Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah

Hazrat Qais says that I participated in the Battle of Qadisiyyah on the side of the Muslims. Hazrat Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas was the commander of the Muslims in this battle. When Rustam came with his army, Hazrat Amr bin Ma’di Karib Zubaidi passed through the ranks of the Muslims and said to them, “O group of Muhajireen! Become brave lions, the real lion is the one who does not care for his life. It is the temperament of the Persians that when they throw down their spear, they are like goats. Around their territory are great walls which arrows cannot cross.” We said to him, “O Abu Thawr! Beware of them.” Then we shot arrows; one arrow struck the horse of the king of the Persians. Then Hazrat Amr attacked him, killed him, and obtained his belongings, which included two gold bracelets, a sheet, and a silk robe. (2) A man from Thaqif fled and went to inform the polytheists, and while pointing towards Bajilah, he said, “People are coming from that side.” Then they sent sixteen elephants towards us, on which warriors were mounted, and sent two elephants towards all the people. On that day, Hazrat Sa’d was saying, “Move back from Bajilah.” Hazrat Qais says that in the Battle of Qadisiyyah, we were one fourth of the people. And Hazrat Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) gave us one fourth of the war equipment, and we used it for three years. (3) After that, Hazrat Jarir came with a delegation in the company of Hazrat Ammar bin Yasir to Hazrat Umar. Hazrat Umar said to them, “You both did not tell me about those two houses of yours. Even so, I ask you, and I can judge from your faces which of the two houses is better?” Hazrat Jarir said, “O Commander of the Faithful! I will inform you. One house is the one that yields fewer dates from the land of Arabia, and the other house is the land of Persia, its heat, its intensity, and its vast valley, that is, Mada’in.” He says that Hazrat Ammar contradicted me and said, “You have lied.” Hazrat Umar said, “You are lying.” Then he said, “Shall I tell you about your leader, is he sufficient for you?” The people said, “He is neither sufficient nor does he know the principles of governance.” Then Hazrat Umar removed him and sent Hazrat Mughirah bin Shu’bah as the leader.

Hazrat Qais narrates that during the Battle of Qadisiyyah, Hazrat Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas developed a boil on his foot and was unable to go for combat. There was restlessness among the people. The wife of Hazrat Sa’d, who had previously been married to Mathna bin Harithah Shaybani, said, “There is no one like Mathna for the horsemen!” Upon this, Hazrat Sa’d slapped her. She said, “Out of cowardice and honor!” The narrator says that then we defeated the enemies.

Hazrat Qais narrates that Hazrat Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas had a wife named Salma bint Khusafah, who had previously been married to a man from Banu Shayban, named Mathna bin Harithah. Once, she mentioned Mathna in front of Hazrat Sa’d, so Hazrat Sa’d slapped her. She said, “Do you hit me out of cowardice or out of honor?”

Hazrat Muhammad bin Sa’d narrates that during the Battle of Qadisiyyah, one day the poet Abu Mihjan was brought to Hazrat Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas on the charge of drinking wine. Hazrat Sa’d ordered him to be shackled. At that time, Hazrat Sa’d was injured and could not go to the people. Therefore, he chose the area of the spring named ‘Udhayb for the supervision of his warriors and began to inspect. He had appointed Khalid bin ‘Arfatah as the leader of the cavalry. When the battle began, Abu Mihjan recited a verse of poetry, the translation of which is: “How regrettable it is that you are killing the horsemen while I am shackled in chains.” (2) Then he said to Hazrat Sa’d’s wife, Bint Khusafah, “Set me free; I swear that if I remain alive, I will return and shackle myself again, and if I am killed, I will request prayers for mercy.” Then Bint Khusafah released him, and by then the battlefield had become heated. (3) He leapt and mounted Hazrat Sa’d’s horse named Balqa’, took a spear, and attacked the enemy. Wherever he went, he defeated the enemy. So much so that people began to say, “This is the king!” And Hazrat Sa’d was saying, “The leap is that of my horse Balqa’, and the spear-thrust is that of Abu Mihjan, while Abu Mihjan is in prison!” (4) When the enemy was defeated, Abu Mihjan returned and shackled himself again. Bint Khusafah told Hazrat Sa’d the whole incident, so he said, “By God, I cannot enforce the punishment on a man because of whom Allah granted victory to the Muslims.” Then Hazrat Sa’d set Abu Mihjan free. Upon this, Abu Mihjan said, “When the punishment was enforced upon me, I used to drink wine and would be purified by the punishment, but now that you have pardoned me from the punishment, by God, I will never drink wine again.”

