"The fools among the people will say, 'What has turned them away from the qiblah they had been following?' Say, 'To God belong the East and the West. He guides whomsoever He will unto a straight path.'"
Quran 2:142
Here is another verse drawn from al-Baqarah, "The Cow," the second surah. It's not surprising that I've drawn so many verses from al-Baqarah, not simply because it's by far the longest surah but it is also a foundational one in so many ways. In this specific instance the decision to switch the qiblah, the direction of prayer, from Jerusalem to Mecca is discussed. As you know, at the front (almost universally) of every mosque you can find the mihrab, which indicates the direction of prayer; or, to put it another way, the mihrab points out the qiblah. Nasr tells us:
"The Prophet prayed toward Jerusalem for a certain number of months after arriving in Madinah after the hijrah (the emigration from Makkah); in the reports the number of months varies between thirteen and twenty, but most mention six or seventeen." (p. 63)
Now, how does one figure out which way to face? Again, from Nasr:
"Determining the qiblah in locales outside of Makkah has been and continues to be a subject of lively debate. Several different methods have been employed throughout the centuries wherever Musolims have lived and traveled. One early method was to stand as though one were facing a wall of the Ka'bah that was extended far enough horizontally; in this system the Islamic worlds was divided into geographic sectors, each praying towards a different wall of the Ka'bah. Since of the corners of Ka'bah are oriented toward the cardinal directions and its sides face the summer sunrise and CAnopus (the souther pole star frequently used for navigation), the direction of prayer was often determined by these celestial markers.
Later, increasingly sophisticated mathematical methods were developed and continue to be used to calculate the qiblah, among them the great circle, which is the shortest surface line between Makkah and any spot on earth. In North America, for example, the great circle to Makkah begins in a northeasrly direction, constantly changing compass bearing toward the southeast until it reach Makkah. The older method for calculating the qiblah direction for North America would give a southeasterly bearing, since North Amjerca would be part of the sector of the world corresponding to the Ka'bah wall that is perpendicular to that direction." (p. 63)
So, with all of our modern technology can we assume that we can universally agree exactly which way to face? Well, sort of. My Muslim Pro app (which I've discussed before) has a qiblah compass on it, although it never seems to point to the direction wherein I think Mecca is (again, this must be because it uses one of the methods above which I can't quite sort out). One of the questions that Muslims will sometimes ask is, "In which direction would a Muslim astronaut face during prayer?" In a famous hadith the Prophet once said, "Whatever is between the east and the west is a qiblah," which does give us much greater flexibility in lining up. To me this hadith is very much a metaphor for the entire experience of being a Muslim; God clearly wanted all of this to be easier than we've made it.
Quran 2:142
Here is another verse drawn from al-Baqarah, "The Cow," the second surah. It's not surprising that I've drawn so many verses from al-Baqarah, not simply because it's by far the longest surah but it is also a foundational one in so many ways. In this specific instance the decision to switch the qiblah, the direction of prayer, from Jerusalem to Mecca is discussed. As you know, at the front (almost universally) of every mosque you can find the mihrab, which indicates the direction of prayer; or, to put it another way, the mihrab points out the qiblah. Nasr tells us:
"The Prophet prayed toward Jerusalem for a certain number of months after arriving in Madinah after the hijrah (the emigration from Makkah); in the reports the number of months varies between thirteen and twenty, but most mention six or seventeen." (p. 63)
Now, how does one figure out which way to face? Again, from Nasr:
"Determining the qiblah in locales outside of Makkah has been and continues to be a subject of lively debate. Several different methods have been employed throughout the centuries wherever Musolims have lived and traveled. One early method was to stand as though one were facing a wall of the Ka'bah that was extended far enough horizontally; in this system the Islamic worlds was divided into geographic sectors, each praying towards a different wall of the Ka'bah. Since of the corners of Ka'bah are oriented toward the cardinal directions and its sides face the summer sunrise and CAnopus (the souther pole star frequently used for navigation), the direction of prayer was often determined by these celestial markers.
Later, increasingly sophisticated mathematical methods were developed and continue to be used to calculate the qiblah, among them the great circle, which is the shortest surface line between Makkah and any spot on earth. In North America, for example, the great circle to Makkah begins in a northeasrly direction, constantly changing compass bearing toward the southeast until it reach Makkah. The older method for calculating the qiblah direction for North America would give a southeasterly bearing, since North Amjerca would be part of the sector of the world corresponding to the Ka'bah wall that is perpendicular to that direction." (p. 63)
So, with all of our modern technology can we assume that we can universally agree exactly which way to face? Well, sort of. My Muslim Pro app (which I've discussed before) has a qiblah compass on it, although it never seems to point to the direction wherein I think Mecca is (again, this must be because it uses one of the methods above which I can't quite sort out). One of the questions that Muslims will sometimes ask is, "In which direction would a Muslim astronaut face during prayer?" In a famous hadith the Prophet once said, "Whatever is between the east and the west is a qiblah," which does give us much greater flexibility in lining up. To me this hadith is very much a metaphor for the entire experience of being a Muslim; God clearly wanted all of this to be easier than we've made it.
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