Prayer Direction

sushi1992

Peace everyone ,

I've been reading a few threads and I'm slightly confused in terms of my Prayer. Every time I pray, I don't face any specific direction. This was purely based on my understanding that Allah sees and knows all and the Qibla is not a physical location but I'm having doubts and don't want to be ignorantly sinning because of indirect direction of facing. I pray at home (it's shameful to say that a mosque doesn't seem comfortable for me... Even if I know it as God's place of worship I feel much prefered doing it at home). I was reading a post a few months ago from mmkhan who raised some good unanswered points.

Salaam,

I have a few simple questions. Can someone with knowledge enlighten me with your answers so that I can correct myself! Thanks.

1- Where is it mentioned in AlQuraan that we have to keep our face towards Qiblah when we are going to start our Salaat?

2- Is it really/literally possible for people around the world to keep their face towards a single mosque called AlMasjid AlHaraam?

3- As per 2144 everybody is asked to turn their faces towards AlMasjid AlHaraam, then what people are doing inside AlMasjid AlHaraam in Makkah?

4- Why is ... used in 2142 when it means "The fools among the people will say..."? It has to happen, not yet happened?

5- In 1226 ... ... the word used is qubulin, is it also derived from the word qibla? Is it talking about Yousuf's qiblah?

May Allah increase us in knowledge and guide us all to His true path pr
mmKhan

I was thinking say you have a Muslim in Columbia. How would they know where the direction you should be facing would be? And if it was say the Holy Mosque in Mecca, how would you know you were facing it? - minus a compass? (genuinely don't have one ... Oops) but if anyone can please give me some form of just a crystal clear opinion I would much appreciate it. Reading the full Quran and believing that I can face any direction (east, west) is fine but after all these years of praying and traditional muslim frowns I was just seeking for an opinion.

Thanks everyone,

Peace and blessings to you all peace

nurmuhammed

Peace everyone ,

I've been reading a few threads and I'm slightly confused in terms of my Prayer. Every time I pray, I don't face any specific direction. This was purely based on my understanding that Allah sees and knows all and the Qibla is not a physical location but I'm having doubts and don't want to be ignorantly sinning because of indirect direction of facing. I pray at home (it's shameful to say that a mosque doesn't seem comfortable for me... Even if I know it as God's place of worship I feel much prefered doing it at home). I was reading a post a few months ago from mmkhan who raised some good unanswered points.

I was thinking say you have a Muslim in Columbia. How would they know where the direction you should be facing would be? And if it was say the Holy Mosque in Mecca, how would you know you were facing it? - minus a compass? (genuinely don't have one ... Oops) but if anyone can please give me some form of just a crystal clear opinion I would much appreciate it. Reading the full Quran and believing that I can face any direction (east, west) is fine but after all these years of praying and traditional muslim frowns I was just seeking for an opinion.

Thanks everyone,

Peace and blessings to you all peace

Hi sushu1992,

check this out http//www.aididsafar.com/mental.html

perhaps this is new for you, anyway have a look on that there is some explanations for your confusion.

Bigmo

Peace everyone ,

I've been reading a few threads and I'm slightly confused in terms of my Prayer. Every time I pray, I don't face any specific direction. This was purely based on my understanding that Allah sees and knows all and the Qibla is not a physical location but I'm having doubts and don't want to be ignorantly sinning because of indirect direction of facing. I pray at home (it's shameful to say that a mosque doesn't seem comfortable for me... Even if I know it as God's place of worship I feel much prefered doing it at home). I was reading a post a few months ago from mmkhan who raised some good unanswered points.

I was thinking say you have a Muslim in Columbia. How would they know where the direction you should be facing would be? And if it was say the Holy Mosque in Mecca, how would you know you were facing it? - minus a compass? (genuinely don't have one ... Oops) but if anyone can please give me some form of just a crystal clear opinion I would much appreciate it. Reading the full Quran and believing that I can face any direction (east, west) is fine but after all these years of praying and traditional muslim frowns I was just seeking for an opinion.

Thanks everyone,

Peace and blessings to you all peace

I don't see why you think you could be sinning becaue of direction and facing of prayers. Anyways the Koran says, like the Sabbath to the Israelites, the Qibla was for a certain test at the time. Maybe it is not relevant anymore, as the Koran and even the Gospel tells us concerning the Sabbath.

justamuslim

ignorantly sinning because of indirect direction of facing. I pray at home (it's shameful to say that

why do you think you would be 'sinning'?

this focus/obsession with direction, form, number, methods..... are all rabbinical and sectarian in thinking.

sushi1992

why do you think you would be 'sinning'?

this focus/obsession with direction, form, number, methods..... are all rabbinical and sectarian in thinking.