Hazrat Abu Wa’il narrates that Hazrat Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas reached Qadisiyyah with his army. In my opinion, we were not more than seven or eight thousand, while the polytheist enemy was more than sixty thousand. They also had elephants. When they entered the field, they said to us, “Go back; you have neither numbers, nor strength, nor weapons. Go back.” We said, “We will not go back.” They would even laugh at our arrows and liken them to spinning wheels. When we refused to accept their words and refused to go back, they said, “Send a sensible man to us who can clarify for us the purpose of your coming, because we see neither numbers nor strength among you!” (2) At this, Hazrat Mughirah bin Shu’bah said, “I will go to them.” Hazrat Mughirah went to them and sat with Rustam on his throne. This was very displeasing to Rustam and his companions. Hazrat Mughirah said, “By sitting here, neither has my honor increased nor has your king’s dignity decreased.” Rustam said, “Tell me, why have you come here from your city? For I see neither numbers nor strength among you?” At this, Hazrat Mughirah bin Shu’bah (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “We were a people who were afflicted with wretchedness and misguidance. Allah Almighty sent a Prophet among us, through whom Allah granted us guidance. Through him, Allah also provided us sustenance. Among the provisions we received because of him was a grain about which people think it grows in this land. When we ate it and fed it to our families, people said, ‘There is no good for us until we go to that land and eat that grain there.’” (3) Rustam said, “Then we will kill you.” Hazrat Mughirah said, “If you kill us, we will enter Paradise, and if we kill you, you will go to Hell. If there is no fighting, you will have to pay jizyah.” When Hazrat Mughirah said, “You will have to pay jizyah,” they began to shout and expressed intense anger, saying, “There will be no peace between you and us.” Then Hazrat Mughirah said, “Will you advance towards us, or shall we advance towards you?” Rustam said, “We will come to you.” So the Muslims retreated, and whoever among them was to advance, advanced, and the Muslims attacked them, killed them, and defeated them. The narrator, Hazrat Husain, says that their king Rustam was from Azerbaijan. (4) Hazrat Husain says, “I heard my elder, Ubaid bin Jahsh, say that we were walking on the backs of men and crossing trenches on the backs of men. No weapon had touched them; they had killed each other. We found some camphor in a bottle, and we thought it was salt. So we cooked meat and sprinkled it on top, but we felt no taste. A Christian monk dressed in a shirt passed by us and said, ‘O people of Arabia! Do not spoil your food. There is no good in the salt of this land. Shall I give you this shirt in exchange for it?’ So we gave him the bottle in exchange for a shirt, and he gave the shirt to one of his companions, and he wore it. We began to show it around and rejoice. Later, we found out that the price of that shirt was two dirhams.” (5) The elder named Ubaid bin Jahsh says, “I saw a man who was wearing two bracelets; his weapon was in a grave. I told him to come out; he came out, neither did he speak to us nor did we speak to him, and we killed him. Then we defeated them, and they went to the Euphrates. We pursued them, and defeated, they went to Surra. Then we pursued them, defeated them, and they went to Suraat. Then we pursued them, defeated them, and they went to Mada’in. Then we stopped at a place called Kutha, where there were armed warriors of the polytheists. The Muslim cavalry fought them, and they were defeated and went to Mada’in.” (6) Then the Muslims moved on and camped on the bank of the Tigris River. Then a group of Muslims crossed over to Mada’in from Kuluadhi or its lower side and besieged the disbelievers, until nothing was left for them to eat except their dogs and cats. Then, after a night, they came to Jalula, and Hazrat Sa’d (may Allah be pleased with him) set out with the people, and Hazrat Hashim bin Utbah was at the front. After that...

