it is intended as a verbal-noun form, and when it concerns the keys that one uses to open with, it is miftaḥ and mafātiḥ. Here, on the basis of the interpretation we have chosen, it is the plural of miftaḥ, "with which one opens."
Qatāda used to interpret the word أَوْ صَدِيقِكُمْ as follows — as al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Qatāda — concerning أَوْ صَدِيقِكُمْ : "if you have eaten from the dwelling of a friend without his permission, that is no objection." Maʿmar said: I asked Qatāda: "Or may one drink from this jug?" He answered: "You are a friend of mine."
As for His word لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا جَمِيعًا أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا ("there is no objection upon you to eat together or separately"): the exegetes differed concerning the interpretation of this. Some said: the rich man feared to eat together with the poor man, and they were given leave to eat with them.
We mention here those who said this:
Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of ʿAṭāʾ al-Khurāsānī, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās — concerning أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا جَمِيعًا أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا : he said: "A rich man would call upon a poor man among his relatives or friends and invite him to his table to eat with him. The rich man said: 'By Allah, I feel scruple to eat with you, while I am rich and you are poor' — al-janḥ (the scruple) is the holding back. They were commanded to eat together or separately."
Others said: it concerns a tribe of the Arabs among whom no one ate alone, but always with another. Allah permitted them that whoever of them wished ate alone, and whoever wished with another.
We mention here those who said this:
ʿAlī related to me, saying: Abū Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: "They considered it reprehensible and burdensome that a man should eat alone until there was someone else with him. Allah gave them a dispensation and said: لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا جَمِيعًا أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا ."
Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, who said: "The Banū Kināna considered it shameful that a man should eat alone, until this verse was sent down."
It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn, who said: I heard Abū Muʿādh say: ʿUbayd informed us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk say: "They never ate except together and never ate separately; that was among them a religious rule. Then Allah sent down: there is no objection upon you in eating together with the sick man and the blind man, and there is no objection upon you to eat together or separately."
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا جَمِيعًا أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا : "there were Arabs who always ate together and Arabs who never ate together. Allah said that."
Al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of Qatāda, who said: "This verse لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا جَمِيعًا أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا was sent down for a tribe of the Arabs among whom a man would carry his meal about for part of the day until he found someone to eat with." He said: "I think he mentioned that it is the Kināna."
Others said: it concerns a people who would not eat when there was a guest with them, except together with the guest. They were given leave to eat as they wished.
We mention here those who said this:
Abū al-Sāʾib related to me, saying: Ḥafṣ related to us, on the authority of ʿImrān ibn Sulaymān, on the authority of Abū Ṣāliḥ and ʿIkrima, who said: "The Anṣār did not eat when there was a guest with them, until the guest ate together with them. Then Allah gave them a dispensation and Allah said: لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا جَمِيعًا أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا ."
The most correct position in this matter is to say: Allah has removed the burden from the Muslims regarding eating — when they wish, gathered together, or when they wish, dispersed separately. It is conceivable that this was sent down because of the rich who found it burdensome to eat with the poor; and it is conceivable that it was sent down because of the people of whom it is said that they ate alone nor ate alone; and because of other occasions. There exists no tradition that decides the matter for us, nor any proof in the explicit text of the revelation concerning the reality of any one of those occasions. The correct thing is to accept what the explicit text of the revelation indicates, and to refrain from judging concerning that for which there is no proof.
His word فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ تَحِيَّةً مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ ("when you enter a house, then greet one another with a greeting from Allah"): the exegetes differed concerning this. Some said: the meaning is: when you, O people, enter your own house, greet your family members and housemates.
We mention here those who said this:
Al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of al-Zuhrī and Qatāda — concerning فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ : they said: "[when you] enter your house, say: 'peace be upon you.'"
Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj — concerning فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ : he said: "greet your family members." Ibn Jurayj said: and ʿAṭāʾ ibn Abī Rabāḥ was asked: is it obligatory for a man who enters upon his family members to greet them? He answered: "Yes." This ʿAmr ibn Dīnār also said; they recited: فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ تَحِيَّةً مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ مُبَارَكَةً طَيِّبَةً . ʿAṭāʾ ibn Abī Rabāḥ said: "That several times."
He said: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, he said: Abū al-Zubayr informed me — he said: I heard Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allāh say: "When you enter upon your family members, greet them تَحِيَّةً مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ مُبَارَكَةً طَيِّبَةً ." He said: I saw him hold that to be obligatory.
Ibn Jurayj said: Ziyād informed me, on the authority of Ibn Ṭāwūs — that he used to say: "When one of you enters his house, let him greet."
He said: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, who said: I asked ʿAṭāʾ: "When I go out, is it then obligatory to greet? Should I then greet them? For the verse only says فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا ." He answered: "I do not know it as obligatory, and I know of no tradition from anyone who considers it obligatory. But it is dearest to me — I omit it only when I forget it."
