Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah 36005 — The affair of al-Qadisiyyah

Husayn said: And I heard an elder of ours named Ubayd bin Jahsh say: I remember us walking on the backs of men, crossing the trench on the backs of men. No weapon had touched them; they had killed one another. We found a bag containing camphor, and we took it for salt, not doubting that it was salt. So we cooked meat and threw some of it in, but we found no taste in it. An Ibadi (a Christian Arab of al-Hirah) passed by us with a shirt, and he said: "O Arabs, do not spoil your food, for there is no good in the salt of this land. Would you like me to give you this shirt in exchange for it?" So he gave us a shirt for it, and we gave it to a companion of ours who put it on, and we began walking around him and marvelling. Then, when we came to know about clothes, it turned out that the price of the shirt was two dirhams. He said: And I remember pointing to a man who was wearing two bracelets of gold, while his weapons were down in one of those graves. I pointed to him and he came out to us, and he did not speak to us nor we to him until we struck his neck. Then we routed them until they reached the Euphrates. We mounted and pursued them, and they fled until they reached Sura'. We pursued them and they fled until they came to al-Sarah. We pursued them until they reached al-Mada'in. Then we camped at Kutha. A garrison of the polytheists was stationed at Dayri, among the garrison posts. The cavalry of the Muslims came to them and fought them, and the garrison of the polytheists fled until they joined al-Mada'in. The Muslims marched until they camped on the bank of the Tigris. A party of the Muslims crossed from Kalwadha, below al-Mada'in, and besieged them until they found nothing to eat but their dogs and cats. Then they departed one night until they came to Jalula'. Sayyiduna Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) marched against them with the people, with Sayyiduna Hashim bin Utbah (may Allah be pleased with him) over his vanguard. That is the battle that took place. Allah destroyed them, and their remnants went off to Nahawand.