Haji Wan Muhammad Idris bin Wan Jamal or better known as Tok Sheikh Jarum, was born in 1266 Hijra or 1849 A.D. at Bendang Village, in the District of Jaha, Yala province, Patani, in Thailand.

The word 'jarum' (needle) at the end of his nickname was said to originate during an occasion when the King of Patani called for a meeting of a number of ulamas in his palace to discuss 'stoning' as an Islamic sentence for certain crimes. When the king asked Haji Wan Muhammad Idris, who was the youngest ulama in the congregation, for his opinion, he did so in an intellectual and concise manner. This, to the king demonstrated the sharpness of the young ulama's mind likening it to the sharp point of a needle and nicknamed him 'Tok Sheikh Jarum'.

However, a second source, that of his own grandson, claimed that Haji Muhammad Idris's family originated from the 'Al-Jarami' tribe in Hadhramaut, Arabia. In a note, the source wrote, "Sheikh Idris or Sheikh Jarum bin Jamal was the famous Wan Idris bin Wan Abdul Jamal bin Abdul Latif bin Sheikh Muhammad Shamsudin bin Wan Fakeh bin Muhammad Yasisin bin Ibrahim Al-Hadharamaut bin Ibar Hadharamaut Al-Jarmi". One of Tok Sheikh Jarum's son held on to the tribal name and called himself Haji Abdul Rahman Al-Jarum.

Tok Sheikh Jarum began his religious education from his teacher and foster father, Haji Minai, who was also known as Tuan Minai or Tok Sheikh Minai, the author of two famous books; Kashfal-Litham and Aqidat Al-Najin. He brought Tok Sheikh Jarum to Mecca to perform the Hajj. Tok Sheikh Jarum however, did not return with Haji Minai, opting instead to stay back and further his studies in Arabic, Usuluddin, Tafsir and Fiqah.

Upon his return from Mecca, Tok Sheikh Jarum taught for a few years in Haji Minai's pondok (hut) religious school in Bendang Dalam, Patani. In 1895, he went to Mecca for the second time and this time he brought along his three wives and two of his students, who were from Kedah, Haji Mohammad Salleh Haji Idris and Haji Muhammad Taib. He did not stay long in Mecca as he had aspired to return and open his own pondok religious school.

Tok Sheikh Jarum and his wives left Mecca in the earlier months of 1900 intending to make a short stop in Kedah on his way home. In Kedah, he stayed in the house of one of his pupils, Haji Awang, at the pondok school of Kubang Siam. The news of his arrival as well as his fame, reached the ears of the Sultan of Kedah, Sultan Abd. Hamid Halim Shah, through Sheikh Ahmad Daim, the Chief Kadi of Kedah during that period. The Sultan was reported to have asked Tok Sheikh Jarum to remain in Kedah and help spread the teachings of Islam in the state as well as to act as the Palace Religious Teacher. Tok Sheikh Jarum acceded to the Sultan's request as it was in agreement with his own aspiration.

Tok Sheikh Jarum was given a house in Alor Setar but the hustle and bustle of the city did not suit him and he requested to move to another location, which would enable him to open his own pondok school. His request was granted and he asked to be given an area in Derga. There he would build the many huts and buildings necessary for his school with the help of kampong folks from Kanchut, Alor Setar.

Within a few years the number of his students grew and the number of his went up to two hundred. Because of this rapid growth, Tok Sheikh Jarum divided the huts into two sections: the outer and the inner huts. Besides teaching the students in his pondok school, he also went to the palace to teach religion to the sultan's children. A special horse carriage would be dispatched to take him to the palace as well as for his return trip.

The subjects taught by Tok Sheikh Jarum in his pondok school includes Usuluddin, Tafsir, Fiqah and Arabic. Many of his students became well-known ulamas and Imams and some followed his footsteps by opening their own pondok schools.

