Imam an-Nawawi (رحمة اللہ علیه) said: It is preferable for a person recording ahaadeeth that when he passes by the word of Allaah (سبحانه و تعالى) to write سبحانه و تعالى, (subhanahu wa ta'ala) or other similar words.
In like manner, when he writes the name of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), he should write صلى الله عليه وسلم, (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) in full. He should neither write the peace and salutations in short form nor confine himself to writing 'peace' only or 'salutation' only.[an-Nawawi (رحمة اللہ علیه), Sharh Saheeh Muslim, vol 1, p 39]
Thus, when one writes the name of the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him & give him peace), one should avoid using abbreviations such as SAW or something similar. It is inappropriate and disrespectful to do so. The love for the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him & give him peace) requires that one never tires, both verbally or in writing, from sending blessings and salutations upon him (Allah bless & and grant him eternal peace).
Qadhi Iyadh al-Maliki (Allah have mercy on him) mentions a Hadith wherein the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him & give him peace) said: "Whosoever sends blessings upon me in a book, the angels seek forgiveness for him until my name remains in that book." (Narrated by al-Tabrani in his al-Awsat, with a weak chain of transmission. See: al-Shifa' by Qadhi Iyadh, P: 557)
Hence, although the requirement would be fulfilled if one verbally sent blessings and salutations upon the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him & grant him peace), but when one writes the name of the beloved of Allah, one should also send blessings upon him in writing.
And Allah knows best [Mufti] Muhammad ibn Adam
Darul Iftaa
Leicester , UK
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
As it is prescribed to send blessings upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in prayer when saying the tashahhud, and it is prescribed when giving khutbahs, saying du'aa' and praying for forgiveness, and after the adhaan, and when entering and exiting the mosque, and when mentioning him in other circumstances, so it is more important to do so when writing his name in a book, letter, article and so on. So it is prescribed to write the blessing in full so as to fulfil the command that Allaah سبحانه و تعالى has given to us, and so that the reader will remember to say the blessing when he reads it. So we should not write the blessing on the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in short form such as writing (S) or (SAWS) etc, or other forms that some writers use, because that is going against the command of Allaah سبحانه و تعالى in His Book, where He says (interpretation of the meaning):
"Send your Salaah on (ask Allaah to bless) him (Muhammad), and (you should) greet (salute) him with the Islamic way of greeting (salutation, i.e. As‑Salaamu 'Alaykum)" [al-Ahzaab 33:56]
And that (writing it in abbreviated form) does not serve that purpose and is devoid of the virtue of writing "salla Allaahu 'alayhi wa salaam (May Allaah send blessings and peace upon him)" in full. Moreover the reader may not take notice of it and may not understand what is meant by it. It should also be noted that the symbol used for it is regarded as disapproved by the scholars, who warned against it.
This cannot be undone and I am sure it will be greatly appreciated.
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