The people of Kūfah lodged a complaint against Saʿd with ʿUmar, saying, “He does not know how to lead the prayer.”

Saʿd replied, “As for me, I would lead them in the two evening prayers exactly as the Messenger of Allah used to lead them. I omit nothing: I lengthen the first two units and keep the last two brief.”

ʿUmar said, “That is what we expected of you, Abū Isḥāq.”

He then sent a number of men to inquire about Saʿd in Kūfah. Whenever they entered one of the city’s mosques the people spoke well of him—until they came to the mosque of Banū ʿAbs. There a man called Abū Saʿdah said, “Since you adjure us by Allah, he neither judges fairly in disputes, nor distributes evenly, nor accompanies the expedition.”

Saʿd prayed, “O Allah, if he is lying, then deprive him of his sight, lengthen his life, and expose him to trials.”

ʿAbd al-Malik said, “I later saw him accosting slave-girls in the alleyways. When asked, ‘How are you?’ he would answer, ‘An old man, sorely tried—the supplication of Saʿd has struck me.’ ”

Agreed upon (1).

Muḥammad ibn Juhādah narrated: al-Zubayr ibn ʿAdī related to us, from Muṣʿab ibn Saʿd:

Saʿd once addressed the people of Kūfah, saying, “People of Kūfah, what kind of governor have I been to you?”

A man stood up and said, “O Allah, to the best of my knowledge he does not rule justly over the subjects, nor distribute equally, nor go out with the detachment.”

Saʿd prayed, “O Allah, if he is lying, then blind him, hasten his poverty, prolong his life, and expose him to trials.”