Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas — The First Arrow
Third man in Islam, first to loose an arrow for Allah, commander at Qadisiyyah — for whom the Prophet ﷺ ransomed his own parents.
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Emblematic words
ارْمِ سَعْدُ فِدَاكَ أَبِي وَأُمِّي
Transliteration
Irmi Sa’d, fidaka abi wa ummi.
Story
The full story
Sa’d believed at seventeen through Abu Bakr — the third Muslim by several counts. When his mother starved herself to force apostasy, the verses of Luqman descended: obey parents in kindness, but never in associating partners (31:14–15). He held firm; she ate again.
He shot the first arrow in Islam’s cause and shed the first blood — then at Uhud, as lines broke, the Prophet ﷺ handed him arrows saying: shoot, Sa’d — may my father and mother be your ransom. No one else received that ransom-phrase.
Umar sent him to Qadisiyyah against Persia’s elephants and tens of thousands: outnumbered four to one, ill in his tent, he commanded through Khalid-style deputies — and Persia fell. He founded Kufa and governed it, building its mosque with a pebble-marked simplicity.
Accused of injustice late in life, he prayed against his slanderers — answered visibly. Dying (55 AH), he asked burial in his Badr wool cloak: meet Allah in the garment of His day.
Narrated from the seerah and hadith collections without invented details.
Timeline
The life in order
- 1The mother: starvation strike answered by Luqman’s verses.
- 2The arrow: first shot, first blood for Islam.
- 3The ransom: “may my parents be yours” — said to none else.
- 4Qadisiyyah: elephants, illness, victory — Persia falls.
- 5The cloak: buried in Badr wool (55 AH).
Reflect
Lessons
- ✦Kindness to parents stops where shirk starts — Luqman’s line.
- ✦Ill commanders win through trusted deputies — delegate in tents.
- ✦Answered prayers against slanderers: let Allah audit the accusers.
References: Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim (virtues of Sa’d, Uhud); Ibn Hisham’s Seerah; Qadisiyyah history
For his life, read the 16-chapter Seerat →
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Who was Sa’d?
Third man in Islam, first to loose an arrow for Allah, commander at Qadisiyyah — for whom the Prophet ﷺ ransomed his own parents.
What are the lessons from Sa’d’s life?
1. Kindness to parents stops where shirk starts — Luqman’s line. 2. Ill commanders win through trusted deputies — delegate in tents. 3. Answered prayers against slanderers: let Allah audit the accusers.
Where is this story sourced from?
References: Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim (virtues of Sa’d, Uhud); Ibn Hisham’s Seerah; Qadisiyyah history. Consult scholars for deeper rulings.
Sahaba