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Is it permissible to conclude the prayer by saying, "Salam 'alaykum" without defining the word "Salam" with "al-"?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

A prayer concluded with the phrase "Salam alaykum" (peace be upon you) is invalid according to the majority of jurists (Malikis, Shafi'is, and Hanbalis), unlike the Hanafis. The reason for the invalidity is the deviation from the sufficient formula for the pillar of tasleem (salutation), which is: "Al-salamu alaykum" (peace be upon you), because the prayer can only be concluded with the formula reported from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. The Kuwaiti Encyclopedia of Fiqh states that the Malikis, Shafi'is, and Hanbalis agree on the tasleem being a pillar, and that the sufficient wording according to the Malikis and Shafi'is is "Al-salamu alaykum," with the condition that "alaykum" follows and that it is in Arabic. The Hanbalis, on the other hand, believe that the sufficient formula is "Al-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah" (peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah). Whoever intentionally deviates from the reported formula, their prayer becomes invalid.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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