Sa'd al-Qaraz, the mu'adhdhin

Sa'd al-Qaraz, known as the mu'adhdhin of the Messenger of God, appears in the Book of Knowing the Companions of al-Hakim's [[work/al-mustadrak-ala-al-sahihayn|Mustadrak]] through his grandson 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Ammar ibn Sa'd al-Qaraz, from his father, from his grandfather. ²

He relates that the Prophet told Bilal to put his fingers in his ears because it carried his voice further; that Bilal's call was in pairs and his iqama in single phrases, with "the prayer has begun" said once; and that on Fridays in the Prophet's time he gave the call when the shadow was the width of a sandal strap. ²

He describes the Prophet going out to the two festivals: passing by the house of Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas and then by the people of the tents, beginning with the prayer before the sermon, saying "God is greatest" seven times before the recitation in the first rak'a and five times in the second, then preaching and returning by another way past Banu Zurayq, slaughtering his sacrifice with his own hand at the end of the lane. He went to the festivals on foot and returned on foot, preached leaning on a staff and often said "God is greatest" during the sermon. ²

He also describes how Bilal faced the qibla for the takbir and the two testimonies, then turned to the right of the qibla for "come to prayer" and to its left for "come to success". Al-Dhahabi left this hadith out of the Talkhis. ²

Al-Zuhri relates from Hafs ibn 'Umar ibn Sa'd al-Qaraz that his father and uncles told him Sa'd al-Qaraz was the mu'adhdhin of the people of Quba until 'Umar ibn al-Khattab moved him and made him mu'adhdhin of the Mosque of the Messenger of God. ³