The People of Kufa complained against Saʿd to ʿUmar and the latter dismissed him and appointed ʿAmmar as their chief . They lodged many complaints against Saʿd and even they alleged that he did not pray properly. ʿUmar sent for him and said, "O Aba 'Is-haq! These people claim that you do not pray properly." Abu 'Is-haq said, "By Allah, I used to pray with them a prayer similar to that of Allah's Apostle and I never reduced anything of it. I used to prolong the first two rakʿat of ʿIsha prayer and shorten the last two rakʿat." ʿUmar said, "O Aba 'Is-haq, this was what I thought about you." And then he sent one or more persons with him to Kufa so as to ask the people about him. So they went there and did not leave any mosque without asking about him. All the people praised him till they came to the mosque of the tribe of Bani ʿAbs; one of the men called Usama bin Qatada with a surname of Aba Saʿda stood up and said, "As you have put us under an oath; I am bound to tell you that Saʿd never went himself with the army and never distributed (the war booty) equally and never did justice in legal verdicts." (On hearing it) Saʿd said, "I pray to Allah for three things: O Allah! If this slave of yours is a liar and got up for showing off, give him a long life, increase his poverty and put him to trials." (And so it happened). Later on when that person was asked how he was, he used to reply that he was an old man in trial as the result of Saʿd's curse. ʿAbdul Malik, the sub narrator, said that he had seen him afterwards and his eyebrows were overhanging his eyes owing to old age and he used to tease and assault the small girls in the way.  

شَكَا أَهْلُ الْكُوفَةِ سَعْدًا إِلَى عُمَرَ ؓ فَعَزَلَهُ وَاسْتَعْمَلَ عَلَيْهِمْ عَمَّارًا فَشَكَوْا حَتَّى ذَكَرُوا أَنَّهُ لاَ يُحْسِنُ يُصَلِّي فَأَرْسَلَ إِلَيْهِ فَقَالَ يَا أَبَا إِسْحَاقَ إِنَّ هَؤُلاَءِ يَزْعُمُونَ أَنَّكَ لاَ تُحْسِنُ تُصَلِّي قَالَ أَبُو إِسْحَاقَ أَمَّا أَنَا وَاللَّهِ فَإِنِّي كُنْتُ أُصَلِّي بِهِمْ صَلاَةَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ مَا أَخْرِمُ عَنْهَا أُصَلِّي صَلاَةَ الْعِشَاءِ فَأَرْكُدُ فِي الأُولَيَيْنِ وَأُخِفُّ فِي الأُخْرَيَيْنِ قَالَ ذَاكَ الظَّنُّ بِكَ يَا أَبَا إِسْحَاقَ فَأَرْسَلَ مَعَهُ رَجُلاً أَوْ رِجَالاً إِلَى الْكُوفَةِ فَسَأَلَ عَنْهُ أَهْلَ الْكُوفَةِ وَلَمْ يَدَعْ مَسْجِدًا إِلاَّ سَأَلَ عَنْهُ وَيُثْنُونَ مَعْرُوفًا حَتَّى دَخَلَ مَسْجِدًا لِبَنِي عَبْسٍ فَقَامَ رَجُلٌ مِنْهُمْ يُقَالُ لَهُ أُسَامَةُ بْنُ قَتَادَةَ يُكْنَى أَبَا سَعْدَةَ قَالَ أَمَّا إِذْ نَشَدْتَنَا فَإِنَّ سَعْدًا كَانَ لاَ يَسِيرُ بِالسَّرِيَّةِ وَلاَ يَقْسِمُ بِالسَّوِيَّةِ وَلاَ يَعْدِلُ فِي الْقَضِيَّةِ قَالَ سَعْدٌ أَمَا وَاللَّهِ لأَدْعُوَنَّ بِثَلاَثٍ اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كَانَ عَبْدُكَ هَذَا كَاذِبًا قَامَ رِيَاءً وَسُمْعَةً فَأَطِلْ عُمْرَهُ وَأَطِلْ فَقْرَهُ وَعَرِّضْهُ بِالْفِتَنِ وَكَانَ بَعْدُ إِذَا سُئِلَ يَقُولُ شَيْخٌ كَبِيرٌ مَفْتُونٌ أَصَابَتْنِي دَعْوَةُ سَعْدٍ قَالَ عَبْدُ الْمَلِكِ فَأَنَا رَأَيْتُهُ بَعْدُ قَدْ سَقَطَ حَاجِبَاهُ عَلَى عَيْنَيْهِ مِنَ الْكِبَرِ وَإِنَّهُ لَيَتَعَرَّضُ لِلْجَوَارِي فِي الطُّرُقِ يَغْمِزُهُنَّ  

[Machine] My covenant with him is that he is a good prayer, so he called him and informed him. He said, "As for the prayer of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ , I have prayed with him by bowing in the first two units and omitting it in the last two units." That was your assumption, Abu Ishaq. So he sent someone with him to ask about him in Kufa. He roamed around in the mosques of Kufa and no one said anything about him except good until he reached the mosque of Bani Abis and there he found a man named Abu Sa'dah. He said, "O Allah, he was not a coward in secret missions, he never swore by equal measures, and he never compromised in judgment." Sa'd became angry and said, "O Allah, if he is lying, then prolong his life, increase his poverty, and afflict him with tribulations." Ibn Umayr claimed to have seen him with his eyebrows fallen over his eyes, impoverished and afflicted. He couldn't find anyone to ask, "How are you, Abu Sa'dah?" A venerable old man, afflicted, answered, "I have been responded to in the supplication of Sa'd."  

عَهْدِي بِهِ وَهُوَ حَسَنُ الصَّلَاةِ فَدَعَاهُ فَأَخْبَرَهُ فَقَالَ «أَمَّا صَلَاةُ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ فَقَدْ صَلَّيْتُ بِهِمْ أَرْكُدُ فِي الْأُولَيَيْنِ وَأَحْذِفُ فِي الْأُخْرَيَيْنِ» فَقَالَ ذَاكَ الظَّنُّ بِكَ أَبَا إِسْحَاقَ فَبَعَثَ مَعَهُ مَنْ يَسْأَلُ عَنْهُ بِالْكُوفَةِ فَطِيفَ بِهِ فِي مَسَاجِدِ الْكُوفَةِ فَلَمْ يُقَلْ لَهُ إِلَّا خَيْرًا حَتَّى انْتَهَى إِلَى مَسْجِدِ بَنِي عَبْسٍ فَإِذَا رَجُلٌ يُدْعَى أَبَا سَعْدَةَ فَقَالَ اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّهُ كَانَ لَا يَنْفِرُ فِي السَّرِيَّةِ وَلَا يَقْسِمُ بِالسَّوِيَّةِ وَلَا يَعْدِلُ فِي الْقَضِيَّةِ قَالَ فَغَضِبَ سَعْدٌ وَقَالَ «اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كَانَ كَاذِبًا فَأَطِلْ عُمْرَهُ وَشَدِّدْ فَقْرَهُ وَاعْرِضْ عَلَيْهِ الْفِتَنَ» قَالَ فَزَعَمَ ابْنُ عُمَيْرٍ أَنَّهُ رَآهُ قَدْ سَقَطَ حَاجِبَاهُ عَلَى عَيْنَيْهِ قَدِ افْتَقَرَ وَافْتُتِنَ فَلَمْ يَجِدْ شَيْئًا يُسْأَلُ كَيْفَ أَنْتَ أَبَا سَعْدَةَ؟ فَيَقُولُ شَيْخٌ كَبِيرٌ مَفْتُونٌ أُجِيبَتْ فِيَّ دَعْوَةُ سَعْدٍ