then Jarīr ibn ʿAbd Allah; if he were killed, then Qays ibn Makshūḥ; if Qays were killed, then so-and-so followed by so-and-so, until he had named seven men, one of whom was al-Mughīrah ibn Shuʿbah.
(It was also said that no names were specified, and Allah knows best.)

The text of the letter (1) was as follows:
“In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.
From ʿAbd Allah ʿUmar, Commander of the Believers, to al-Nuʿmān ibn Muqarrin.
Peace be upon you. I praise Allah for you—there is no deity but He.
To proceed:
News has reached me that a large host of the non-Arabs has gathered against you in the city of Nahavand. When this letter of mine reaches you, march—by the command of Allah, with the help of Allah, and by the victory of Allah—with those Muslims who are with you. Do not make them tread on rough ground that would injure them, and do not withhold their due lest you alienate them. Do not lead them into dense woodland, for one man of the Muslims is dearer to me than one hundred thousand dinars. Peace be upon you.
Travel on that route of yours until you reach Māh (2); I have written to the people of Kufah to meet you there. When your troops have assembled around you, advance against al-Fīruzān and those Persians and others who have gathered with him. Seek Allah’s assistance and say often, ‘There is no power and no strength except with Allah.’
ʿUmar also wrote to the deputy governor of Kufah, ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿAbd Allah, ordering him to raise an army and dispatch it (3) to Nahavand, appointing Ḥudhayfah ibn al-Yamān as its commander until they should reach al-Nuʿmān ibn Muqarrin; if al-Nuʿmān were killed, then Ḥudhayfah; if he were killed, then Nuʿaym ibn Muqarrin. He placed al-Sāʾib ibn al-Aqraʿ in charge of distributing the spoils.
Ḥudhayfah therefore set out with a large force toward al-Nuʿmān ibn Muqarrin in order to rendezvous with him at Māh, and a great number of the commanders of Iraq marched with Ḥudhayfah. He had stationed in every district a sufficient garrison of fighters, posted guards on every flank, and took every precaution. They reached al-Nuʿmān ibn Muqarrin at the appointed place, whereupon Ḥudhayfah ibn al-Yamān delivered ʿUmar’s letter containing his instructions for this battle.
Thus the Muslim army was completed at thirty thousand combatants, according to what Sīf relates from al-Shaʿbī. Among them were many eminent Companions and leading Arabs: ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, Jarīr ibn ʿAbd Allah al-Bajalī, Ḥudhayfah ibn al-Yamān, al-Mughīrah ibn Shuʿbah, ʿAmr ibn Maʿdīkarib al-Zubaydī, Ṭulayḥah ibn Khuwailid al-Asadī, and Qays ibn Makshūḥ al-Murādī.
The troops marched toward Nahavand. Al-Nuʿmān ibn Muqarrin sent ahead an advance guard of three men—Ṭulayḥah, ʿAmr ibn Maʿdīkarib al-Zubaydī, and ʿAmr ibn Abī Salmah (4), also called ʿAmr ibn Thubay—to ascertain the enemy’s condition and intentions.
The advance party travelled for a day and a night. ʿAmr ibn Thubay returned, and he was asked, ‘Why have you come back?’ He replied, ‘I was in the land of the non-Arabs; a land can kill the ignorant man who enters it, while the knowledgeable man can conquer a land.’
After him ʿAmr ibn Maʿdīkarib returned and said, ‘We saw (5) no one, and I feared the road might be cut off behind us.’ Meanwhile, Ṭulayḥah pressed on, unconcerned by their return, and continued after that for roughly