Faculty

Shaykh Dr. Ahmed Saad:

Shaykh Dr. Ahmed Mohamed Saad Al-Azhari was born in Ramadan 1398 (August 1978) in the northern Egyptian governorate of  Menoufiyyah in the Nile Delta to a scholarly family with a Prophetic lineage through Imam al-Hasan. After completing the memorisation of the Quran at the age of 10 under his father’s teaching and finishing his primary education, he joined Al-Azhar prep and secondary institute in a neighbouring village for 7 years. Having completed his secondary certificate, he joined Al-Azhar University graduating with a BA in Islamic Studies in English in 2001. He also completed postgraduate studies in 2004, attended academic programs at the University of Erfurt, Germany, and as a Fulbright scholar attended the University of California Santa Barbara in 2005. Dr. Saad completed his PhD in the School of Philosophy, Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham, UK. In his PhD, Dr. Saad specialises in engagements between traditional Muslim scholars and modernity in the colonial and post-colonial Muslim world with a special focus on the project of Habib Abu Bakr al-Mashhūr.

In his early career, Shaykh Saad worked in several institutions including the Egyptian Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs and travelled to Canada, Malaysia, and the UK as an Imam. He settled in the UK at the beginning of 2007 as an Imam in North London while actively engaged with local and international faith organizations including appearances in BBC and France 24/7. His impact was recognised by the Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, the Islington Faith Forum, and other institutions. After this successful tenure, he established Ihsan Institute UK, an educational enterprise with a focus on making traditional knowledge relevant and meaningful. Ihsan Institute UK has its sister organisation Ihsan Institute Singapore also under the supervision of Shaykh Saad. In teaching and speaking capacities, Shaykh Dr Saad worked with many communities across the world travelling to Argentina, Austria, Australia, India, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, UAE, Qatar, Morocco, Gambia, South Africa, Turkey, Uruguay, Canada, USA, Sweden, Norway, Spain and Germany. This wide experience enriched his ability to deal with people from different backgrounds and cultures and see the human experience beyond the limitations of location and language.

In his traditional studies, Shaykh Saad started studying Arabic language sciences like grammar, morphology, rhetoric, literature, and prosody with his father from a very early age. He also studied modes of recitation (qirā’āt), Ash’ari theology (kalam and ‘aqīdah), tajwīd, Islamic astronomy and prayer timing (falak and tawqīt), Maliki jurisprudence (fiqh), logic (mantiq), Hadīth terminology (mustalah), Quranic hermeneutics (tafsīr), Tasawwuf, legal theory (usul al-fiqh) with a wide circle of teachers from Egypt, Syria, Morocco, Mauritania, Madīnah and Ahsā. This included memorising mutūn (at least one main text) in these respective sciences in addition to thousands of lines of poetry from pre-Islamic to modern poetry including the mu’allaqāt.

Shaykh Saad has traditional ijazāt with an unbroken chain of riwāyah in the six Hadith books, Muwatta, Shama’il, Shifā, Alfiyat al-Iraqi in Sīrah and musalsal hadith collections. His sanad in the Quran is one of the shortest among his peers in the narration of Hafs. In his secondary certificate, he was one of the top ten students in Egypt and was honoured by the governor of Menoufiyyah. In his university years, Shaykh Saad always topped his class and was hosted, in his last year in university, by King Fahad and the Ministry of Hajj alongside 100 students from 10 Muslim countries as the King’s guest.

Besides his late father Shaykh Mohamed Saad, his teachership includes; Habib Dr. Abu Bakr al-‘Adni b. Ali al-Mashhūr, Shaykh Shibl Matar, Shaykh Dr. Ali Gomah, Shaykh Dr. Abdel-Hamīd Al-Mubarak,  Shaykh Ahmad Mawlūd b. Muhammad al-Mustafa al-Yaqūbi al-Shinqīti, Shaykh Dr. Ayman Suwaid, Shaykh Abdul-Fattah Madkour, Shaykh Ali Tawfīq al-Nahhas, Shaykh Abdul-Rahman al-Kittani, Habib Zayn b. Sumayt, Shaykh Abdel-Basit Hashim, Shaykh Yahya al-Ghawthani, Shaykh Ahmad al-Surti, Shaykh Yahya al-Mulla, Shaykh Dr. Ahmad Sharīf al-Manbiji, Shaykh Muhammad al-Baqqāli and others who including Shyūkh of riwāyah exceed 85 teachers.

