Hamza Yusuf Hanson: An imam for Muslim ummah

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf Hanson: An imam for Muslim ummah

Some people born to be a scholar, to be a philanthropist and to clear away the misconceptions of humanity. Shaykh Hamza Yusuf is not exception to this. Now I’ll focus on the life of Shaykh Hamza Yusuf .
Imam Shaykh Hamza Yusuf (Changed from Mark Hanson) a  converted muslim, was born on 1960 in Walla Walla, Washington and brought  up in Northern California in a Greek Orthodox family. His family, from both sides, is Americans with a long history of residing in America. They’ve been in the US for generations, and can be traced back to Scottish, Greek, and Northern European blood. His ancestral origins from Minnesota.He became Muslim in 1977 in Santa Barbara, California when he was only 17 and set off (In 1979) to study Arabic, Islamic jurisprudence, philosophy, and spiritual psychology with masters in the Muslim world and studied for ten years in the U. A. E., Saudi Arabia, as well as North and West Africa. He received teaching on Quranic studies, Shariah, the science of usool al Fiqh and Tasawwuf.
After ten-years of studies abroad, he returned to the United States and completed degrees in Health care (nursing) at Imperial Valley College and religious studies at San Jose State University.
In the early 1990′s he began to teach classes in the San Francisco Bay Area and in 1996 he established Zaytuna Institute which has achieved an international reputation for presenting a classical picture of Islam in the West and which is dedicated to the revival of traditional study methods and the sciences of Islam. Two years later the institute acquired a property in Hayward, California, where it is now based.
Institute is committed to inspiring a traditional understanding and study of the core Islamic sciences. In addition to weekly classes, week-long and month-long educational programs, and annual conferences that addresses contemporary issues affecting the American people, Zaytuna Institute has published four small books and several major audio-tape sets of Shaykh Hamza’s classes.
His classes on the life of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) produced as a 24-audio tape set, has sold well thousands of copies world-wide. Imam Hamza is the Imam of the Santa Clara Masjed in the Bay Area. He is a writer, a lecturer, and a teacher of Arabic & Islamic studies. He lectured at Harvard, Stanford, Brigham Young, Ohio State, and San Jose State University as well as University of California-Davis.Shaykh Hamza travels frequently to major North American and European cities to teach and lecture to both Muslims and non-Muslim audiences.
After his conversion to islam, he has continuously trying to explore the true and pure islamic views to the people of the world.
He met with U.S president George W Bush aftewr the september 11 attacks, 2001 and Arab league and global leaders at the world economic Forum. He denounced terrorism while promoting cooperation and education.
Some of his books are: The State We Are In: Identity, Terror, and the Law of Jihad, Educating your Child in Modern Times, Agenda To Change Our Condition (Co-authored with Imam Zaid Shakir)  and some books translated with additions are; Purification of the Heart: Signs, Symptoms and Cures of the Spiritual Diseases of the Heart, Content of Character, The Creed of Imam al-Tahawi, Submission Faith and beauty in the religion of islam Books which include his foreword or note are Instruction of the Student: The Method of Learning, The Prophetic Invocations By Mostafa Al-Badawi, Some of his papers and journals are, Zaytuna Seasonal Journal, Caesarean Moon Births, Climbing Mount Purgatorio. Some of his articles are: Another Mother of the Believers, GUARDIAN: Face to Faith, Holocaust Denial Undermines Islam, A tree knelt in praise, Love even those who revile you, Islam has progressive tradition too and Spring’s gift.
He presently resides in Northern california with his wife Liliana Hanson and five childeren. His wife received a general degree in Business from imperial valley college in southern california.
Erudite articles, and books of imam inspired the people to know islam both in USA and in rest of the world. These writings  strengthen the believes of muslim and attract the non-muslim to embrace islam.