Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (r)
Abdur-Rahman bin Awf (r) reported:
The Messenger of Allah (SWT) said: "Abu Bakr is in Paradise, Umar is in Paradise, Uthman is in Paradise, Ali is in Paradise, Talha is in Paradise, Az-Zubair is in Paradise, Abdur-Rahman bin Awf is in Paradise, Sa'd bin Abi Waqqas is in Paradise, Sa'eed bin Zaid is in Paradise, and Abu 'Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah is in Paradise." - Sunan At-Tirmidhi
Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (r) is considered the first person to shoot an arrow in defence of Islam. He converted to Islam at the age of seventeen. Sad ibn Abi Waqqas (r) was to play a distinguished role in many of the engagements that took place both during the time of the Prophet (SWT) and after. He fought at Badr together with his young brother Umayr (r) who had cried to be allowed to accompany the Muslim army for he was only in his early teens. Sad ibn Abi Waqqas (r) returned to Madinah alone for Umayr (r) was one of the fourteen Muslim martyrs who fell in the battle.
Sad ibn Abi Waqqas (r) had famous incidences, the most important of which was steadfastness on the day of the Battle of Uhud. On that day, only two men remained around the Prophet (SWT), Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (r) and Talha ibn Ubaydullah (r), and they fought hard on his behalf. He was the commander of the Battle of Qadisiyyah which was one of the major decisive battles of world history. It sealed the fate of the Sassanian Empire just as the Battle of Yarmuk had sealed the fate of the Byzantine Empire in the east. Later in his life, Umar ibn al-Khattab (r) would appoint Sad ibn Abi Waqqas (r) to the Governorship of Kufa during his caliphate.
Key Lesson:
Not every companion (ṣaḥāba) restricted themselves to acquiring and teaching Islamic knowledge (ilm). There were others, like Sad ibn Abi Waqqas (r), who applied their talents in many different fields, including warfare and administration.