Why do we send blessings upon the Prophet and his family in the prayer and not upon the rest of the ummah?
Question

                One of the basic principles of Islam is that a human in the eyes of Allah is always equal. When we pray, at the end of our prayer, after the Tashahhud, we always ask Allah to bestow peace and blessings on the Prophet, and his family. We do not say peace upon the rest of the ummah or the sahabah etc. With regard to this, please can you explain to me fully what is the status of the prophets family.
Praise be to Allah.
	Firstly:

	Submission to Allah and His Messenger is one of the 
	fundamentals of the Islamic religion, without which it cannot be complete. 
	Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

	“But no, by your Lord, they can 
	have no Faith, until they make you (O Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah 
	be upon him)) judge in all disputes between them, and find in themselves no 
	resistance against your decisions, and accept (them) with full submission”

	[an-Nisa’ 4:65].

	Submission leaves no room for doubt and it puts an end to the 
	whispers of the Shaytaan. By means of submission one may attain certainty 
	and perfect faith, and when there is submission, one does not need to ask 
	why or how.

	Secondly:

	People are all equal in terms of them being slaves of Allah, 
	but after that they very in status and virtue according to their level of 
	piety or fear of Allah, as Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says 
	(interpretation of the meaning):

	“O mankind! We have created you 
	from a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may 
	know one another. Verily, the most honourable of you with Allâh is that 
	(believer) who has At-Taqwa [i.e. he is one of the Muttaqoon (pious)]”

	[al-Hujuraat 49:13].

	The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon 
	him) said on the middle day of the days of at-Tashreeq: “O people, verily 
	your Lord is one and your father is one. Verily there is no superiority of 
	an Arab over a non-Arab or of a non-Arab over an Arab, or of a red man over 
	a black man, or of a black man over a red man, except in terms of piety. 
	Have I conveyed the message?” They said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings 
	and peace of Allah be upon him) has conveyed the message.

	Narrated by Ahmad (22978) and classed as saheeh by al-Albaani 
	in as-Saheehah (2700).

	Thirdly:

	Sending greetings of salaam upon the Prophet (blessings and 
	peace of Allah be upon him) and upon the righteous slaves of Allah in the 
	prayer is done in the tashahhud, which is then followed by sending blessings 
	upon the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and upon his 
	family.

	The greeting of salaam is sent upon all the righteous slaves 
	of Allah in heaven and on earth, as al-Bukhaari (831) and Muslim (402) 
	narrated that Ibn Mas‘ood said: When we prayed behind the Messenger of Allah 
	(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), we used to say: Peace (salaam) 
	be upon Allah, peace be upon So and so. The Messenger of Allah (blessings 
	and peace of Allah be upon him) said to us one day: “Allah is as-Salaam, so 
	when one of you sits to pray, let him say: 
	at-Tahiyyaatu Lillaahi wa’s-salawaatu wa’t-tayyibaat; as-salaamu ‘alayka 
	ayyuha’n-nabiyyu wa rahmat-Allahi wa barakaatuhu; as-salaamu ‘alayna wa ‘ala 
	‘ibaad-illaah is-saaliheen (All compliments, prayers and good words are 
	due to Allah; peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His 
	blessings; peace be upon us and upon the righteous slaves of Allah). For if 
	you say that it will reach every righteous slave in the heavens and on 
	earth. (Then say:) Ash-hadu al-laa ilaaha ill-Allah wa ash-hadu anna 
	Muhammadan ‘abduhu wa rasooluhu (I bear witness that there is no god 
	except Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger).”

	As for sending blessings when saying “Allahumma salli ‘ala 
	Muhammad… wa baarik ‘ala Muhammad” what is prescribed is for it to be 
	intended for the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and his 
	family, and it is said after the Tashahhud.

	This is how it is prescribed and it is prescribed to be 
	exclusively for the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and 
	his family. Allah instructed His Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be 
	upon him) to say it this way, and He has commanded people to follow the 
	Prophet’s example and act in accordance with his Sunnah, as the Prophet 
	(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) told us when he said: “Pray as 
	you have seen me praying.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (631).

	Allah, may He be exalted, bestows His favour and generosity 
	upon whomever He will among His slaves. He is not to be questioned about 
	what He does and no objection is to be raised to what He prescribes on the 
	basis of what people may think or imagine. Allah, may He be exalted, says 
	(interpretation of the meaning):

	“He selects for His Mercy (Islam 
	and the Qur’an with Prophethood) whom He wills and Allah is the Owner of 
	Great Bounty”

	[Aal ‘Imraan 3:74]

	“That is the Grace of Allah which He bestows on whom He 
	wills. And Allah is All-Sufficient for His creatures' needs, All-Knower”

	[al-Maa’idah 5:54].

	It is well-known that the family of the Prophet (blessings 
	and peace of Allah be upon him) enjoy special virtue and status that others 
	do not share.

	Moreover, the grace of Allah will be bestowed upon the 
	righteous and His slaves with the sending of greetings of salaam upon them, 
	as we see above. Obviously, it is not necessarily the case that those who 
	are favoured receive equal favour in all things.

	Our Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) taught 
	his Companions to send blessings upon him when they said to him: O Messenger 
	of Allah, we know how to send greetings of salaam upon you, but how should 
	we send blessings upon you? He said: “Say: 
	Allahumma salli ‘ala Muhammadin wa ‘ala aali Muhammadin kama salayta ‘ala 
	aali Ibraaheem, innaka hameedun majeed; Allahumma baarik ‘ala Muhammadin wa 
	‘ala aali Muhammadin kama baarakta ‘ala aali Ibraaheem, innaka hameedun 
	majeed (O Allah, send Your salaah (grace, honour and mercy) upon 
	Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad, as You sent Your salaah 
	upon the family of Ibraaheem, You are indeed Praiseworthy, Most Glorious. O 
	Allah, send Your blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as You 
	sent Your blessings upon the family of Ibraaheem, You are indeed 
	Praiseworthy, Most Glorious).”
Narrated by 
	al-Bukhaari (6357) and Muslim (406).
This is how 
	to send blessings upon him (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), and 
	not one of them said: O Messenger of Allah, why do we send blessings upon 
	you and upon your family, and we do not send blessings upon the Prophets and 
	Messengers of Allah, or upon any of your Companions or any of your ummah? 
	They only said, as Allah tells us about them and about His believing slaves: 
	We hear and we obey. This is what is required of us.
Fourthly:
What is meant 
	by the family of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is 
	his wives and descendants, and Banu Haashim and Banu’l-Muttalib.
See also the 
	answer to question no. 10055.
And Allah 
	knows best.