Selam justamuslim,

The thing is most Muslims I know (and what I thought to be right as well) was to use a compass to pray towards the Qibla but where is the Qurankc evidence. I know the prophet (pbuh) was given the Masjid Al Haram to pray to define them as muslims so do we still do the same or was this directed only to him (pbuh) and his followers.

Zulf

Peace!

The mullahs love to put fear into all of us. Do this and do that... or else >
Mullahs et al love numbers, methods, manuals, motions. Mullahs represent the robotic industrialization of religion. Just like human labor was not needed much when automated robots took over the production industry.. just like that, our common sense is not much needed when automated rituals took over the expression of faith.
As far as I'm personally concerned, the truth about what masjid, haram, bayt and many other quranic concepts and words are far from clear. It will take lots of asking Allah for guidance and clearing of old fears and entrained ideas to get closer to the truth. I feel it is good to take a step backwards and feel what is actually important to us. I have problems seeing why a certain prayer direction would matter at all. How the heck does a physical qibla make me a better person or help have a positive influence on society? I also can't see the purpose with the traditional namaz style... just to mention one thing. These are all physical things. We are not physical in essence. There are many things which, when you think about them, seem to be very hollow and practically useless practices... not really making a difference or producing some benefit or constructive result in one's life, especially in relation to others. We have to keep in mind that all we do need to make sense in the social context. Even that which is personal and inner, will reflect in our interaction with society and people.

So I don't think there is any need of a compass.

peace!

Jafar

I've been reading a few threads and I'm slightly confused in terms of my Prayer. Every time I pray, I don't face any specific direction.

Good for you, face directions doesn't matter at all..
The habits of facing 'certain' direction is a habit heavily influenced by organized religion of Judaism...

This was purely based on my understanding that Allah sees and knows all and the Qibla is not a physical location but I'm having doubts and don't want to be ignorantly sinning because of indirect direction of facing. I pray at home (it's shameful to say that a mosque doesn't seem comfortable for me... Even if I know it as God's place of worship I feel much prefered doing it at home). I was reading a post a few months ago from mmkhan who raised some good unanswered points.

This has been discussed here before on another posting / topic, the word QIBLA in the Quran doesn't really mean 'a direction to face upon praying' yet it mean "Place Of Gathering" / "Rallying Point"..
There's a verse which told Moses was being ordered to build building/home in Egypt and tell the Israelites in Egypt (before the mass migration) to make the homes as QIBLA... Which clearly mean "Gathering Point" / "Rallying Point"..

I was thinking say you have a Muslim in Columbia. How would they know where the direction you should be facing would be? And if it was say the Holy Mosque in Mecca, how would you know you were facing it? - minus a compass? (genuinely don't have one ... Oops)

Even if you have 'compass' you're not actually facing it as the earth is round..

There was another great post here about 'which direction towards Mecca' if we're situated exactly at the opposite end of Mecca. (180 degree on earth hemisphere)..
The proper answer is of course.. you need to face DOWN.. as "Mecca' is right under your feet..

Salam / Peace

sushi1992

Good for you, face directions doesn't matter at all..
The habits of facing 'certain' direction is a habit heavily influenced by organized religion of Judaism...
This has been discussed here before on another posting / topic, the word QIBLA in the Quran doesn't really mean 'a direction to face upon praying' yet it mean "Place Of Gathering" / "Rallying Point"..
There's a verse which told Moses was being ordered to build building/home in Egypt and tell the Israelites in Egypt (before the mass migration) to make the homes as QIBLA... Which clearly mean "Gathering Point" / "Rallying Point"..

Even if you have 'compass' you're not actually facing it as the earth is round..

There was another great post here about 'which direction towards Mecca' if we're situated exactly at the opposite end of Mecca. (180 degree on earth hemisphere)..
The proper answer is of course.. you need to face DOWN.. as "Mecca' is right under your feet..

Salam / Peace

Selam Jafar,

See Jafar, this is exactly my logic. It's been playing on my mind that at the end of the day we are always going to be praying not AT the black box in the holy mosque in Mecca that apparently muslims pray towards. I'm just having some conflict as the person who I love dearly and will get married to was saying to me that he prays towards Mecca and would hope for me to do the same. But it's really making me terribly sad because I really love him but I just don't think it is necessary to pray towards that direction. I remember (if correctly when I read it) in Qur'an that the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had to face the Masjid Al Haram to identify himself and his followers as Muslims... so this is why the ritual of praying is done this way in the modern society. But things make me question - the prophet (pbuh) would have been in front of it and could physically see it, so he knew where it was to pray towards right? (or wrong |, please correct me if so). Isn't God everywhere and closer to use than our jugular vein? And the Qibla and Salat are believed to be very closely related... so you do Salat towards Qibla... but then Qibla to me was, as you said, a place of gathering... which then makes me think... where would that be? I pray standing or I might decide to kneel and I'm facing a door (lol a clear door leading into the garden... not just some opaque door.. not that there is anything wrong with that but just wanted to clarify).

