It is narrated from Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) gave me the kunyah "Abu Isa".

It is narrated from Muhammad bin Umar (al-Waqidi) that the lineage of Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him) is: al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah bin Abi Amir bin Mas'ud bin Mu'attib bin Malik bin Ka'b bin Amr bin Sa'd bin Awf bin Thaqif; and the actual name of Thaqif is Qasiyy bin Munabbih bin Bakr bin Hawazin bin Mansur bin Ikrimah bin Khasafah bin Qays bin Aylan bin Mudar bin Nizar. His kunyah was Abu Abdullah, and he was called "Mughirah al-Ra'y" (the man of sound judgement). He was extremely intelligent, shrewd and resourceful; whenever two complicated matters came before him, he would always find a way to success in one of them. He came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and accepted Islam, and stayed with him (peace and blessings be upon him) until he took part in the Umrah of Hudaybiyah in Dhu al-Qa'dah in the year 6 AH. Sayyiduna al-Mughirah (may Allah be pleased with him) says: This was the first journey on which I set out with him (peace and blessings be upon him). I used to be with Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him), and I was among the special Companions who kept close company with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). After that, Sayyiduna al-Mughirah (may Allah be pleased with him) took part in all the battles with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). When the delegation of Banu Thaqif came into the presence of the Messenger, he (peace and blessings be upon him) lodged them with him (al-Mughirah) and he honoured them generously. Later, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent him and Sayyiduna Abu Sufyan bin Harb (may Allah be pleased with him) to Ta'if, and they went there and demolished "al-Rabbah" (an idol).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) passed away, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) sent me to subdue the people of al-Nujayr. Then I took part in the Battle of Yamamah, after which I was part of the conquests of Syria along with the Muslims. Then I was present at the Battle of Yarmuk, and on that day one of my eyes was injured (lost). Then I took part in the Battle of Qadisiyyah and went to Rustam as the envoy of Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with him). During the caliphate of Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) I achieved several conquests; I conquered Hamadhan and also took part in the Battle of Nahawand. I was the commander of the left wing (maysarah) of the army of Nu'man bin Muqarrin (may Allah be pleased with him). Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) had written an order that if Nu'man were martyred, Hudhayfah would be the commander, and if he too were martyred, al-Mughirah would be the commander. I was the first person to establish the diwan (the official register and administration) of Basrah, and I gathered the people so that they could be given their stipends. I was governor of Kufah on behalf of Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), and I was still in that office when he was martyred. Then I was also governor of Kufah during the time of Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him)."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that when Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him) dropped his ring into the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) (out of eagerness to go down into the blessed grave), Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: "It must not be spread about that you went down into the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), nor should you tell people that your ring remained in the grave." Then Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) went down into the blessed grave, saw where the ring was, picked it up and handed it to Sayyiduna al-Mughirah (may Allah be pleased with him).

Muhammad bin Abi Musa al-Thaqafi narrates from his father that Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him) passed away in Kufah in the month of Sha'ban in the year 50 AH, during the caliphate of Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him). At that time he was seventy years old.

It is narrated from Abd al-Aziz bin Abi Bakrah that he said: We were sitting by the small door of the mosque which is called the Gate of Aylan: Abu Bakrah, his brother Nafi' and Shibl bin Ma'bad were (there). Meanwhile al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah came walking in the shade of the mosque, and in those days the mosque was built of reeds. He reached Abu Bakrah and greeted him. Abu Bakrah asked him: O Amir! What brought you out of the governor's residence? He said: (I have come) to talk with you people. Abu Bakrah said to him: That is not fitting for you; the Amir should sit in his house and summon whomever he wishes to talk with. He said: O Abu Bakrah, there is no harm in what I am doing. Then he entered through the small door until he reached the door of the house of Umm Jamil, a woman of Banu Qays. The narrator says: Between the house of Abu Abdullah (Nafi') and the house of the woman there was a lane, and he went in to her. Abu Bakrah said: I cannot bear this. So he sent for a slave of his and said to him: Climb up to my upper room and look through the window. He went and looked, and soon came back and said: I found the two of them under one blanket. He said to the people: Get up and come with me. So they got up. Abu Bakrah looked first and said "Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un (We belong to Allah and to Him we return)." Then he said to his brother: Look. He looked. He asked: What did you see? He said: Outright adultery. Then he said: O Shibl, look. He looked. He asked: What did you see? He said: I saw outright adultery. He said: Shall I call Allah to witness against you? They said: Yes. Then he went back to his family and wrote to the Commander of the Believers, Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), about what he had seen. A grave matter had come to him, for it concerned a Companion of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and without delay he sent Abu Musa al-Ash'ari as governor of Basrah. Abu Musa sent word to al-Mughirah: Stay for three days in which you are your own master; when the fourth day comes, set out, you and Abu Bakrah and his witnesses. Glad tidings for you if a lie has been told against you, and woe to you if the truth has been told about you. So the party, namely Abu Bakrah, his witnesses and al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah, set out until they reached the Commander of the Believers in Madinah. He said: O Abu Bakrah! Present what you have. He said: I testify that I saw outright adultery. Then they brought forward his brother Abu Abdullah, and he testified: I saw outright adultery. Then they brought forward Shibl bin Ma'bad al-Bajali; he questioned him and he said: I testify that I saw outright adultery. Then they brought forward Ziyad, and he asked: What did you see? He said: I saw the two of them under one blanket and heard heavy breathing, and I do not know what was beyond that. At this Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said "Allahu Akbar" and was glad that al-Mughirah had been saved, and he had the others flogged, except Ziyad. The narrator says: The Commander of the Believers, Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), had appointed Utbah bin Ghazwan as governor of Basrah; he arrived there in the year 16 AH, and his death was in the year 19 AH. Utbah disliked this responsibility and used to pray to Allah to free him from it. Then he fell from his mount on the road and died (may Allah have mercy on him). Then the matter of al-Mughirah happened as it happened.

It is narrated from Muhammad bin Ishaq that he said: Egypt was conquered in the year 20 AH, and in that same year the region of the Euphrates was conquered by force ('anwatan). It is also said that it was conquered by Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him). Sayyiduna Utbah bin Ghazwan (may Allah be pleased with him) had appointed him as his deputy and had himself set out towards Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). Then Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) appointed al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah as governor of Basrah and sent him his letter of appointment. Then what happened in the matter between him and Umm Jamil al-Qaysiyyah is (historically) well known.

It is narrated from Abd al-Rahman bin Sa'id al-Kindi that he said: We attended the funeral of Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him). When he was lowered into his grave, suddenly a rider came and stopped by us and asked: Who is this one being hidden beneath the earth? We said: This is the governor of Kufah, al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah. By Allah! That man did not hesitate in the least and began reciting these verses: "Do you recognise the traces of the dwellings of al-Mughirah, over which the adulteresses of the jinn and of mankind play music? If you have met Haman after us, and Pharaoh, then know that the Lord of the Throne gives just recompense." The narrator says: The people of the tribe of Thaqif turned towards that rider and began to abuse him. By Allah! I do not know which way he disappeared. And the governorship of Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him) over Kufah lasted seven years.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Jarir (may Allah be pleased with him) that at the funeral of Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him) he said: "Seek forgiveness for your Amir, for he loved well-being ('afiyah)."

It is narrated from Zayd bin Aslam that a man came and called out, seeking permission: "May Abu Isa come in to the Commander of the Believers, Umar (may Allah be pleased with him)?" Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) asked: "Who is this Abu Isa?" Sayyiduna al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah (may Allah be pleased with him) replied: "It is I." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said (in amazement): "Did Isa have a father?! Was there no kunyah among the kunyahs of the Arabs that you could have adopted, such as Abu Abdullah or Abu Abd al-Rahman?" A man said: "I testify that I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him); it was he (peace and blessings be upon him) who gave al-Mughirah this kunyah 'Abu Isa'." At this Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Indeed, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has had all his past and future sins forgiven, whereas we are in a state of anxiety and uncertainty; we do not know what will be done with us." Then he gave him the kunyah Abu Abdullah.