Tok Sheikh Jarum was one of the Ulamas to have sat in the Council of Twelve Ulamas which had its center at the Zahir Mosque, Alor Setar and it was chaired by the Sheikh-Ul Islam, Haji Wan Sulaiman bin Wan Sidek. The met every Friday night to discuss religious issues and to release necessary rulings or fatwas.

Besides his religious efforts, Tok Sheikh Jaarum also acted as a medicine man often asked to the sick. He was also an expert at deciding the potentials or luck of a cockerel or bird. Derga at that time happened to be a famous center for cock-fighting in Alor Setar.

Tok Sheikh Jarum was considered to be an Ulama who acted firmly and was always consistent in his opinion. He was acting in character when he decided to move to Kedah and build his pondoks as he was against the policy of the Thai authorities, which had forced him to construct a canal in his own village.

In 1909, ten years after its construction, the pondoks of Tok Sheikh Jarum was destroyed in a fire. The source of the fire, it was said was the open fire grill used by its inhabitants to grill fish. Nothing could be done to stop the fire as it spread at an amazing rate. What was left after the fire, were the three wells used by its former inhabitants, and these could still be seen to this day. The water in one of the wells could still be used.

The government acted swiftly by building long houses in the area so that all the students could go on studying without much interruption. Two years later, on April 6, 1911, Tok Sheikh Jarum died at the age of 63.He was buried at the Derga Muslim cemetery. After his demise, his pondok school slowly declined.

Although Tok Sheikh Jarum was no more, his work was still being carried out by his children and grandchildren as well as some of his select former students. They were:

• His son, Haji Abd. Rahman Al-Jarumi, who became the Royal Religious Teacher during the reign of Sultan Abd. Hamid Halim Shah. He died in 1954.
• His grandson, Tuan Haji Idris bin Haji Abd. Rahman, who opened the pondok religious school at Alor Mengkudu, Kota Setar.
• Tuan Haji Hussin bin Haji Abd. Rahman, a grandson, who used to be the Imam of Zahir Mosque.
• His grandson, Dato' Sheikh Tajuddin bin Haji Abd. Rahman (Dato' Murshid Diraja) who was appointed to the Fatwa Council of Kedah's Islamic Religious Council and who was also the Principal of the Nahdathul Hasanah Secondary School in Melele, Jitra.
• Tuan Haji Abdul Ghani bin Haji Mohd. Noor, a grandson, who was a hafiz (a person who memorizes the Koran). He died in 1987 in Mecca.
• Tuan Haji Nawawi bin Haji Ahmad, a grandson, who was an Inspector of Religious Schools, a renown Qari (a person who could recite the Koran correctly and melodiously), a composer of nashid (religious songs) and an influential Muslim missionary. He laid the foundation of many religious schools including the Tarbiatul Banat in Seberang Perak Alor Setar, which he did with the help of Ustaz Haji Saad bin Said, in 1948. In 1958, the school was moved to Jalan Pegawai, Alor Setar, and renamed Attrabiatul-Islamiah School. Haji Nawawi died on April 10, 1985.
• Haji Abd. Hamid bin Abd. Rahman, a grandson, who is a retired teacher of Mahmud College and who is now the Imam of Al-Irfan mosque in Derga.
• Sheikh Abdul Razak bin Haji Yusoff, a grandson and a graduate of the Al-Azhar University of Cairo. He is now the Education Officer of Religious Schools in Kedah's Islamic Religious Department.
• Sheikh Fadzil bin Mohd. Noor, a great-grandson, who was also a graduate of the University of Al-Azhar, Cairo, Egypt. He was a lecturer in the Malaysian University of Technology, Kuala Lumpur. He was the President of the Pan-Malayan Islamic Party.
• Ustaz Muhamad Amin Al-Jarumi, a great-grandson who is now a lecturer in MARA Institute of Technology in Kuala Lumpur.

Besides the names mentioned above, there was a great-grandson of his by the name of Haji Abdullah bin Haji Idris or better known as Haji Abdullah Sara who had opened the largest pondok school in Kampung Sarah, Patani, in Thailand. It still uses the traditional system of teaching and learning.