Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas al-Qurashi al-Zuhri. His father's name
was Malik ibn Wahb, or, as some say, Uhayb ibn Abd Manaf ibn Zuhrah ibn Kilab
ibn Murrah. His mother was Hamnah bint Sufyan ibn Umayyah ibn Abd Shams ibn Abd
Manaf ibn Qusayy, or, as some say, Hamnah bint Abi Sufyan ibn Umayyah, the
cousin of Abi Sufyan ibn Harb ibn Umayyah. His lineage connects with that of
the Prophet through Kilab ibn Murrah. He belonged to the Banu Zuhrah, the clan
of Aminah bint Wahb, the Prophet's mother, and thus he was considered one of the
Prophet's maternal uncles.
Sa'd grew up among the Quraysh and worked in sharpening
arrows and crafting bows. He was a short, stocky, thickset man with a large
head, thick fingers, curly hair, a hairy body, a dark complexion, and a flat
nose. He dyed his hair black. And he had the sharpest eyesight.
Saad was among the first to embrace Islam, having
converted at the hands of Abu Bakr (may God be pleased with him). His
conversion occurred before the obligation of prayer was established, and he was
nineteen years old, or some say seventeen. Utbah ibn Ghazwan said, “I remember
being the seventh of seven with the Messenger of God, may God bless him and
grant him peace. We had no food except tree leaves until our mouths became
sore. I found a cloak and tore it in two between myself and Sa’d, so I wore
half of it as a loincloth and Sa’d wore the other half. There is not one of us
alive today who has not become a ruler over one of the cities. I seek refuge in
God from being great in my own eyes but small in the sight of God. Indeed,
there has never been a prophethood that did not pass away until its end was
kingship.” You will test the rulers after us (Source: Sahih Muslim; Hadith
classification: Sahih). It was narrated on the authority of Sa'id ibn
al-Musayyab that he said, "I heard Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas say, 'No one
embraced Islam except on the day I did, and I remained for seven days, and I
was one-third of the Muslims'" (Source: Sahih al-Bukhari; Hadith
classification: Sahih).
The reason for Sa'd's conversion to Islam was that he had a
dream urging him to embrace Islam. Before his conversion to Islam, as his
daughter Aisha narrated, “It was as if I was in darkness and could see nothing
when a moon shone for me, so I followed it. It was as if I was looking at those
who had preceded me to that moon, and I was looking at Zayd ibn Haritha, and at
Ali ibn Abi Talib, and at Abu Bakr, and it was as if I was asking them, “When
did you arrive here?” They said, "The Hour has come," and I heard
that the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, was secretly
calling people to Islam. I met him in the valley of Ajyad, after he had prayed
the afternoon prayer, and I embraced Islam. No one had preceded me in embracing
Islam except them. (Usd al-Ghabah fi Ma'rifat al-Sahabah: Ibn al-Athir, Izz
al-Din...Vol. 2, p. 292)
Sa'd was a dutiful son to his mother. When he embraced
Islam, she said, "O Sa'd, what is this religion you have adopted? You must
abandon this religion of yours, or I will neither eat nor drink until I die, and
you will be shamed for it." He said, "Do not do that, O my mother,
for I will not abandon my religion." He said, "So she stayed a day
and a night without eating, and she woke up exhausted." I said, "By
God, even if you had a thousand souls, and each one of them left, I would not
abandon this religion of mine for anything." When she saw this, she ate
and drank. Then God revealed this verse: “But if they (both) strive with you to
make you join in worship with Me others that of which you have no knowledge, then
obey them not, but behave with them in the world kindly, and follow the path of
him who turns to Me in repentance and in obedience. Then to Me will be your
return, and I shall tell you what you used to do” (Surat Luqman 31:15).
Among Sa’d’s notable achievements was that he was the first
to shed blood in the cause of God. While he and a group of his Muslim
companions were in the mountain passes, a group of Quraysh appeared before
them, denounced them, and criticized their religion. A fight broke out, and
Sa'd struck a man with a camel's jawbone, wounding him. This was the first
blood shed in Islam. It is said that the wounded man was Abdullah ibn Khatal.