Hazrat Sha'bi narrates that on the occasion of the Battle of Qadisiyyah, Hazrat Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) wrote a letter to Hazrat Sa'd in which he wrote that I am sending to you people from Hijaz and also from Yemen; among them, whoever is capable of fighting, give him a share from the spoils of war.

Hazrat Naeem bin Abi Hind narrates that in the Battle of Qadisiyyah, a man prayed, "O Allah! My wife Hadiyah is dark-skinned and a villager; today, marry me to a wide-eyed houri." Then he advanced onto the battlefield and was martyred. When people passed by his corpse, he was found embracing a very large champion.

Hazrat Saad bin Ibrahim narrates that during the Battle of Qadisiyyah, he passed by a man whose hands and feet had been cut off. He was reciting this verse of the Holy Qur'an: { مَعَ الَّذِینَ أَنْعَمَ اللَّہُ عَلَیْہِمْ مِنَ النَّبِیِّینَ وَالصِّدِّیقِینَ وَالشُّہَدَائِ وَالصَّالِحِینَ وَحَسُنَ أُولَئِکَ رَفِیقًا }. A person passing by him asked, "Who are you?" He replied, "I am an Ansari."

Hazrat Bara reports that Hazrat Umar ordered me to announce in Qadisiyyah that nabidh should not be prepared in vessels made of gourd, wooden vessels, or vessels coated with tar.

Hazrat Shaqiq narrates that at Qadisiyyah, a letter from Hazrat Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) reached us, and it was written by Hazrat Abdullah bin Arqam.

Hazrat Shabir bin Alqamah narrates that during the Battle of Qadisiyyah, a man from the people of Persia stood up and challenged for combat. He mentioned his bravery. Then a short-statured man named Shabir bin Alqamah advanced towards him. The Persian champion lifted Shabir and threw him to the ground. Shabir grabbed the Persian champion's dagger and stabbed it into his stomach. Then he killed him. After that, he took his belongings and came to Hazrat Sa’d (may Allah be pleased with him). Hazrat Sa’d (may Allah be pleased with him) valued it at twelve thousand dirhams and gave it to him as spoils of war.

Hazrat Shabir bin Alqamah narrates that I fought with a non-Arab in the Battle of Qadisiyyah and killed him. Then I took his belongings and went to Hazrat Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas. Hazrat Sa’d announced among his companions that these are the belongings brought by Shabir and they are better than twelve thousand dirhams. And we gave them to him as spoils of war.

Hazrat Husain narrates from a mujahid who participated in the Battle of Qadisiyyah that a man was bathing when he found a gold brick in the water. He brought it and gave it to Hazrat Sa’d. Hazrat Sa’d said, "Put it in the spoils of war."

Hazrat Husain narrates from a mujahid who participated in the Battle of Qadisiyyah that a man bought a slave girl from the spoils of war. When the slave girl saw that she now belonged to him, she took out a lot of jewelry and gave it to him. The man said that he did not know what the ruling was regarding this jewelry. Then he took it to Hazrat Sa’d and asked about it, so Hazrat Sa’d said: "Put it among the Muslims’ spoils of war."

Hazrat Aswad bin Mukhramah narrates that Hazrat Sa’d bought a basin from a man of Hira for one thousand dirhams. He was informed that Hazrat Umar had come to know of this and was very displeased with him. After that, Hazrat Sa’d kept searching for that Christian, and after finding him, returned the basin to him and took back the one thousand dirhams.

Hazrat Jarir bin Abdullah narrates that during the Battle of Qadisiyyah, for three hours one day, blood flowed in place of water in the river of Qadisiyyah, and this was the blood of those polytheists whom we had killed.

