ABOUT

SHAYKH MAHDI LOCK

 Shaykh Mahdi Lock is a respected scholar, translator, and educator with nearly two decades of dedicated experience teaching the Arabic language and the Shafi’i school of Islamic jurisprudence. As Director of Arkview Arabic and Head of Arkview Shafi’i Fiqh, he combines rigorous academic training with deep traditional Islamic scholarship, guiding students toward both mastery and spiritual connection.

Scholarly Training and Traditional Study

Shaykh Mahdi holds a BA in Arabic and History from the University of Leeds and an MA in Arabic Linguistics from King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah. He also earned a professional Diploma in Translation and is a Member (MCIL) of the Chartered Institute of Linguists in London.

His MA thesis, written in Arabic, examined the translation of Qur’anic verses on marriage rulings and was published in the Jordanian Journal for Arabic Language and Literature.

Alongside this, he has pursued years of classical Islamic study in England, North Africa, and the Middle East — learning theology, fiqh, and spirituality from esteemed teachers. This dual grounding in academic precision and traditional scholarship shapes his clear, thoughtful, and authentic teaching style.

A Distinguished Translator Serving the Ummah

Shaykh Mahdi is internationally recognised for translating more than twenty major Islamic works — classical and contemporary — into English. His translations open the door for English-speaking Muslims to access the deep intellectual and spiritual heritage of Islam with clarity and faithfulness to the original texts. His work includes:

• Kitāb al-Ḥalāl wa al-Ḥarām — Imām Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī
• Kitāb al-Waqf from al-Mughnī al-Muḥtāj — al-Khaṭīb al-Shirbīnī
• The Introduction to al-Majmūʿ — Imām Yaḥyā al-Nawawī
• Sharḥ al-Ṣudūr — Imām Jalāl al-Dīn al-Suyūṭī
• Almost 2000 pages of the reflections (Khawāṭir) of Imām Muḥammad Mutawallī al-Shaʿrāwī
• La Dhukūriyyah fī al-Fiqh — Imām Muḥammad at-Tāwīl
• Manhaj al-Ḥaḍārah al-Insāniyyah fī al-Qurʾān — Imām Muḥammad Saʿīd Ramaḍān al-Būṭī

For Nawa Books, he has translated:

• Al-Wāfī: A Thorough Commentary on the Forty Nawawiyyah — Imāms Muṣṭafā al-Bughā & Muḥyī ad-Dīn Mistū
• Titles from the Pinnacle Papers series by Imām Muḥammad Saʿīd Ramaḍān al-Būṭī, including:
  Man and Allah’s Justice on Earth, Inward Sin, A Unique Pedagogical Approach in the Qurʾān, To Every Young Woman Who Believes in Allah, and Islam and the Problems of the Youth
• Depression and Anxiety: The Causes and Treatment According to the Qur’an
• The Rights of the Husband and Wife — Shaykh ʿAbdul Hādī al-Kharsah
• Remembrances & Etiquettes of the Prophet ﷺ
• The Etiquette of Dialogue in Allah’s Book, with a treatise on Preserving the Arabic Language and Its Literature, by Imām Muḥammad Saʿīd Ramaḍān al-Būṭī with facing Arabic and English text

He has also translated Volume 1 of al-Fiqh al-Manhajī ʿalā Madhhab al-Imām ash-Shāfiʿī by Imāms Muṣṭafā al-Bughā, ʿAlī ash-Sharbajī, and Muṣṭafā al-Khin — and continues the translation project with the intention, if Allah so wills, of completing all eight volumes.

Uniquely, he teaches al-Fiqh al-Manhajī exclusively in the Arkview Advanced Shafi’i Fiqh programme while simultaneously translating it — allowing students to experience the living transmission of the madhhab directly through the source text.

A Lifetime of Teaching

Shaykh Mahdi has taught Arabic and English, and other subjects, at every level of education. He previously served as Subject Coordinator for Arabic at Nottingham Trent University (UK) and taught English at university level in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, for nine years, including a role as English Coordinator.

Today, through Arkview.org, he delivers structured Arabic programmes from beginner to advanced, including direct study of classical works such as al-Tuḥfah al-Saniyyah. Through Arkview Shafi’i Fiqh and private instruction, he teaches Islamic law in a way that is clear, systematic, and spiritually rooted.

Teaching Philosophy

Shaykh Mahdi views learning Arabic, and fiqh, as a transformative spiritual journey. His structured, spiritually enriching Arabic curriculum personalized approach make the language accessible, inspiring students to connect deeply with the Arabic language, with the Qur’an, with the Sunnah, and the works of the great scholars, ultimately living a life of not only learning and fluency, but pleasing Allah and drawing nearer to Him.

Stay Connected

You can benefit from his translations and reflections via his blog, YouTube channel @TheForeword, and his educational posts on Instagram and Telegram.

Shaykh Mahdi Lock continues to teach, translate, and serve students worldwide through Arkview.org — seeking the pleasure of Allah in all his work.

And with Allah alone is every success.