Khalaf ibn Khalifah related—from an unnamed source—that when Saʿid ibn Jubayr’s head was severed (1) he proclaimed the tahlil (“There is no god but Allah”) three times, articulating it clearly each time (2).

Yahya ibn Hassan al-Tinnisi (3) narrated to us; Salih ibn ʿUmar narrated to us, from Dawud ibn Abi Hind, who said:
“When al-Hajjaj arrested Saʿid ibn Jubayr, Saʿid remarked, ‘I see nothing for myself but execution, and I will tell you why: Two companions and I once prayed together, tasting the sweetness of supplication. We then asked Allah for martyrdom; both of my companions attained it, and I am still awaiting it.’ He (Dawud) said, ‘It was as though he believed that an answered prayer comes at the moment one feels the sweetness of calling upon Allah.’ (4)

I (the author) say: Because he knew the virtue of martyrdom, he stood firm in the face of death, showed no anxiety, and did not resort to the lawful dissimulation (taqiyyah) available to him—may Allah have mercy on him.

Ahmad ibn Dawud al-Harrani reported to us; ʿIsa ibn Yunus narrated to us; I heard al-Aʿmash say:
“When Saʿid ibn Jubayr, Talq ibn Habib, and their companions were brought in, I entered the prison and said to them, ‘A mere policeman or minor official has escorted you from Mecca to be executed; why did you not overpower him, tie him up, and abandon him in the wilderness?’ Saʿid replied, ‘And who would have given him water to drink when he became thirsty?’

Muhammad ibn ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿAbd al-Hakam reported to us; my father narrated to us; I heard Malik say: Rabiʿah told me, from Saʿid ibn Jubayr:
“Saʿid was one of the devout scholars. Al-Hajjaj killed him. He found him in the Kaʿbah together with some other people among whom was Talq ibn Habib; he took them to Iraq and executed them for no charge against them except their worship. When Saʿid ibn Jubayr was killed, a great deal of blood flowed from him, so much that it alarmed al-Hajjaj. He summoned a physician and said to him, ‘What is the matter with this man’s blood…’