Hazrat Harith narrates that when we returned from Yemen and stayed in Madinah Munawwarah, Hazrat Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) came to us. He made a round among the people of the tribe of Nakha’ and said to them, “O people of Nakha’! I see honor descending among you. You should go to Iraq or Persia.” They said, “O Commander of the Faithful! We want to migrate towards Syria.” Hazrat Umar said, “No, Iraq is better. I am pleased with Iraq for you.” Some of us said, “O Commander of the Faithful! There is no hardship in religion.” Hazrat Umar said, “There is no hardship in religion; Iraq is suitable for you. There are groups of non-Arabs there and we are only two and a half thousand.” Then we came to Qadisiyyah, and from among the Nakha’i people only one man was martyred, while from the rest eighty people were killed. When Hazrat Umar found out, he said, “What did the Nakha’i people do that only one of them was martyred among the rest? Did the people run away leaving them?” The people replied, “No, rather they themselves jumped into the difficult tasks willingly.”

Hazrat Harith narrates that Hazrat Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) passed by the people of Nakh‘a and counted them; they were two and a half thousand. Their leader’s name was Arta’ah. Hazrat Umar said: I see honor descending among you; go to your brothers in Iraq. They said: No, we will go to Syria. Hazrat Umar said: Go to Iraq. They said: There is no compulsion in religion. Hazrat Umar said: Go to Iraq. So they went to Iraq, and there they began to capture and slaughter foals. Hazrat Umar wrote them a letter: Set yourselves right, for in such matters, life is important.

Hazrat Abu Bakr bin Ayyash states that in the Battle of Qadisiyyah, there were four hundred from Banu Asad, three thousand from Bajilah, two thousand three hundred from Nakhai, and the same number from Kinda. All these people totaled ten thousand, and among the people, there was none less than the tribe of Mudar.

Hazrat Abu Bakr says that Hazrat Umar gave more to some—two thousand to some and six hundred to others.

Hazrat Abu Bakr bin Ayyash, in the commentary of the verse { فَسَوْفَ یَأْتِی اللَّہُ بِقَوْمٍ یُحِبُّہُمْ وَیُحِبُّونَہُ } of the Holy Qur'an, says that it refers to the people of Qadisiyyah.

Hazrat Abu Bakr bin Amr bin Utbah narrates that Hazrat Umar wrote a letter to Hazrat Sa’d and the other governors of Kufa, saying: The region between ‘Udhaib and Hulwan has come under my authority. This is sufficient for you if you adopt piety and act righteously. And maintain a distance between yourselves and your enemies.

Hazrat Awn bin Abdullah narrates that in the Battle of Qadisiyyah, the belly of a Muslim warrior was torn open and his intestines had come out. He said to a person passing by him, "Put my intestines back inside and make me walk so that I can advance a little further in the path of Allah." So that man did as he was asked.

Hazrat Abu Ishaq says that I saw the companions of Ubaid drinking nabidh of Qadisiyyah, and among them was Amr bin Maymoon as well.

Hazrat Mutarrif narrates that Hazrat Talha bin Ubaidullah bought a piece of land from the people of Sailhin in Kufa. Then he came to Hazrat Umar and mentioned it to him and said that he had bought a fine and beautiful piece of land. Hazrat Umar asked, "From whom did you buy it? From the people of Kufa? Did you buy it from the people of Qadisiyyah?" Hazrat Talha said, "I bought it from all the people of Qadisiyyah." Hazrat Umar said, "You have done nothing; this is spoils of war."

Hazrat Laith says that the warriors of Qadisiyyah invited the non-Arabs to battle and fought with them for three days.

Hazrat Rabee’ bin Umeilah narrates that two men from Kufa and Shaam had a debate with each other. The man from Kufa said, “We participated in the Battle of Qadisiyyah and fought in such and such battles.” The man from Shaam said, “We fought in the Battle of Yarmouk and participated in such and such battles.” Hazrat Hudhaifah (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “None of you witnessed the time when Allah Almighty destroyed the people of ‘Aad and Thamud. When Allah Almighty destroyed them, He did not consider the superiority of one over the other. There is no town greater than Kufa whose people have been entrusted with such a great responsibility.”