Sa'd was among the first emigrants to Medina, having emigrated before the
arrival of the Prophet. Al-Bara' ibn 'Azib said: The first to arrive among us
were Mus'ab ibn 'Umayr and Ibn Umm Maktum, who were teaching the people the
Quran. Then Bilal, Sa'd, and 'Ammar ibn Yasir arrived. Then 'Umar ibn
al-Khattab arrived with twenty of the Prophet's companions (may God bless him
and grant him peace). Then the Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace)
arrived. I never saw the people of Medina so happy about anything as they were
about the Messenger of God (may God bless him and grant him peace), to the point
that even the slave girls were saying, "The Messenger of God (may God
bless him and grant him peace) has arrived! "He greeted me, and before he
arrived, I recited {Glorify the name of your Lord, the Most High} in some of
the shorter chapters of the Quran" (Source: Sahih al-Bukhari; Hadith
classification: Sahih).
Sa'd was at the head of the third expedition (the expedition
to al-Kharrar) sent by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). This took
place in Dhu al-Qi'dah, nine months after the Hijra to Medina. The expedition
consisted of twenty men from among the Muhajirun (immigrants) and was sent to
intercept a Quraysh caravan passing through al-Kharrar. The Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him) instructed him not to go beyond al-Kharrar and gave him
a white banner, which was carried by al-Miqdad ibn Amr. Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas
said, “We set out on foot, hiding during the day and traveling at night, until
we reached them at dawn on the fifth day. We found that the caravan had passed
by the previous day, so we returned to Medina.”
Sa`d participated in the Battle of Badr and fought
valiantly. `Abdullah ibn Mas`ud said, “I saw Sa`d fighting at Badr like a
knight among men. Sa`d killed Sa`id ibn al-`As and took his sword—which was
called Dhu al-Kutayfah—and went to the Prophet to ask permission to take it.
The Prophet told him, ‘Go and throw it away.’ Sa`d returned, and soon after,
Surah al-Anfal was revealed. The Prophet then told him, ‘Go and take your
sword.’” It was narrated that Sa'd captured two prisoners on the day of Badr.
Sa'd participated in the Battle of Uhud and stood firm with
the Prophet on that day when the people fled. He was among the archers that
day, to the point that al-Zuhri said, "Sa'd shot a thousand arrows on the
day of Uhud." The Prophet would say to him, "Shoot, may my father and
mother be sacrificed for you." It was narrated on the authority of Sa`d
ibn Abi Waqqas that he said, “On the day of Uhud, I saw two men to the right
and left of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), both
wearing white garments. I had never seen them before nor after. They were
Gabriel and Michael (peace be upon them both).” (Source: Sahih Muslim; Hadith
classification: Sahih).
The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) sent
the army of Usama ibn Zayd to the Levant as the last expedition of his life.
The objective was to attack the Romans in the lands of Balqa and Palestine. The
army was delayed due to the Prophet’s illness. After his death, the Caliph Abu
Bakr insisted on dispatching this army, which achieved a victory and restored
confidence to the Muslims amidst the prevailing turmoil. When Usama ibn Zayd's
army left Medina, the Bedouin tribes coveted the city. Abu Bakr, therefore,
stationed guards at the city's entrances, who would spend the nights around it.
Among them were Ali ibn Abi Talib, Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, Talha ibn Ubayd Allah,
and Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas.
Sa'd participated in the Ridda Wars, led by Caliph Abu Bakr
al-Siddiq after the death of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), against
the Arab tribes that had apostatized from Islam or refused to pay zakat (alms).
These wars began in 632 CE and ended in 633 CE with a Muslim victory and the
consolidation of their rule in the Arabian Peninsula. These wars included fighting
false prophets like Musaylimah the Liar, as well as those who refused to pay
zakat (alms), and they enhanced the reputation of Muslim leaders like Khalid
ibn al-Walid.
When Abu Bakr died, the Muslims agreed to invade Iraq after
the People of the Book broke their treaties with the Muslims and expelled the
Muslim officials from their midst. They approved Ibn Awf's opinion that neither
Abu Bakr nor Umar should go to them, but rather that they should send Sa'd ibn
Malik al-Zuhri, the lion in his talons.
So Sa'd went to Iraq with six thousand fighters as their
commander. When Sa'd reached the army camp, its command was placed under his
authority, and no commander remained in Iraq except under his command. Umar
sent him further reinforcements until thirty thousand, or some say thirty-six
thousand, had gathered at Qadisiyyah.
