Sa’eed Ibn Jubair was one of the steadfast and loyal companions of Imam Sajjad (a.s.). Hajjaaj was a bloodthirsty tyrant who had ruled over Kufah, Iraq and Iran for almost twenty years after being appointed by the Bani Umayyah and Bani Marwaan. He had killed nearly one hundred and twenty thousand people during his reign, and amongst the friends and descendants of Ali (a.s.) murdered by him, were individuals like Kumail Ibn Ziyaad, Qanbar, the slave of Ali, (a.s.) and Sa’eed Ibn Jubair.
Hajjaaj ordered Sa’eed to be arrested when he became aware of Sa’eed’s belief and inclination towards Imam Ali (a.s.).
Initially, Sa’eed fled to Isfahan, but when Hajjaaj came to know of this, he wrote to the governor of Isfahan, seeking his arrest. The governor possessed a high regard for Sa’eed and therefore advised him to leave Isfahan for a safer resort.
Acting upon this advice, Sa’eed set out towards Qum and then proceeded to Azerbaijan and then to Iraq where he sought to enter the army of A’bd al-Rahmaan Ibn Muhammad, who had initiated a rebellion against Hajjaaj.
A’bd al-Rahmaan was defeated and Sa’eed fled to Makkah where he lived in hiding.
During that period, Makkah was under the rule of Khaalid Ibn A’bdullah Qasri, a ruthless individual, who had been placed there by the Caliph, Waleed Ibn A’bd al-Malik. Waleed wrote to him and gave him the order to arrest the well-known Iraqi personalities who were hiding in Makkah, and to send them to Hajjaj.
Thus, he arrested Sa’eed and had him dispatched to Kufah. At that time, Hajjaaj was in Waasit, a city near Baghdad, where Sa’eed was eventually brought.
Hajjaaj questioned him about himself, the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.), Ali (a.s.), Abu Bakr, U’mar, Uthmaan and many others and then asked him:
“How should I put you to death?”
“Whatever manner you may adopt to kill me, you are bound to be chastised accordingly, on the Day of Judgment,” replied Sa’eed.
“I would like to forgive you.”
“If the forgiveness is from God, then I seek it, but if it is from you, then I do not desire it,” responded Sa’eed.
Hajjaaj ordered the executioner to sever Sa’eed’s head before him. Despite his hands being tied behind his back, Sa’eed recited the following verse of the holy Qur’an:
Surely I have turned myself, wholly to Him, Who originated the heavens and the earth, being upright, and I am not of the associators.
Hearing this, Hajjaaj ordered his face to be turned away from the Qiblah, whereupon he recited the following verse:
Whithersoever ye turn, there is the presence of Allah
When Hajjaaj heard this, he ordered his men to place Sa’eed’s face down, upon the ground. When this was done, Sa’eed recited the following verse:
From the (earth) did We create you, and into it shall We return you, and from it shall We bring you out once again
Hajjaaj shouted, “Don’t waste any more time! Kill him!”
Sa’eed testified to the Unity of God and the Prophethood of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.) and prayed: O’ God! Do not grant Hajjaaj respite after me in order that he does not kill anyone else. As he uttered these words, the executioner severed his head.
After the martyrdom of this epitome of perfect faith, Hajjaaj suffered a derangement of his senses and did not live for more than fifteen nights. Before his death, he would occasionally lose consciousness, but regaining it, he would repeatedly mutter:
“Why did I ever get involved with Sa’eed Ibn Jubair?” ( Daastaan-ha-e-Maa, vol. 2, pgs. 39-45.)
Reference : Anecdotes for Reflection – Part 1