تسليم
Taslīm
The closing of the salah with the greeting of peace, al-salamu alaykum wa rahmat Allah, said to the right and then to the left
What it means
Taslīm is the act of ending the ṣalāh. The worshipper, still seated after the final recitation, turns the head to the right and says “Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah”, then turns to the left and says it again. The words are those given by Ismail al Faruqi, and some add “and His blessings”. With the taslīm the worshipper leaves the state of prayer and may speak and act freely again. The word comes from salām, peace. It is the same greeting that Muslims give one another in daily life, and so the prayer ends in the manner in which a meeting begins.
Often misunderstood as
That it is only a polite goodbye to those nearby, when it is the act that concludes the prayer.
Term and Arabic as listed in Ismail al Faruqi, Toward Islamic English (International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1995), p. 55, listed as TASLĪM. The definition is restated here.