Sa'd ibn Mu'adh
سَعْد بْن مُعَاذSaʿd ibn Muʿādh
Biography
One of the most beloved of the Anṣār and the foremost leader of the Banū ʿAbd al-Ashhal clan of the Aws. He initially sent Usayd ibn Ḥuḍayr to expel Muṣʿab ibn ʿUmayr from Yathrib, but when Usayd returned visibly transformed, Saʿd went himself, armed, to confront Muṣʿab. Muṣʿab calmly invited him to sit and listen; Saʿd heard the recitation of Sūrat al-Zukhruf (حم وَالْكِتَابِ الْمُبِينِ) and immediately embraced Islam. His conversion caused the entire Banū ʿAbd al-Ashhal to follow, the largest mass conversion of the Makkī period. He later became the first Naqīb (chieftain representative) of the Aws at the Second Pledge of Aqabah. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Hazza ʿarshu al-Raḥmān li-mawt Saʿd ibn Muʿādh, the Throne of the All-Merciful trembled at the death of Saʿd." He died from wounds sustained at the Battle of the Trench.
Significance
His conversion brought the entire Banu Abd al-Ashhal to Islam, the largest mass conversion of the Makki period; the Throne of Allah trembled at his death
Stories
The Muslim Army Formation at Badr: Flanks, Flag, Wells, and Headquarters
militaryDr. Yasir Qadhi narrates the Prophet's ﷺ military organization upon arrival at the plains of Badr and two key decisions, the wells strategy and the he…
Read the full story →The Mubarazah: The Pre-Battle Duels at Badr
militaryDr. Yasir Qadhi narrates the first casualties of Badr and the Mubārazah, the pre-battle duels that were the traditional Arabian opening to any major e…
Read the full story →Sad ibn Muadh Threatens Abu Jahl at the Kabah
politicalDr. Yasir Qadhi narrates an incident preserved in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī that reveals the Anṣār were not passive participants in the coming conflict with Qu…
Read the full story →The Shura of Badr: Abu Bakr, Umar, Al-Miqdad, and the Speech of Sa'd ibn Mu'adh
governanceDr. Yasir Qadhi narrates the most important consultation (*Shūrā*) of the early Muslim state, the moment when the Prophet ﷺ asked his 315-man army, no…
Read the full story →The Second Pledge of Aqabah (Bay'at al-Aqabah al-Thaniyah)
storyIn the twelfth year of the Daʿwah, approximately Dhul-Ḥijjah, a few months before the Hijrah, approximately 75 people from Yathrib came for Ḥajj: 72 m…
Read the full story →The Conversion of Sa'd ibn Mu'adh and Usayd ibn Hudayr
storyWhen Muṣʿab ibn ʿUmayr began preaching in the house of Asʿad ibn Zurārah, word reached the leaders of the tribes. Two of the most powerful young leade…
Read the full story →Badr and Uhud Compared: The Theological Lessons
historicalShaykh Yasir Qadhi explains: THE SAME PURPOSE, DIFFERENT TARGET Allah states a near-identical purpose for both battles, but aimed at two different g…
Read the full story →The Prophet's Public Address and the Aws-Khazraj Tension
historicalShaykh Yasir Qadhi explains: With ʿĀʾishah now safely away from the mosque and no longer in a position to overhear, the Prophet (ﷺ) called a general…
Read the full story →Ghatafan's Bribe, and the Two Sa'ds' Refusal
historicalShaykh Yasir Qadhi explains: Before the Confederate tribes arrived, Ghaṭafān, the second-largest force after Quraysh, having been promised half the p…
Read the full story →The Treachery of Banu Qurayzah Is Confirmed
historicalShaykh Yasir Qadhi explains: As fears mounted over the loyalty of Banū Qurayẓah, the last of Madinah's three Jewish tribes still under treaty with th…
Read the full story →The Wounding and Death of Sa'd ibn Mu'adh
companion biographyShaykh Yasir Qadhi explains: ʿĀ'ishah narrates that while staying with the other women and children in the fortress of al-Fāriʿ during the siege, she…
Read the full story →Sa'd ibn Mu'adh Is Chosen to Judge Banu Qurayzah
historicalShaykh Yasir Qadhi explains: When word came that Banū Qurayẓah were ready to surrender unconditionally, the Aws, their long-standing pre-Islamic alli…
Read the full story →Mus'ab ibn Umayr in Yathrib: The First Ambassador
storyMuṣʿab ibn ʿUmayr was young, eloquent, and a man who had given up an extraordinary life of luxury to embrace Islam in its earliest days. The Prophet ﷺ…
Read the full story →