Moutasem al-Hameedy’s Biography

Moutasem Al-Hameedi is an Imam at Call to Islam Islamic Center, Luton, UK. The shaykh lectures at British universities and schools on Islam and hosts TV shows, and lecture series on Huda TV.

Academically, he has studied under the prominent students of Shaykh al-Albaani.

He also studied Hadeeth and Usool al-Fiqh with Shaykh Mashhoor Hasan. Fiqh, and Manners with Shaykh Hussain al-Awaaysha. Arabic grammar and morphology under Shaykh Ayman as-Saadiq. Tafseer and Aqeedah with Dr. Malik Sha’ban.

More details about Moutasem Al Hameedy

I am passionate about the life of the heart. I am intrigued by the inner workings of the spiritual dimension and how it influences every other area of our life. I have a fascination in how we can authentically relate to Allah and experience His presence firsthand rather than in mere words and thoughts.

I have invested much of my life trying to understand, for myself first and then to share with others, how being a true devout Muslim translates in our modern times.

I grew up with a great deal of Islamic influence in my life but what I was taught did not resonate with me. It felt more like a chore and practiced like lip service. It lacked practicality and relevance to my sense of life. It mostly felt as a departure from myself and from life. However, something in me knew there was a better way of engaging with Allah.

I believe I was inspired to address this chasm and fill this void. I set out on a quest for a richer experience of my faith. I always felt there was more meaning to the external actions and apparent demonstrations. When I started, I had no supervision or mentorship. Alhamdulillah I had a good grounding in Islamic education, and this gave me the raw material and guidelines to pursue my goals on proper grounds.

I have always been fascinated by the works of Ibn al-Qayyim and later on by the works of his own teacher Shaik-ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah. I have also had occasional immersions in the tremendous works of Imam al-Ghazali.

I didn’t just pursue to learn what was written by these giants, but I practiced, observed, and experienced with cautious openness. This helped me delve into a personal realization of the concepts and to experience them firsthand. This was far richer and more dynamic than just learning them intellectually.

My Story with Rashidoon:

At the age of thirteen I read a book by Muhammad al-Ghazali titled “Renew Your Life”. I knew as I was reading it that this was what I wanted to do with my life. The book was a brilliant Islamic commentary on Dale Carnegie’s masterpiece ‘Stop Worrying and Start Living.’ It was filled with what can be called practical spirituality. I could see how Islam worked in real life as opposed to my former education which was restricted to theory.

I have been working and waiting for about thirty years for this to become a reality. Many times, I started the project thinking I was ready. But it turned out I was not, and my projects fell apart. I ended up amassing huge amounts of reflections, formulations, principles, and variant content but they lacked an overall unifying framework that could put the pieces in order. In 2015 my work started to take shape and definition; a consistent framework was born.

Alhamdulillah by 2020 I managed to team up with my good friend Adnan Akiel from Vancouver and we offered our first course to the public. Allah blessed us with success and enabled us to offer another comprehensive course on the difficult topic of Qadar using the Rashidoon framework which offered an outstanding capacity for making sense of complex topics and showing their relevance to everyday living.

Rashidoon seeks to revive the heart, to revamp the spirit, and uncover the practical nature of the Islamic lifestyle. It takes you beyond the mere external motions of practice to a full spectrum of engagement with the grander truths of life. From that place life is experienced more fully and the benefits are beyond expectation. Please see the Rashidoon portfolio for more details.

I have chosen to spend whatever left of my time on earth to address this void that I see has limited how Muslims relate to Islam. Islam can be engaged with at a either a profound or superficial levels. Without the right tools and framework, the former remains a far-fetched goal. Rashidoon is a serious attempt to provide this framework and accompanying tools. It is designed to help Muslims experience a fuller spectrum of faith, especially the deeper levels.

In Rashidoon we address such beautiful aspects of Islam in a unique and practical approach that serves to deepen the understanding and enable the action.

Personal Traits:

I am an introverted person who acquired some of the skills of an extrovert. Among my core values are truth and honesty, respect and justice, depth and originality.

I like to focus on one thing in my work and give it my all. I find that I don’t function well when I have to do multiple things. Outside my field of interest, I have little attention to details.

I am most productive when I learn and develop ideas alone. I am inspired by nature and love walking as my main mode of exercise. Although I read quite a bit, I am not a bookworm. A book takes me time to read as I like to translate its ideas to my way of thinking and I see how they fit in my map of the world.

I am in love with teaching and developing quality content. I experience flow when I develop ideas and dig into the deeper aspects of ideas and concepts. Ideas interest me as much as they manage to explain the human condition and how much utility they offer.

Formal Education:

Bachelors in English and translation

Masters in Leading innovation and change.

Professional training: 

I hold a certificate in training from the American Institute for Professional Studies.

Work Experience:

I worked as an Imam and Khateeb in Jordan, UK, and Canada. Masjids I worked at include:

Ibn Taymiyyah Masjid (Brixton Mosque) in London UK.

Masjid Al-Gurabaa’ in Luton UK.

Abu Huraira Centre in Toronto, Canada.

Islamic Education:

I had an extensive learning experience in my childhood in Arabic language studies and Islamic education.

At the age of twenty-one, I started learning from many of the students of Sheikh Al-Albani and graduated from a few of the courses held at Al-Albani centre with distinction.

Among my most influential teachers are:

Sheikh Mashhoor Hassan

Sheikh Ali Al-Halabi

I also studied a great deal of the works of Sheikh Ibn Uthaymeen.