Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

i wanted to know in what direction should one pray if he doesnt know where the qiblah is.
I m staying where there are hardly any muslims and those who are , are not worth calling themselves muslims, so what do i do for friday prayers, can i pray alone? here i m not sure wat time the azaan comes as there are no mosques around and the sun rises here by 9 and sets by 4:30, so i am not sure of the prayer timings, wat should i do? 

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Prayer timings

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Q-1: i wanted to know in what direction should one pray if he doesnt know where the qiblah is.

No matter where in the earth a believer resides, it is a condition of prayer that he/she must direct his face towards Makkah for his prayers.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 144:Turn then thy face in the direction of the Sacred Mosque; wherever ye are, turn your faces in that direction.

If one lives in a place where there is no mosque or Islamic Centre, nor does he have access to the necessary devices like compass, etc. he may use his best judgment from the movement of the sun and strive to determine the direction of the Qibla, and pray in that direction accordingly.

Q-2: I m staying where there are hardly any muslims and those who are , are not worth calling themselves muslims, so what do i do for friday prayers, can i pray alone?

There is hardly a city, town, or village in the world today where muslims reside and prayer, and especially Jumua Prayer, is not established. If you could kindly give us the name of the place where you reside, we will try our best to locate the nearest mosque or location where prayer is established in your vicinity, Insha Allah.

If perchance, you are indeed residing in a place where prayer is not established, then you must take this opportunity and yourself try to establish the system of prayer in your area. Allah Subhanah, if He Wills, will include this great and noble deed amongst your best deeds and reward you appropriately on a Day when every single good deed will be desperately sought by mankind.

Abu ad-Darda' reported that he heard the Prophet (saws) say, "If three people do not make the adhan and establish the prayer among themselves, Shaitaan gains mastery over them."

Related by Ahmad.

And if perchance you cannot even find another believer to offer the obligatory prayers with you in congregation, then proclaim the adhaan and offer your prayers alone.

'Uqbah ibn 'Aamar said he heard the Prophet (saws) say, "Your Lord, the Exalted, is amazed (and pleased) by one who is watching sheep in his pasture, then goes to the mountain to make the call to prayer and pray. Allah, the Exalted, says, 'Look at my slave there, who makes the call to prayer and establishes the prayer out of fear of Me. I have forgiven my slave and have allowed him to enter Paradise."'

Related by Ahmad, Abu Dawud and anNasa'i.

The condition of Jumua or Friday prayer is that it must be offered in congregation with the believers. If you strive your best and absolutely cannot find other believers to offer the Jumua prayers in congregation, then Jumua prayers cannot be prayed alone by a believer. He must then offer the normal four rakahs of Dhuhr prayers.

Q-3: here i m not sure wat time the azaan comes as there are no mosques around and the sun rises here by 9 and sets by 4:30, so i am not sure of the prayer timings, wat should i do? 

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisaa verse 103:Indeed, the salaat is a prescribed duty that should be performed at the appointed times by the believers.

Al-Muwatta Hadith 1.9

Yahya related to me from Malik from Yazid ibn Ziyad that Abdullah ibn Rafi, the mawla of Umm Salama, the wife of the Prophet (saws) asked Abu Hurayra about the time of the prayer. Abu Hurayra said, "Let me tell you. Pray dhuhr when the length of your shadow matches your height, asr when your shadow is twice your height, maghrib when the sun has set, isha in the first third of the night, and subh in the very first light of dawn," i.e. when the dawn has definitely come.

If you are not sure of the prayer timings in your area, then the sun is the best guage to determine the prayer times.

If in the area you reside the sun rises at 6:00am, dawn would break at about an hour to an hour and a half before its rising. That would be the time for Fajr prayers.

When your shadow from the sun matches your height as the sun moves away from its zenith at mid-day, would be the time for Dhuhr prayers.

When your shadow from the sun is twice as long as your height, that would be time for Asr prayers.

If the sun sets at 18:00 hours, then that would be the time for magrib prayers.

And Isha prayers would be the first third of the night; which would be about 2 to 2 ½ hours after magrib.

May Allah Subhanah accept your efforts and your striving in your worship to Him, and May He reward you generously for your efforts when every soul will be called to account on an Inevitable Day. Ameen.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan