Sayf relates that Saʿd performed those eight rakʿahs with a single taslīm and that he led the Friday congregational prayer in the Īwān during the month of Ṣafar (1) of that same year. It was the very first Friday prayer ever held in Iraq, for Saʿd intended to remain there. He therefore summoned the families, lodged them in the houses (2) of al-Madāʾin, and they settled there until Jalūlāʾ, Takrīt, and Mosul were conquered; only afterwards did they move to Kūfah, as we shall mention.
He then sent detachments after Chosroes Yazdegerd; (3) one of them overtook the fugitives, killed some, scattered the rest, and captured great wealth. Most of what they recovered were Chosroes’ garments, his crown, and his ornaments.
Saʿd next set about gathering the money, stores, and treasures on hand—riches so vast that they defy valuation, tally, or description. It is reported that (4) there were statues made of plaster; Saʿd noticed one of them pointing with its finger to a spot and said, “This was not set up like that for nothing.” They dug along the line of its (5) finger and directly opposite it uncovered a tremendous hoard from the earliest Sasanian kings, drawing forth immense and abundant wealth, dazzling holdings, and exquisite treasures.
The Muslims thus gained everything there, marvels the like of which no one on earth had ever seen. Among the spoils was Chosroes’ crown, encrusted with precious jewels that dazzle the eyes, together with his belt, sword, bracelets, cloak, and the carpet of his Īwān. The throne-platform was a perfect square—sixty cubits by sixty on every side—and the carpet matched it exactly, woven of gold thread, pearls, and priceless gems. Depicted upon it were all the realms of Chosroes: his lands with their rivers, fortresses, provinces, treasures, and even the crops and trees of each region.
When he sat upon the throne of his kingdom he would place himself beneath his crown, which hung suspended by golden chains, for he could not bear its weight (6) upon his head. He would approach, sit beneath it, and insert his head into the crown while the chains supported it, concealing him as he donned it. When the curtain was lifted, the nobles would fall prostrate before him. Belt, bracelets, sword, and jewel-studded cloak upon him, he would gaze at the provinces one by one, asking about each, who governed it, and whether any event had occurred, and the officials before him would inform him. He would move to the next, and so on, constantly inquiring into the affairs of his dominions, never neglecting the business of state. That carpet lay before him as a standing reminder of his realms—an astute device of governance.
But when the decree of Allah arrived, those hands were removed from those kingdoms and lands. The Muslims seized them by force, broke their power, and received them, by Allah’s command, pure and complete. All praise and bounty belong to Allah.