Ibn ʿAbbās transmitted from him, and he remained alive until the closing years of ʿUmar’s caliphate.

In the two Ṣaḥīḥ collections, through the chain of Yūsuf ibn al-Mājishūn—related to us by Ṣāliḥ ibn Ibrāhīm ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿAwf, from his father, from his grandfather—he said:

“I was standing in the battle-line on the Day of Badr. I looked around and found myself between two young lads of the Ansar, their faces still fresh with youth, and I wished that I were standing between two men stronger than they.

One of them nudged me and said, ‘Uncle, do you know Abū Jahl?’

I replied, ‘Yes. What do you want with him?’

He said, ‘I have heard that he insults the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. By the One in whose hand is my soul, if I see him, my shadow will not leave his shadow until the quicker of us is dead.’ I was astonished at that.

Then the other lad nudged me and said the same. Before long (1) I saw Abū Jahl moving about among the people, so I said, ‘Do you two see him? That is the man you are after.’

They both rushed at him with their swords and killed him. Then they returned to the Prophet ﷺ and informed him.

He asked, ‘Which of you killed him?’

Each of them said, ‘I did.’

He said, ‘Have you wiped your swords?’

They replied, ‘No.’

He looked at the two swords and said, ‘Both of you killed him.’ He awarded Abū Jahl’s spoils to Muʿādh ibn ʿAmr, and the other was Muʿādh ibn ʿAfrāʾ (2).

Muʿādh ibn ʿAmr related: ‘I had made Abū Jahl my concern on the Day of Badr. When I was able, I charged at him and struck him, cutting off his foot at mid-shin. His son ʿIkrimah ibn Abī Jahl then struck my shoulder and severed my arm, which remained hanging by a strip of skin at my side, and it hindered me…’