Haji Wan Ibrahim was born in 1894 at Bendang Daya, Patani, in Thailand. He was the younger brother to Pak Da Ali Patani the famous Meccan religious teacher. As his elder brother was called "Pak Da," it was natural for everyone to call him "Pak Cu Him". He received his early religious education from his father who later sent him to Bermin, Patani, to further his education.

In 1912 Haji Wan Ibrahim went to Mecca to study under the tutelage of his uncle, Pak Chik Wan Daud. His fluency in Arabic was the result of having stayed in Mecca ever since he was a child. One of his special talents was the ability to write poems in Arabic, as could be seen in a book called Qawaid Al-Fiqhiah, which he had composed in a poetic manner and published in his own handwriting. Pak Cu Him's ability was duly recognized and he was given the authority to teach in the Haram Mosque for a number of years. Pak Cu Him stayed in Mecca for twelve years and during those years he managed to see many famous religious teachers, such as Shaibul Fazilah Sheikh Yahya Patani, Shahibul Fazilah Tok Ramli, Shaibul Fazilah Sheikh Muhammad Ali Maliki nad Sahibul Fazilah Sheikh Muhammad Mukhtar Al-Jawi.

Upon his return to his homeland, he took over the Pondok School of Gajah Mati. It belonged to his father-in-law, Haji Ismail Che Dol, whose daughter, Hajah Zainab, he married in 1926.

On November 14, 1931, the Sheikhul Islam of Kedah, Haji Wan Sulaiman bin Wan Sidek issued a letter, authorizing Pak Cu Him to teach religion in the State of Kedah Darul Aman. Under his leadership the Pondok Religious School of Gajah Mati became famous and attracted students from Jambi, Mendiling, Patani, Kelantan, Negeri Sembilan, Johore, Perak , as well as local students from all over Kedah. At the height of its fame, Pak Cu Him's pondok had a student population of about 500.

Pak Cu Him continued the teaching method dictated by Tok Ayah Gajah Mati, that is teaching Arabic with emphasis to grammar, inflection of words, dialect, poems and logic. Religious subjects such as Fiqah, Tauhid, Koran and Hadis were also taught. Pak Cu Him loved to teach Arabic poems such as the poems of Ibnu 'Uqail and always discussed Arab poetry while teaching or just talking with friends. He was most interested in Tahid and Usuluddin and when these subjects were taught, they became most interesting as he would interspersed his teaching with verses from related Arabic poems. Books on Arabic grammar he loved to use were those written by Sheikh Jamaludin Ibni Hisham, such as Syarah al-Qutur and Syarah al-Syuzur, while his favourite aid for the teaching of Fiqah were the texts written by Sheikh Zakaria al-Ansari, Al-Tahriri and Fathul-Wahhab.

As for the community, Pak Cu Him always stresses unity. He had seen how Arab communities in the Middle East were beset by strife and disorder because they were disunited and refused to agree on anything. He had also seen how the Malay people of Patani were divided by the government of Thailand. It was with unity in mind that the Penghulu of Padang Pusing and the Imams and Headmen of villages in the area of Pondok Gajah Mati went to a meeting with Haji Ismail Che Dol, Haji Awang (father of Haji Ahmad Rabad), Haji Ahmad Rabad and Pak Cu Him wrote rules for the promotion of unity within the mukim. The agreement called Jamiatul Ittihadiyah (Assembly for Unity) was signed on August 17, 1926.

Community members and 'pondok' students were told that those who failed to cooperate with Penghulus, Imams, religious teachers and headmen would be punished. Among the punishments were,

• No one would be allowed to visit the offender if he or she were to be struck with illness.
  
• His feasts would be boycotted.
  
• No one would attend to his or her funeral except for the two persons needed to bury him or her.
  
• No mudim (traditional circumcision surgeon) or midwife would attend to his or her needs.
  
• The offender would be buried in a separate burial plot.

Besides, members of the public were obliged to arrest those who broke Islamic Laws as well as Malay customs and to hand them over to the authorities to be punished according to the laws of the State. To strengthen correct religious practice, the signatories would forbid their subordinates in the mukim of Padang Pusing, to hold any feast on Friday except on the occasion the Prophet's birthday. It was also considered an offence to hold any kind of feasts on any three days after Id-il Adha celebration or from 2 Shawal to 7 Shawal.

Pak Cu Him wrote the "Fathul Jalil Wa Ghalil", which was completed on June 30, 1966. In it he wrote 51 couplets of Arabic poetry and made a careful analysis of each couplet in Malay. The book discussed among other things the impossible character to be found in Allah i.e. of being new or 'qadim'. Besides his published work, he also produced a number of notes written in Malay and Arabic on religious 'fatwas' and sermons, which had remained unpublished. He also had, in his possession, a number of Arabic poems as well as written notes explaining Arabic grammar, which he had carefully and neatly arranged.

Pak Cu Him or Haji Wan Ibrahim bin Haji Wan Abd. Kadir died on Shawal 11, 1388 Hijra or January 11, 1968, at the age of 75. He was buried at the old mosque cemetery of Kampung Gajah Mati, near the grave of Tok Ayah Haji Ismail Che Dol.