Hazrat Riyah narrates that the Muslim Mujahideen found a grave in Madain, in which there was a man whose body was clothed in garments embroidered with gold threads and there was a great deal of wealth. The Mujahideen brought him to Hazrat Ammar bin Yasir. Hazrat Ammar wrote a letter to Hazrat Umar bin Khattab regarding this matter. Hazrat Umar ordered them to give all this wealth to the Mujahideen.

Hazrat Muhammad bin Ubaidullah narrates that Hazrat Umar appointed Saib bin Aqra as the governor of Mada'in. One day, he was sitting in his assembly when a copper tray was brought to him, which was made in the shape of a man's hand. Saib bin Aqra put his hand in the tray and took a handful, saying, "This is mine; Allah has granted this to me." Then he wrote a letter to Hazrat Umar regarding this matter, so Hazrat Umar replied, "You are merely a governor of the Muslims; deposit all of this into the Muslims' treasury (Bait-ul-Mal)."

Hazrat Nu’man bin Humaid narrates that Hazrat Ammar received some spoils of war and distributed a portion of it. Then he wrote a letter to Hazrat Umar to apologize and seek advice. He said to keep the people waiting until the rider arrives.

Ismail says that Shibl bin Awf was among the people of Qadisiyyah and he used to dye his beard yellow.

Hazrat Salman was the governor of Mada’in. On Fridays, he would say, “O Zaid, stand up and admonish your people.”

Hazrat Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that in the Battle of Qadisiyyah, Ibn Umm Maktum was wearing a long cloak.

Hazrat Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that during the Battle of Qadisiyyah, there was a disagreement between me and Hazrat Sa’d regarding wiping over the leather socks (khuffain).

Ibrahim narrates that a man fled from the battle of Qadisiyyah or Mehran and came to Hazrat Umar and said, "I am ruined, I fled from the battlefield." Hazrat Umar said to him, "Never, I will help you."

Hazrat Simak bin Harb narrates that two thousand people from Banu Asad participated in the Battle of Qadisiyyah, and their flag was in the hands of Simak of the mosque.

Hazrat Asim Ahwal narrates that Sabeeh asked Abu Uthman Nahdi, "Did you see the time of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him?" He replied, "Yes, I embraced Islam during the time of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and I sent zakat to him three times, but I did not meet him. I participated in various battles during the time of Hazrat Umar, may Allah be pleased with him. I took part in the battles of Qadisiyyah, Jalula, Tustar, Nahawand, Yarmouk, Azerbaijan, Mehran, and Rustam. We used to eat fat and would leave oil. I asked him about eating from the utensils of the polytheists, and he replied, 'We did not use to ask about them.'"

Ibrahim says that at Qadisiyyah, slaves were given shares just like free people.

Hazrat Maimoon narrates that when the delegation of Qadisiyyah arrived, Hazrat Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) did not grant them permission to meet for three days. Then, when he permitted them, he said: "You say that we fought and we defeated the enemy, whereas it is Allah who grants victory and defeat."

Hazrat Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that I participated in the battle of Jalula and I obtained forty thousand from the spoils of war. Then I presented it to Hazrat Umar, and he asked, "What is this?" I said, "I have obtained it from the spoils of war." He said, "O Safiyyah! Take care of what Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) has brought. I swear to you, do not take anything out of it." She said, "O Commander of the Faithful! What if something is not pure?" Hazrat Umar said, "That is for you." (2) Then Hazrat Umar said to Hazrat Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both), "If I were being taken towards the fire, would you ransom me with this wealth?" He replied, "I would certainly do so, rather I would give everything I have as ransom." Then Hazrat Umar said, "In the battle of Jalula, people took care of you, pledged allegiance at your hand, and said, 'This is Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both), a companion of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), the son of the Commander of the Faithful, and their most honored individual,' and you truly are so. They would prefer to give you a concession of a hundred dirhams rather than take one dirham more from you. I distribute, and I will give you more profit than any man of the Quraysh." Then he called the traders and sold their goods for four hundred thousand. Hazrat Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that he gave me eighty thousand and sent three hundred and twenty thousand to Hazrat Sa'd and said, "Distribute this wealth among those Mujahideen who participated in the battle. If any of them has died, give it to his heirs."