Silsilat al-Ahadith al-Sahihah

Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) died, the Lord Almighty was pleased, so the Throne shook."

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that Ukaydir of Duma sent a silk cloak to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) wore it, and the people were amazed. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Are you amazed at this? By Him in Whose hand is my soul! The handkerchiefs of Sa’d bin Mu’adh in Paradise are better than this cloak." Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) gave that cloak as a gift to Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). He said: "O Messenger of Allah! You dislike it, so how can I wear it?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Umar! I sent it to you so that you may sell it to someone and gain some wealth." This incident occurred before silk was made unlawful.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Seventy thousand angels descended for the death of Sa'd bin Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him); never before had such a large number descended upon the earth." When he was buried, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Subhan Allah! If anyone could have been saved from the constriction of the grave, it would have been Sa'd, but even he was compressed and then it was made spacious for him."

Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Even for that righteous man, for whom the gates of the heavens were opened, the grave was made constricted for him, then it was expanded for him." By this, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) meant Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him).

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the funeral of Sayyiduna Sa’d (may Allah be pleased with him) was being carried, and upon seeing it, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Even the Throne of the Most Merciful swayed for him.” The hypocrites began to say that (Sa’d’s body) was very light. When this reached the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he said: “In reality, along with the people, the angels were also helping to carry Sa’d’s (bier).”

Mahmood bin Labeed says that when Sayyiduna Sa’d (may Allah be pleased with him) was wounded in the vein of his arm and the wound worsened, people transferred him to a woman named Rufaidah, because she used to treat the wounded. Whenever the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) passed by him, he would ask, “How did you spend your evening?” And when he came in the morning, he would say, “How did you spend your morning?” He would describe his condition. This continued until the night came when his people moved him from there and took him to the houses of Banu Abd al-Ashhal. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) came, as was his habit, to inquire about his condition. They informed him that they had taken him away, so the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) set out, and we also accompanied him. He walked so quickly that our sandal straps broke and our cloaks fell from our necks. The companions complained to him, saying, “O Messenger of Allah! You have exhausted us.” The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “I fear that the angels may precede us in giving him the ritual bath, just as they had previously given Khazlah the bath.” When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) reached the house, he was being bathed and his mother was weeping and saying, “O Sa’d! The destruction of your mother (is due to the loss of) your wisdom and generosity.” The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Every mourning woman lies, except for Umm Sa’d.” Then he took the body for burial. Some people said to him, “Sa’d’s body is very light.” The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Why should it not be light? A great number of angels descended—never before have so many angels descended—they were lifting Sa’d’s body with you.” He also mentioned the number of angels, but I do not remember it.

Narrated from Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), she says: On the day of the Battle of the Trench, I went out and started walking behind the people. As I was walking, I heard the strong sound of footsteps from behind. When I paid attention, I saw that it was Sa’d bin Mu’adh, and with him was his nephew Harith bin Aws, who was carrying a shield. I sat down on the ground. Sa’d passed by, he was wearing an iron coat of mail, and its edges were protruding. I became concerned that perhaps some part of Sa’d’s body (might get injured). As he passed by, he was reciting these verses:

Wait a little, until the battle is at its peak,
How good will death be, when its appointed time comes.

She says: I stood up and entered a garden, where (already) some Muslims were present, among them Umar bin Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) and another man who was wearing a helmet. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said to me: Why have you come here? By Allah! You have shown great courage. What assurance do you have that no calamity will befall you or that you might not have to flee? Umar kept reproaching me until I wished that the earth would split open and I would sink into it right then. Meanwhile, when that man removed his helmet, it turned out to be Talha bin Ubaidullah. He said: Umar! You have spoken a lot today. Today, there is only fleeing to Allah Almighty.

Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) says: A polytheist from Quraysh, called Ibn Arqah, shot an arrow at Sa’d and said: Here, take this, I am Ibn Arqah. The arrow struck the vein in his arm and it was severed. Sa’d prayed to Allah Almighty: O Allah! Keep me alive (until) my eyes are cooled regarding Banu Qurayzah. In the days of ignorance, they were allies of Sa’d’s clients. Thus, the bleeding from his wound stopped. Meanwhile, Allah Almighty sent a (fierce) wind upon the polytheists and it was sufficient for the believers in this battle, and Allah Almighty is Powerful and Dominant. Abu Sufyan, along with his companions, reached Tihamah, and Uyainah bin Badr took refuge in Najd with his companions. The Banu Qurayzah (the Jews) returned and fortified themselves, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) returned to Madinah, removed his armor, and ordered a leather tent to be set up for Sa’d in the mosque.

But meanwhile, Jibreel (peace be upon him) arrived, with dust shining on his teeth. He said: (O Muhammad!) Have you removed your armor? By Allah! The angels have not yet removed theirs. Proceed to Banu Qurayzah and fight them. Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) says: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) donned his armor for the sake of his Ummah and announced the march among the people. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) set out and passed by Banu Ghanm, who resided near the mosque, and asked them: “Who has passed by you?” They said: Dihyah Kalbi has passed by. In fact, the beard, teeth, and face of Sayyiduna Dihyah Kalbi resembled Jibreel (peace be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) reached Banu Qurayzah and besieged them, which lasted for twenty-five days. When the siege became severe upon them and their distress increased, it was said to them: Be content with the decision of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). They consulted Abu Lubabah bin Abd al-Mundhir, and he indicated that the decision of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would be killing. They said: Then we accept the decision of Sa’d bin Mu’adh. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Be content with the decision of Sa’d bin Mu’adh.” So they accepted it.

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent for Sa’d. So a donkey was brought, with a saddle made of palm bark, and Sayyiduna Sa’d was mounted on it. His people surrounded him and said: O Abu Amr! They (the people of Banu Qurayzah) are your allies, your treaty partners, those who have suffered defeat and destruction, and you know what they are like. But he neither answered them nor paid attention to them (and kept going). When he reached near their houses, he turned to his people and said: Now is the time that I do not care about the blame of any blamer for the sake of Allah Almighty.

Abu Sa’id says: When he reached the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), the Prophet said: “(Stand up) for your leader and help him dismount (from the donkey).” Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Our leader is Allah. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Help him dismount.” So they helped him dismount. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Sa’d! Decide concerning them.” Sayyiduna Sa’d (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I decide that their warriors be killed, their children be taken captive, and their wealth be distributed among the Muslims. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “You have indeed given the same judgment as Allah Almighty and His Messenger.”

Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) says: Then Sa’d (may Allah be pleased with him) prayed: O Allah! If You have still decreed fighting against the Quraysh for Your Prophet, then keep me alive for it, and if the fighting between them has ended, then call me to Yourself. She says: His wound burst open, although it had healed, and there was a ring-like mark visible, and he returned to the tent which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) had set up for him.

Lady Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her) says: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), Abu Bakr, and Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) arrived there. By the One in Whose hand is the life of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), I was sitting in my chamber and recognized the sound of Umar and Abu Bakr weeping. They (the noble Companions) were just as Allah Almighty described them: “They are merciful among themselves.” Alqamah asked: Mother! What did the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) do at that time? Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) replied: No one ever saw tears flow from the eyes of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), but when he was grieved, he would hold his blessed beard.