Shaykh Ahmad has a special interest in Maliki Fiqh, Arabic grammar, rhetoric and literature, Tafsīr, and qirā’āt. He has authored a number of books in Arabic and English including Contemplating the Quran and Forty Parables from the Quran in addition to two anthologies of poetry and some didactic poems. He lives in the UK and teaches and travels internationally.

Ustādh Abdurrahmaan Sharif:

Ustādh Abdurrahmaan Sharif graduated from City University London with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology in 2017. He then began his memorisation of The Quran with Shaykh Ahmed Saad in mid-2016 and received his Ijaza in Hafs in 2022. During this period he attended and graduated from the Husna programme levels One and Two. He also studied Usūl al-Fiqh (Principles of Law), Mantiq (Logic), Aqīdah (Creed), Arabic and Maliki Fiqh with Shaykh Ahmed, including such books as al-Sullam al-Munawaraq, Tadrīb Al-Salik, The Risalah of Ibn Abi Zayd, Akhdari, Al-‘Ashmawiyya, and Ibn Āshir. Ustādh Abdurrahmaan has also memorised and received ijaza in c texts including Ibn Āshir in Maliki Fiqh, Jawhara Al-Tawhīd in the science of Aqīdah, Jazariyya in Tajwīd and Isāl Al-Sālik in Usūl al-Fiqh. Ustādh Abdurrahmaan has been a teacher of Tajwīd and Quran since 2017 and currently teaches Fiqh, Hadith and Arabic whilst running a youth program. He also assists in designing and tailoring Ihsan Institute programs and courses whilst he continues his Arabic and Islamic studies with Shaykh Ahmed Saad.

Ustādha Bilkis Saad:

Ustādha Bilkis Saad was born and raised in London. She holds a BSc. in economics from University College London and MSc from SOAS. Ustādha studied Arabic, Islamic Studies, Hanafi and Maliki Fiqh, Sirah and Tajwid under various Shuyukh including Shaykh Haytham Tamim, Shaykh Sjaad hussain, Ustadha Muhsina Taherah, Shaykh Marwan Al-Ghalayini and Shaykh Ahmed Saad. She completed The Husna Certificate in Traditional Islamic Studies. She has taught at Ebrahim College, Habiba Institute,  Lady Aisha Academy and Al-Erth al-Nabawi Academy. Ustādha is married to Shaykh Ahmed Saad and assists in teaching and curriculum preparation at Ihsan, she has a particular interest in teaching Maliki Fiqh, Tajwid and Fiqh for women. 

Shaykh Muhammed Muhamady:

Shaykh Muhammed was born and raised in Egypt. He holds a bachelor's degree in Islamic studies in English from Al-Azhar University. He studied Arabic, Islamic studies, and Tajweed under various teachers at Al-Azhar. He holds an Ijazah in the narration of Hafs and has an Ijazah in Matn Al-Jazariyyah in Tajweed from Shaykh Ahmed Saad. He is currently studying Maliki fiqh under Shaykh Ahmad Saad, whilst teaching Quran, Tajweed and Arabic online for many students across the UK, USA and Canada. Shaykh Muhammad has a great passion for the science of Qira'āat and is currently studying the narration of Warsh.

Ustādh Mustafa Mahmoud:

By age 12 ustādh Mustafa had completed his Quran memorization under Shaykh Waliullah Majlis Al-Ma'arif Al-Islāmiyyah. At 13, he began leading congregational prayers and has continued to do so ever since.

He then pursued studies in Arabic and Islamic sciences and advanced to his Islamic secondary education at Markaz At-Tawhid, alongside his secular studies at Qubā Academy.

From 2010 to 2014, Ustadh Mustafa attended the International University of Africa, where he completed an LLB in Sharia Law and graduated with first-class honours. Due to his exemplary conduct and performance, he was awarded a scholarship and served as a teaching assistant.

In 2014, he joined SOAS University for a pre-master's program, which facilitated his pursuit of an MA in International Law at the University of East London, where he graduated in 2020.

