The Sufficient (Vol 2) · Hadith 2322 (#Ḥadīth #2)

2ـ ابْنُ مَحْبُوبٍ عَنْ عَبْدِ الله بْنِ سِنَانٍ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ الله (عَلَيهِ السَّلام) قَالَ رَدُّ جَوَابِ الْكِتَابِ وَاجِبٌ كَوُجُوبِ رَدِّ السَّلامِ وَالْبَادِي بِالسَّلامِ أَوْلَى بِالله وَرَسُولِهِ.

2. Ibn Mahbub has narrated from ‘Abd Allah ibn Sinan from Abu ‘Abdillah who has said the following: “It is necessary to reply a letter just as it is necessary to answer a greeting of peace. The initiator of a greeting of peace is closer to Allah and His messenger.”

Gradings are classical jarḥ-wa-taʿdīl, name-matched to a rijāl index (not individually re-verified).