Sa'd marched with thirty thousand fighters to Qadisiyyah,
while the Persians had assembled two hundred thousand fighters and thirty-three
elephants for this battle. When the two armies met at Qadisiyyah, Sa'd was
suffering from sciatica and boils on his body, rendering him unable to ride. He
would sit in a palace... Leaning back on a cushion, he looked at the army and
plotted his course.
Sa'd led the people in the noon prayer, then addressed them,
admonishing and urging them on. He then recited, "And indeed We have
written in Zabur (Psalms) [i.e. all the revealed Holy Books the Taurat (Torah),
the Injeel (Gospel), the Quran] after (We have already written in) Al-Lauh
Al-Mahfuz (the Book, that is in the heaven with Allah), that My righteous
slaves shall inherit the land (i.e. the land of Paradise)." (Surat
Al-Anbiya: 105 21:105). The reciters then read verses and chapters about jihad.
He then said the takbir four times, and the fighting began. The battle
continued for three days. On the fourth day, they fought fiercely. The Muslim
horses fled from the Persian elephants, but the Muslims were able to kill the
elephants and their riders, and they gouged out their eyes. At noon on this
day, known as the Day of Qadisiyah, a Monday in Muharram of the year 14 AH, a
strong wind arose, lifting the Persian tents from their places and knocking
down Rustam's throne. He quickly mounted his mule and fled, but the Muslims
pursued and killed him. They also killed Jalinus, the vanguard commander of the
Qadisiyah expedition. The Persians were defeated, and ten thousand Persians and
two thousand five hundred Muslims were killed in the battle.
Upon the conquest of Iraq, the Muslims used the ruins of the
palace of Chosroes as a place of prayer and seized the treasures within. They
sent one-fifth of it to Medina to be divided according to Islamic law. Salman
al-Farsi oversaw the distribution of the remainder among the Muslim soldiers.
When the fifth of the city reached Umar, he threw the bracelets of Chosroes to
Suraqah ibn Malik al-Mudlaji, fulfilling the promise the Prophet Muhammad had
made to him when Suraqah intercepted him during his migration to Medina.
The Muslim army pursued the Persians until they entered
Ctesiphon, finding it deserted. Yazdegerd had fled with his family and whatever
he could carry. The Muslims encountered no resistance except in the White
Palace, where some fighters had fortified themselves. They were given three
days to surrender, and they agreed on the third day. Sa'd entered the palace of
Chosroes and converted it into a prayer hall. Sa'd then departed from Ctesiphon
and arrived in Kufa in Muharram of the year 17 AH. He gave the Muslims the
choice between Kufa and Ctesiphon; whoever preferred to remain in Ctesiphon was
allowed to do so. In the year 18 AH, Sa'd built the Great Mosque of Kufa.
When Umar ibn al-Khattab was stabbed and his death
approached, he stipulated that the matter of succession should be decided by
consultation among six men whom the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was
pleased with at the time of his death: Uthman ibn Affan, Ali ibn Abi Talib,
Talha ibn Ubayd Allah, Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf, and Saad ibn
Abi Waqqas. He said, "Whoever they choose will be the Caliph after
me." After the burial of Umar ibn al-Khattab, the members of the Shura
council convened. Sa'd chose Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf, saying, "I entrust my
affairs to Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf." Al-Zubayr said, "I entrust my
affairs to Ali." Talha said, "I entrust my affairs to Uthman."
Then Ibn Awf withdrew from the matter and consulted with the Muslims until they
agreed upon Uthman ibn Affan.
Sa'd was among those who remained at home during the fitna
(civil strife). He did not participate in the Battle of the Camel, the Battle
of Siffin, or the arbitration. He instructed his family not to inform him of
any news until the community united under a leader.
Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas was the last of the Muhajirun
(immigrants) to die. He passed away during the reign of Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan
in the year 55 AH. When death approached him, he asked for his old woolen robe
and said, “Shroud me in it, for I wore it when I met the polytheists at the
Battle of Badr, and I had been saving it for that purpose.” He died in his
palace in al-Aqiq, ten miles from Medina. He was carried to Medina on the
shoulders of men, and Marwan ibn al-Hakam, who was the governor of Medina at
the time, led the funeral prayer. He was seventy-something years old when he
died.
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