—Muʿāwiyah said to ʿAmr the next morning, “I have seen such-and-such.” ʿAmr understood and said, “Shall I direct you to the governor of Kūfah?” He replied, “Yes.” ʿAmr said, “Al-Mughīrah; rely on his judgment and on his strength rather than on intrigue, but remove him from control of the treasury. Before you, ʿUmar and ʿUthmān did exactly that.” Muʿāwiyah said, “What an excellent suggestion.”

Al-Mughīrah was then admitted, and Muʿāwiyah said to him, “I had appointed you over the army and the province, but then I recalled the precedent of ʿUmar and ʿUthmān before me.” He replied, “I accept.” (1)

Al-Layth said: Al-Mughīrah had withdrawn from public life, but when authority passed to Muʿāwiyah, Al-Mughīrah wrote to him.

Talq ibn Ghannām reported: Shurayk narrated to us from ʿAbd al-Malik ibn ʿUmayr, who said: Al-Mughīrah wrote to Muʿāwiyah, mentioning the fading of his life, the passing of his household, and Quraysh’s coldness toward him. The letter reached Muʿāwiyah while Ziyād was present, so Ziyād said, “Commander of the Faithful, let me draft the reply to him.” He passed the letter to him, and Ziyād wrote:

“As for what you mentioned about the waning of your years, none has consumed them but you. As for the extinction of your household, had the Commander of the Faithful been able to shield anyone, he would have shielded his own family. As for Quraysh’s aloofness—how can that be, when they are the ones who appointed you?” (2)

Ibn Shawdhub said: Al-Mughīrah married four of Abū Sufyān’s daughters; he was the last to wed any of them, and the one he married had a limp. (3)

Ibn ʿUyaynah, from Mujālid, from al-Shaʿbī: I heard Qabīṣah ibn Jābir say, “I accompanied Al-Mughīrah ibn Shuʿbah; if there were a city with eight gates and no one could exit any of them except by stratagem, he would manage to leave through every gate.” (4)