Maybe I'm going a bit too crazy into this but 99% of muslims I know all pray towards Mecca... Mosque's have an indication of where it is.... even the non-fanatics tell me this... and I feel a bit lost... and my partner tells me this...

To be honest I simple said that if you feel at peace for us to pray in a certain direction then so be it. But to me personally, it makes no difference and no sin or transgressing is being done by praying towards a certain direction or not... but maybe i'm wrong (... It's just my gut feeling and something telling me deep inside (..

Peace Jafar peace

Jafar

Selam Jafar,

See Jafar, this is exactly my logic. It's been playing on my mind that at the end of the day we are always going to be praying not AT the black box in the holy mosque in Mecca that apparently muslims pray towards. I'm just having some conflict as the person who I love dearly and will get married to was saying to me that he prays towards Mecca and would hope for me to do the same. But it's really making me terribly sad because I really love him but I just don't think it is necessary to pray towards that direction.

Well since 'direction' doesn't matter at all..
You can always pray with him towards any direction that he choose...

And actually he might not facing Mecca at all.. although he believe he's facing Mecca..
But sometime people got angry when somebody else tell the true fact about his/her illusion..

I remember (if correctly when I read it) in Qur'an that the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had to face the Masjid Al Haram to identify himself and his followers as Muslims... so this is why the ritual of praying is done this way in the modern society. But things make me question - the prophet (pbuh) would have been in front of it and could physically see it, so he knew where it was to pray towards right? (or wrong |, please correct me if so). Isn't God everywhere and closer to use than our jugular vein? And the Qibla and Salat are believed to be very closely related... so you do Salat towards Qibla... but then Qibla to me was, as you said, a place of gathering... which then makes me think... where would that be? I pray standing or I might decide to kneel and I'm facing a door (lol a clear door leading into the garden... not just some opaque door.. not that there is anything wrong with that but just wanted to clarify).

Qibla is place of gathering.. and there are thousands or millions of Qibla...
Depending on context and needs..

To be honest I simple said that if you feel at peace for us to pray in a certain direction then so be it. But to me personally, it makes no difference and no sin or transgressing is being done by praying towards a certain direction or not... but maybe i'm wrong (... It's just my gut feeling and something telling me deep inside (..

Yup.. feel free to face any direction, on praying..
Praying is for you and not you for praying..
It's your heart and deeds that count....

Salam / Peace

sushi1992

Well since 'direction' doesn't matter at all..
You can always pray with him towards any direction that he choose...

And actually he might not facing Mecca at all.. although he believe he's facing Mecca..
But sometime people got angry when somebody else tell the true fact about his/her illusion..

Qibla is place of gathering.. and there are thousands or millions of Qibla...
Depending on context and needs..

Yup.. feel free to face any direction, on praying..
Praying is for you and not you for praying..
It's your heart and deeds that count....

Salam / Peace

Selam Jafar ,

Once again, we are in complete agreement. I never was brought up as a traditional muslim. My dad was a "sunni" muslim, but he rejected mosque school, and rejected his family's religious ways and leads his own life and understanding but obviously still believes in the Creator and also believes that the Qur'an minus the absurd translations is the way of life. My mother is a passionate Catholic who believes that Jesus is the son of God and prays to him (or used to until I kinda said mummm..... why not pray directly to God (A) lol xD) which she now does not that I wanted her to feel guilty or anything but just a straighter path as I'm sure you will agree . My partner is also a Sunni muslim, but was brought up in a way that most muslims have not been brought up in. His parents didn't believe in mosque school and he is very moderate, but of course, he follows what his parents tell him which I don't find too far off but of course... traditions do fall in. I feel quite lucky not to have been brought up as a traditional muslim and have led my life like a decent God loving person who tries to be a good humble peaceful person and not purposefully do wrong.

In my opinion, I feel that the Qur'an is all you need - it is the complete book, and these excess rituals are what drives people away into different sects... as God implies in 30.31-32... but then hey... thats the World, and we knew it would happen anyway. The best thing we can do is avoid these rituals and ways of separating humanity .

Peace Jafar peace

Zulf

Peace Sushi,

Just wanted to share...
I always pray to Allah to show me the truth and let me be able to handle it.

I think this is such a wonderful prayer for advancement. We should all strive for advancement, better understanding, and to be better people in the "eyes" of Allah. The wonderful and sometimes scary thing is that you never know what this sort of prayer can lead you too. But as long as you let Allah lead you, you are safe and up for some wonderful new insights. Allah always opens new doors for us to things we didn't see/understand before. We just have to desire it and ask for it. We all need to realize that we are very limited in our understanding. We should ask Allah to let us work ourselves out of our personal, mental fog... into a more and more bright clarity.