In 2019, Ustadh Mustafa had the fortune of meeting his teacher, Shaykh Dr. Shaykh Ahmed Saad with whom he has memorized several texts with and received Ijāzahs for each. These include Matn ibn Āshir (Māliki Fiqh), Matn Īsāl As Sālik in Usūl, Al Muqadimatul Jazariyyah (Tajwīd), Matn As-Sullam in logic, and Matn Ashal Al Masālik in Māliki Fiqh (currently ongoing), as well as Al Mu’allaqātul Asharah in pre-Islamic poetry (also ongoing). Furthermore, he has studied Māliki texts, such as Ibn Āshir and Risālah of ibn Abi Zaid, as well as texts in Usool al-Fiqh, Aqeedah, Arabic morphology, logic, and Tassawuf.

Ustadh Mustafa has served as an Imam in the UK at Masjid Al Noor Barking, East London Mosque, and Hounslow Muslim Centre, and has also been a visiting Imam at several other mosques. He is currently the Imam of Darul Ummah Goresbrook. He was also a TV presenter on the Alif Laam Meem Qur’ān show on Eman Channel and has appeared on various other channels and platforms.

Throughout his years of study, Ustadh Mustafa has dedicated himself to educating young adults and children, teaching subjects such as the Quran, classical Arabic, and Islamic sciences. He considers this his life mission and the legacy he intends to leave behind.

Ustādha Saffiya Gaffar:

Ustādha Saffiya graduated from Cambridge Muslim College (CMC) with a bachelors degree in Islamic Studies in 2023. She began her journey of sacred knowledge at the Micro Madrasa in Liverpool in 2018. Thereafter, she studied a year of Arabic at the Centre for Language and Culture in Marrakech before starting her bachelors at CMC. As part of her degree, she studied Tafsir, Hadith, Hanafi Fiqh, Usul al-Fiqh (Islamic legal theory), Kalam (scholastic theology), Arabic, Mantiq (classical logic) and Islamic History, alongside contextual subjects including Religion in Modern Society, World Religions and Understanding Science.

Alongside her degree, Ustadha Saffiya studied Maliki Fiqh under Ustadha Mona el-Zenkali, Ustadh Amine Melaine and, predominantly, Dr. Shaykh Ahmed Saad.

She is currently continuing her Islamic Studies with Shaykh Ahmed Saad, with a particular focus on Arabic and Maliki Fiqh.

She has taught Maliki Fiqh, Arabic, Tajwid, Inshaad and Duff at various institutes including Cambridge Muslim College, Al-Erth al-Nabawi Academy, Noon Arabic, Dar al-Zahra Liverpool and al-Muhsinaat.

She is also involved with numerous community initiatives and institutes such as Dar al-Zahra Liverpool, Ihsan Institute and Al-Muhsinaat.

In her spare time, ustādha Saffiya loves to sing, play duff, swim and practice her archery.

Ustādh Yusha Jung:

Ustādh Yusha began his studies at 17 years old, with the memorisation of the Holy Qur'an and Tajweed at the Imam Shatibi institute in West London. He then began studying under Shaykh Ahmed Saad continuing his Qur'anic studies. 

These include studying Maliki Fiqh, including canonical books such as Ibn Ashir, the Risaalah of Ibn Abi Zaid and Tadrib Al-Salik. This is in addition to studying texts in Usool al-Fiqh, Aqeedah, Arabic Morphology, and Logic. Following a traditional approach to knowledge under the guidance of Shaykh Ahmed, Ustadh Yusha has had the opportunity to commit many key texts to memory, and continues with this pursuit into the present day. 

In 2021, Ustadh Yusha travelled to Jordan to study classical and modern Arabic at Qasid Institute as part of his bachelor's degree course at Soas in Arabic and English Literature, which he graduated from with first-class honours. 

In the Ramadan of 2023, he travelled to Ireland, to lead taraweeh prayers, and to work alongside Shaykh Abdallah Hijazi, an imam from Jaami' al-Azhar, helping to translate his reminders and khutbahs into English for the local community.

Ustadh Yusha has also been teaching since a young age the recitation of Qur'an, Tajweed, and Aqeedah.