any garment more splendid than this.”
He replied, “By Allah, the handkerchiefs of Saʿd ibn Muʿādh in Paradise are more beautiful than what you are admiring. (1)
It is said that Saʿd ibn Muʿādh and Asʿad ibn Zurārah were cousins through their mothers.
Ibn Isḥāq relates that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forged a bond of brotherhood between Saʿd ibn Muʿādh and Abū ʿUbaydah ibn al-Jarrah, while others say he paired him with Saʿd ibn Abī Waqqāṣ instead.
The Prophet’s statement, “Truly, the Throne shook at the death of Saʿd, rejoicing for him,” has reached the level of mass-transmission. (2)
It is also authentically established that when they marvelled at the beauty of a certain robe, the Prophet ﷺ said, “The handkerchiefs of Saʿd ibn Muʿādh in Paradise are better than this. (3)”
Al-Naḍr ibn Shumayl reported: ʿAwf narrated to us, from Abū Naḍrah, from Abū Saʿīd, that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “The Throne shook at the death of Saʿd ibn Muʿādh.” (4)
(1) The chain is sound (hasan). It is recorded by Ibn Saʿd 3/2/13, al-Tirmidhi (no. 1723, Book of Dress) and al-Nasaʾi 8/199 (Book of Adornment), all through the isnad of Muhammad b. ʿAmr from Waqid b. ʿAmr, and so on. Al-Tirmidhi judged it sahih. The original manuscript read, “Indeed you are like Saʿd, the look-alike,” but we have adopted the wording found in al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Saʿd. Ahmad 3/234 and Muslim (no. 2469) also transmit it on the authority of Anas.
(2) This hadith is likewise reported by Jabir, Anas, Hudhayfa, and ʿAsim b. ʿUmar b. Qatada from his grandmother Rumaytha. Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr states that it comes through many independent routes that reach the level of tawatur (mass transmission). Sharh al-Mawahib confirms it from ten Companions. See Nizam al-Mutanathir fi al-hadith al-mutawatir, p. 126. The author will cite some of these versions below.
(3) Reported by Ahmad 3/234, Muslim (no. 2469), al-Bukhari (no. 3248) and Abu Nuʿaym 7/110 from Anas: a robe of fine silk (sundus) was presented to the Messenger of Allah, and although he forbade silk, the people admired it. He said, “By Him in Whose hand is my soul, the hand-towels of Saʿd b. Muʿadh in Paradise are better than this.”
(4) Reported by Ahmad 3/24, Ibn Saʿd 3/2/12 and al-Hakim 3/206; al-Hakim declared it sahih and al-Dhahabi concurred.