#408: The Validity of Salāt in a Mosque that Drifts from the Qiblah

QUESTION

” As Salamu Alaykum, pls adim can u elite me most of our mousqe dat they are not in d right position ( they are not face qibla ) I need yur respond”

ANSWER

Wa alaykum salaam warahmatullaah wabarakaatuh

Alhamdulillaah, the generality of the Ummah have formed a consensus that the direction of the Ka’aba from anywhere is the Qibla of that place. This consensus is due to what Allaah – ta’aala – said:

ﻓَﻮَﻝِّ ﻭَﺟْﻬَﻚَ ﺷَﻄْﺮَ ﺍﻟْﻤَﺴْﺠِﺪِ ﺍﻟْﺤَﺮَﺍﻡِ ﻭَﺣَﻴْﺚُ ﻣَﺎ ﻛُﻨﺘُﻢْ ﻓَﻮَﻟُّﻮﺍْ ﻭُﺟُﻮِﻫَﻜُﻢْ ﺷَﻄْﺮَﻩُ ‏[ ﺳﻮﺭﺓ ﺍﻟﺒﻘﺮﺓ : 144

“So turn your face towards the direction of the Masjid Al-Haraam, and wherever you may be, turn your faces toward it.” (Suratu Al-Baqara: 144)

There is a little difference of opinion on precision. While the Shaafi’is hold that the Qibla must be precise in the direction of the ka’aba, the majority of the Fuqahaa: the Hanafis, the Malikis, the Hanbalis, the Zaahiris and the Muhaqqiqun all hold that what is required is the direction and not the precision. The Shafi’I position is weak in this regard.

This is because the word used in the verse is “Shatr” which means ‘direction or toward’.

Also, in the Hadith narrated by Abu Hurayrah – radiyallaahu an hu – and recorded by Ibn Maajah and At-Tirmidhi, the Rasul – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – said:

ﻣﺎ ﺑﻴﻦ ﺍﻟﻤﺸﺮﻕ ﻭﺍﻟﻤﻐﺮﺏ ﻗﺒﻠﺔ

“What is between the east and the west is the Qiblah”

Though he – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – was referring to the Qiblah from Madinah, the Ulamaa of Hadith derive from the Hadith that precision was not required.

And had we been obligated to face the Ka’aba by precision, it would have been a burden that we cannot lift off ourselves. If we are to imagine that an Imaam leading some people in Salaat was facing the exact direction of the ka’aba and behind him was a very very long row of worshippers, then they would have fallen out of the precision, whereas the Fuqahaa have forned a consensus on the acceptability of their Salaat.

Imaam Al-Qaraafi Al-Maliki – rahimahullaah – said:

“The People have formed a consensus on the acceptance of his Salaat despite the fact that a part of him is definitely positioned outside the perimeter.”

Afterall, Allah – ta’aala – has said in the Qur’an:

ﻭَﻣَﺎ ﺟَﻌَﻞَ ﻋَﻠَﻴْﻜُﻢْ ﻓِﻲ ﺍﻟﺪِّﻳﻦِ ﻣِﻦْ ﺣَﺮَﺝٍ ‏[ ﺳﻮﺭﺓ ﺍﻟﺤﺞ : 78 ‏]

“And He has not placed upon you any difficulty in the Din.”
Suratu Al-Hajj: 78

This is why the majority of the Ulamaa have divided the Qiblah into 4 categories:

1. Qiblatu An-Nass: that is the Qibla that was set by the revelation. This applies to the Ka’aba itself and the people who reside at Makka. It is not permissible, by consensus, for anyone who is in the ‘Al-Masjidu Al-Haraam’ to face other that the Kaaba by precision.

2. Qiblatu An-Nabiyy: the Qiblah that was particularly set by the Rasul – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – such as the Prophet’s masjid in Madinah and the Masjid in Quba.
There is also a consensus of the Fuqahaa on the futility of the Salaat of anyone who is in these two cities and disagrees with the Qiblah set by the Rasul – salallaahu alayhi wasallam.

3. Qiblatu As-Sahaabah/ Qiblatu Al-Ijmaa’:
This is the Qiblah set by the Companions of the Rasul – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – such as the Qiblah set in Kufa by Ali – radiyallaahu an hu – and that set by Abu Ubaydah in Dimashq, etc. and which the Companions agreed upon.
There is consensus here too on the unacceptable of any Salaat made in these cities that disagree with the Masaajid set up by these Companions.

4. Qiblatu Al-Ijtihaad:
This is the Qiblah that was set by Ulamaa and the generality of the Muslims in the cities of Islam today where the Companions of the Rasul – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – did not reside.
As for this, it is the consensus of the Fuqahaa that it is not permissible to disagree with it and come with another opinion of where is to be faced.

Imaam Taqiyuddin As-Subki – rahimahullaah – said:

“Imaam Al-Haramayn said: and if he were to enter a city by his way, or a town by his way other than Makkah and Madinah and in it is the Mihraab (the niche of the Imaam of a Masjid that points to the direction of the Ka’aba) that is agreed upon (by the residents of that city), and which is not popularly known to be disputed by anyone in that city, he is not permitted, in that situation to make his own ijtihaad of a different direction in the presence of that. It holds the same position as certainty…
The Statement of the Imaam should be seen in the context of what he said ‘a mihraab that is agreed upon, that is not disputed upon’ is an excellent restriction for it implies that the condition for not disputing with it by making Ijtihaad is if these two conditions are fulfilled: that there is agreement on it and there is no popularly known dispute on its correctness..”

Fataawa As-Subki

Imaam An-Nawawi – rahimahullaah – said:

“The same applies to the Mahaarib (Prayer Niches pointing to the directions of the Ka’aba) that have been placed in the lands of the Muslims with the conditions that has preceded, it is not permissible to make ijtihaad
In these places by changing the direction. This is by consensus.”

Al-Majmu’

But for adjusting the Qiblah established in cities and towns slightly to the left or to the right, the majority of the Fuqahaa hold that it is not permissible to disagree with it as long as it is in the direction of the Ka’aba by approximation. This is due to what it can imply of unnecessarily dividing the Ummah and causing a rift among the Muslims. This is the verdict of the Hanafi, Maaliki, Hanbali and Zaahiri schools. It is also the position held by the Muhaqqiqun among the Ulamaa. Ash-Shaafi’i disagree with this.

It is mentioned in ‘Ar-Raddu Al-Muhtaar:

“The Mahaareeb set by the Sahaabah and the Taabi’in, it is not permissible to begin to find out (the Qiblah) in the presence of that. Rather what is obligatory upon us is to follow that. And it is not permissible to follow the estimations of a learned and vast astronomer in that regard if what he says shifts the precision, as opposed to what the Shafi’iyya hold.”

And the Shafi’i position in this regard is weak due to what it can cause of rift between the Muslims.

Coming to what you have said, those Muslims today, who will like to disturb the harmony in the Muslim society by trying to shift the positions of the Qiblah from the agreed-upon directions to or from the right or left are wrong and unnecessarily creating rifts in the Ummaah that can generate crisis.

As long as you observe your Salaat in an approiximate direction of the Ka’aba, your Salaat is acceptable inshaaAllaah.

And for those who would use the compass directions and use them to negate and dispute with the Qiblah set by the Muslim society, they are also wrong as Imaam Ibn Aabidin has pointed out above in the ‘Ar-Raddu Al-Muhtaar’.

Allāhu A’alam.

Bārakallāhu Fīkum
Jazākumullāhu Khayran.

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