Qays ibn Sa'd
Qays ibn Sa'd occupies a position of prominence in Islam. Seen as one of the great leaders of the Muslim army, Qays ibn Sa'd was known for his steadfast defense in battles. His desire to cleanse his soul, achieved him the honor of being one of the great companions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Qays was also one of the most loyal companions of Ali ibn Abi Talib.
Birth and early life
Qay ibn Sa'd was born in Medina around the time of Muhammad. His father was Sa'd ibn Ubadah, the leader of the Kazrjah tribe.Before converting to Islam, Qay's ibn Sa'd was cunning to the extent that no one was able to get the better of him. He would use his cunningness to short-change the people of Medina and its surroundings.
Conversion to Islam
After Sa'd converted to Islam, he introduced Qays to Muhammad. Sa'd tells Muhammad,Muhammad was pleased with the qualities that Qays possessed. Qays then sat down next to him. Muhammad then told Qays,
When Qays embraced Islam, he completely changed his life, attitude, vision, and disposition. Through Islam, Qays learned how to treat people with sincerity and not to resort to deceit. He abandoned all his cunning in dealing with people and devoted himself to becoming a true and sincere Muslim. However, there were moments in his life where he was tempted to use his cunning abilities to deceive people. But, Qays's sincerity to the religion of Islam helped him overpower the temptations. Qays himself states,
Qays's title
Qays was given the title al-Ansari. Al-Ansari means the helper.Qays's characteristics
Qays's family was known for their generosity. Even Muhammad praised them by stating,A pre-Islamic Arabian custom was that wealthy people would engage a crier to stand on an elevated place during the day to call quests and passers-by to come to their house to eat food and rest. And at night the criers would light a fire in order to guide strangers to places where food was being served. People during pre-Islamic Arabia, would say,
Dulaym was the great-grandfather of Qays. Being brought up in a family renowned for its generosity, Qays too would inherit the trait of generosity. Qays's generosity surpassed his cleverness. Qays was also known for his charity. It is documented that one day Abu Bakr and Umar stated,
To indicate Qays's generosity, Qays lent a person in debt a large amount of money. When the time of repayment came the man went to pay back the money Qays had lent him. However, Qays refused to take the money back and stated,
It is known that Qays was also sharp-witted and resourceful. Qays had characteristics of a leader except for a traditional Arab beard. The Ansar use to tease Qays by saying,
Governor of Egypt
Imam Ali had selected Qays ibn Sa'd to become the governor of Egypt. Wilferd Madelung in his book The Succession to Muḥammad: A Study of The Early Caliphate discusses the appointing of Qays ibn Sa'd as the governor of Egypt by stating,Imam Ali chose Qays over Muhammad ibn Abu Hudhaifa, whom the Egyptian rebels looked as their leader and had control of al-Fustat. Madelung states,
He also rejected Amr ibn As, a supporter of Mu'awiyah, as a candidate even though Aisha demanded his restoration on the grounds of his popularity among the army of Egypt. Madelung also states,
According to Sahl ibn Sa'd al-Sa'idi of the Khazraj tribe,
Qays then left with only seven companions and was able to reach al-Fustat without any worries/troubles. He also brought a letter from Imam Ali informing the Egyptian Muslims of his appointment and read it in the mosque. The letter was written in Safar 36 AH, roughly two months after Imam Ali's accession by Ubaydullah ibn Abi Rafi. Imam Ali mentioned that Muhammad had first been succeeded by two persons, after whom a ruler had taken charge and introduced innovations such that the community protested and reproached him. Madelung comments,
After publicly addressing the letter, Qays then praised Imam Ali as the best man after Muhammad. He also received the bay'ahs for Imam Ali from the Egyptian people.
As the governor, Qays did not take any major steps against Uthman's partisans, who had seceded to the village of Kharbita near Alexandria after the revolt of Muhammad ibn Abi Hudhayfa. Uthman's partisans held out against Qays ibn Sa’d under their leader Yazid ibn al-Harith al-Maudliji of Kinana. They informed Qays that they wanted to see how matters developed. Furthermore, they stated that they would not interfere with his tax collectors and would not take up arms against him. Qays agreed to their request and did not try to force them to pledge allegiance. Maslama ibn Mukhallad al-Sa’idi, a kinsman of Qays, called for retaliation for the blood of Uthman. However, Qays assured Maslama that he did not wish to kill him under any circumstances. As a result, Maslama committed himself not to oppose Qays as long as Qays was the governor of Egypt. The agreement allowed Qays to collect the tax throughout the land of Egypt.
Muhammad ibn Abi Hudhayfa and the Egyptian rebels were not mentioned in the accounts of Sahl ibn Sa’d.
According to al-Layth ibn Sa’d, an Egyptian, Muhammad ibn Hudhayfa left Egypt for Medina when Qays was appointed governor in order to join Imam Ali. When news reached Mu’awiyah that Muhammad departed from Egypt and was on transit to Medina, he demanded his subjects capture Muhammad and bring him to Sham. After Muhammad was brought to Damascus, Mu’awiyah imprisoned him. Muhammad managed to escape prison but was killed by Yemenis on Dhul Hijja 36 AH.
Military career
Shurta al-Khamis
Qays ibn Sa'd was the commander of Shurta al-Khamis, a military unit that supported Imam Ali and the Ahl al-Bayt in Iraq. Shurta al-Khamis was composed of forty thousand men who personally were loyal to Imam Ali.Battle of Siffeen
In the Battle of Siffeen, Qays sided with Imam Ali against Mu'awiyah. Qays joined Sahl ibn Hunayf, one of the governors of Imam Ali, as he was setting off to join Imam Ali at the Battle of Siffeen. Qays was appointed as one of the commanders of Imam Ali's army; he commanded the foot soldiers of Basrah. Qays was given a brigade of over 10,000 men. On the sixth day of the Battle of Siffeen, Qays ibn Sa'd al-Ansari came forward with the army to fight against ibn Dhi'l-Kala and his contingent. Severe fighting ensued. During the war, Qays would sit and mentally concoct plots that would make Mu'awiyah and his army the worst losers. The more he thought about the plots, the more he realized that they were evil and dangerous. Qays reminded himself of Allah's holy words:As a result, Qays discarded the plots and sought forgiveness from Allah.