Sheikh Usama Abdul Ghani

Sheikh Usama Abdul Ghani was born in Washington DC to Sunni parents in 1973. His father (may Allah have mercy on his soul) was a practicing medical doctor and his mother is a housewife. Both his parents had converted to Islam as youths. They moved from the States to the Caribbean when Sheikh Usama was a young boy. However he travelled back and forth to the States many times during his early years. He grew up in the USVI on a small Island called St. Croix. Sheikh was around 14 when his family converted to Shiaism. After graduating from high school he moved back to the States and lived in Upstate New York for a while where there was a small Howza Ilmiya. As a convert this was a great opportunity for him to learn about the Shia faith. After a few years there, he went to Iran and shortly after started his Islamic education in the Islamic Seminary in Iran.

His journey to Iran started when it was suggested by the principal of the school (Sheikh Faezi) that some of the students should go to Iran for 4 months and then return to America to propagate the religion. The plan was to see the country, take some classes and then return and serve Islam. Sheikh’s father paid for his tickets to Iran and Sheikh Usama was happy to visit a Shia country. Once the group arrived in Iran it was a turning point in the lives of several of the students. It was the month of Muharram when they arrived and Sheikh says, “Muharram is something else in Iran. For those brothers and sisters who have not seen it, it is some thing to see and feel rather than be described.” They were honored to meet some of the greatest Ulema of our time, some of whom have sadly passed away now and other Ulema are still present in Iran, by the grace of Allah. Sheikh made his Ziyarat to the Infallible Imam in Mashad for the first time in his life. May Allah give all of us the opportunity to go again and again to visit the Shrine of our Imam A.S. Although some of the brothers and sisters returned back to the States, a number of them entered the Islamic Seminary of Qum.

It was then that one of Sheikhs’ teachers in Iran convinced him by his character that the Howza was the way to go if Sheikh Usama wanted to serve our beloved religion. This teacher taught a number of the students Persian for several months and it was while being in his classes that Sheikh decided to become a scholar by profession.

That was a long time ago, he was around 21 then after that he entered the Howza and began his studies. Since then, he has been travelling back and forth to the States. He also took a year off from his studies on one of those trips to the States. Sheikh has also been blessed to travel to many other parts of the Muslim world as well as a few other countries. He has been going regularly for Tabligh for around 7 years now. He was also fortunate enough to have the opportunity to work with the youths who visit the Islamic Republic over the summer months. He did a brief assignment in England as a resident Alim in Woking for a couple of months. Currently he is studying in Madrasa Aali Imam Khomeni and working on getting the Howza
equivalent to the masters in the field of Quranic sciences and Hadeeth.