I wish you a wonderful life of love, understanding, happiness and prosperity!

sun

sushi1992

Peace Sushi,

Just wanted to share...
I always pray to Allah to show me the truth and let me be able to handle it.

I think this is such a wonderful prayer for advancement. We should all strive for advancement, better understanding, and to be better people in the "eyes" of Allah. The wonderful and sometimes scary thing is that you never know what this sort of prayer can lead you too. But as long as you let Allah lead you, you are safe and up for some wonderful new insights. Allah always opens new doors for us to things we didn't see/understand before. We just have to desire it and ask for it. We all need to realize that we are very limited in our understanding. We should ask Allah to let us work ourselves out of our personal, mental fog... into a more and more bright clarity.

I wish you a wonderful life of love, understanding, happiness and prosperity!

sun

Many Selams to you Zulf,

That really touched my heart and I wish you also a long, healthy and prosperous life of happiness too .

I prayed to Allah last night and said, "Allah, please continue to give me guidance, please guide me to what is the right way" thanking him for blessing me with intelligence and the ability to use my brain lol xD. But after that prayer, today I then realise that essentially, believing in God and the simple structure of life to lead, and asking for forgiveness, being charitable and righteous as Allah always tells us, is such a beautiful and simple request. It saddens me sometimes when I see different sects of muslims. To be honest, I used to say I'm a sunni muslim but I much prefer to just say "Muslim" as there shouldn't really be a separation. All I simply wish to imply by saying I am purely a Muslim is that I follow the Qur'an solely and no other books or hadiths or anything else, as Allah tells us that he has perfected it for us... why do we need to look elsewhere? And what made me happier? Is I only changed around 3 or 4 aspects of my life after reading the Qur'an which made me feel especially blessed that my path was not too far off straight xD, just a bit more praying and not the usual "I'm so tired.... I will pray... -5 minutes later- zzzzz" situations xD ^.^

Thank you Zulf and Peace peace

youssef4342

Peace

I would think a qibla, would be a direction for prayer, as to promote harmony. Instead of people facing all different directions.

sushi1992

Peace

I would think a qibla, would be a direction for prayer, as to promote harmony. Instead of people facing all different directions.

Selam Youssef ), nice to see you again ).

Could you provide verses from the Qur'an and the root translations within the context as to why you think this? If you could provide all verses where this is mentioned then that would be appreciated ).

Peace peace

No longer a Sunna-rejecter

Peace,

2115 To God belongs the east and the west, so wherever you turn, there is God's presence. God is Encompassing, Knowledgeable.

2177 Piety is not to turn your faces towards the east and the west, but piety is one who acknowledges God and the Last day...

2142 The foolish from amongst the people will say, "What has turned them away from the focal point that they were on?" Say, "To God is the east and the west, He guides whomsoever He wishes to a straight path."

Clearly the foolish are the only ones who care about trivial east/west/direction BS.

2143 As such, We have made you a balanced nation so that you may be witnesses over the people, and that the messenger may be witness over you. We did not make the focal point that you came on except so that we know who follows the messenger from those who will turn on their heels. It was a big deal indeed except for those whom God had guided; God was not to waste your acknowledgement. God is Kind and Compassionate over the people.

2144 We see the shifting of your face towards the sky (for guidance); We will thus set for you a focal point/goal that will be pleasing to you, "You shall set yourself towards al-masjid al-haram; and wherever you may be, you shall all set yourselves towards it." Those who have been given the book know it is the truth from their Lord. God is not oblivious of what you do.

The focal point/goal ("qiblah&quot is meant to be faced WHEREVER we are. It is not brought into connection with "al salat".

2145 Even if you come to those who have been given the book with every sign, they will not follow your "qiblah", nor will you follow their "qibalh", nor will some of them even follow each other's "qiblah". If you were to follow their desires after the knowledge that has come to you, then you would be one of the wicked.

Obviously God is not mentioning a trivial thing such as a "direction of prayer", but, rather, an attitude and goal.

2146 Those to whom We have given the book know it as they know their own children, and a group of them hides the truth while they know.

Do Jews/Christians turn towards Mecca? Do they think that this is the "truth from their Lord"? Or is it a mindset/goal/focus point? We are to face al-masjid-al-haram WHEREVER we are.

sushi1992

Peace,

2115 To God belongs the east and the west, so wherever you turn, there is God's presence. God is Encompassing, Knowledgeable.

2177 Piety is not to turn your faces towards the east and the west, but piety is one who acknowledges God and the Last day...

2142 The foolish from amongst the people will say, "What has turned them away from the focal point that they were on?" Say, "To God is the east and the west, He guides whomsoever He wishes to a straight path."