Ibn Jurayj said: and ʿAmr ibn Dīnār said: no. Ibn Jurayj said: I asked ʿAṭāʾ: "What if there is no one at home?" He answered: "Greet then, and say: 'Peace be upon the Prophet and Allah's mercy and His blessing; peace be upon us and upon Allah's righteous servants; peace be upon the inhabitants of this house and Allah's mercy.'" I asked him: "This which you say when you enter an empty house — from whom do you have that?" He answered: "I have heard it, but it has not been related to me from anyone."
Ibn Jurayj said: and ʿAṭāʾ al-Khurāsānī informed me, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: "Peace be upon us from our Lord." And ʿAmr ibn Dīnār said: "Peace be upon us and upon Allah's righteous servants."
Aḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥīm related to us, saying: ʿAmr ibn Abī Salama related to us, saying: Ṣadaqa related to us, on the authority of Zuhayr, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of Abū al-Zubayr, on the authority of Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allāh, who said: "When you enter upon your family members, greet them — a greeting from Allah, blessed and good." He said: I saw him hold that to be obligatory.
Muḥammad ibn ʿAbbād al-Rāzī related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj ibn Muḥammad al-Aʿwar related to us, saying: Ibn Jurayj said to me: Abū al-Zubayr informed me — that he heard Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allāh say — and he mentioned it to the same effect.
It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn, who said: I heard Abū Muʿādh say: ʿUbayd informed us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk say concerning فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ : he says: "greet your family members when you enter your houses; and greet others than your family members too when you enter their houses."
Others said: the meaning is: when you enter the mosques, greet their inhabitants.
We mention here those who said this:
Ibn Bashār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Mubārak related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of ʿAmr ibn Dīnār, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās — concerning فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ : he said: "they are the mosques; one says: 'Peace be upon us and upon Allah's righteous servants.'"
He said: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of al-Aʿmash, on the authority of Ibrāhīm — concerning فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ : he said: "when you enter the mosque, say: 'Peace be upon the Messenger of Allah'; when you enter an empty house, say: 'Peace be upon us and upon Allah's righteous servants'; and when you enter your own house, say: 'Peace be upon you.'"
Others said: the meaning is: when you enter houses in which there are Muslims, let the one greet the other.
We mention here those who said this:
Al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of al-Ḥasan — concerning فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ : "that is to say: let the one greet the other, as [Allah] says: وَلا تَقْتُلُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ ."
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ : he said: "when a Muslim is greeted, he is greeted — as [Allah] says: وَلا تَقْتُلُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ — that is to say: do not kill your Muslim brother." His word ثُمَّ أَنْتُمْ هَؤُلاءِ تَقْتُلُونَ أَنْفُسَكُمْ — he said: "you kill one another — [the tribes] Qurayẓa and al-Naḍīr."
Others said: the meaning is: when you enter houses in which there is no one, greet yourselves.
We mention here those who said this:
Yaʿqūb ibn Ibrāhīm related to me, saying: Hushaym related to us, saying: Ḥuṣayn informed us, on the authority of Abū Mālik, who said: "When you enter a house in which there is no one, say: 'Peace be upon us and upon Allah's righteous servants'; and when you enter a house in which there are Muslims and non-Muslims, say the same."
Ibn Bashār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Abū Sinān, on the authority of Māhān, who said: "When you enter houses, greet yourselves" — he said: "say: 'Peace be upon us from our Lord.'"
Ibn al-Muthannā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar related to us, saying: Shuʿba informed us, on the authority of Manṣūr — Shuʿba said: I asked him about this verse فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ تَحِيَّةً مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ — he said: Ibrāhīm said: "When you enter a house in which there is no one, say: 'Peace be upon us and upon Allah's righteous servants.'"
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: ʿAmr ibn al-Ḥārith informed me, on the authority of Bukayr ibn al-Ashajj, on the authority of Nāfiʿ — that ʿAbd Allāh, when he entered an empty house, would say: "Peace be upon us and upon Allah's righteous servants."
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, saying: Manṣūr related to us, on the authority of Ibrāhīm — concerning فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ : he said: "When you enter a house in which there are Jews, say: 'Peace be upon you'; and if there is no one in it, say: 'Peace be upon us and upon Allah's righteous servants.'"
The most correct position in this matter is the opinion of the one who says: the meaning is: when you enter houses of Muslims, let the one greet the other. The reason for that is that Allah the Exalted says فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا without specifying any house above another, and says: فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ — that is to say: let the one greet the other. It is clear that, since there exists no specification of any house above another, it relates to all houses — both mosques and others. The meaning of فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ is equivalent to وَلا تَقْتُلُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ . His word تَحِيَّةً مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ stands in the accusative because one says "you greet one another with a greeting from Allah, the wish of peace" — as if it said: "let the one greet the other with a greeting from Allah, the wish of peace." Some of the Arabists said: it stands in the accusative with the meaning "He has commanded you to do it — perform it as a greeting from Him." Allah the Exalted has described this greeting as "blessed and good" on account of the great reward and the abundant recompense contained within it.