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 have a doubt regarding qibla sumbody told me that where ever the sun sets its the qibla, is it so? i m staying in bahrain next to the palace, there a mosque even, bt what i realised is that the mosque is having the qibla opposite to sunset position. please help me out?

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Answer:

Qibla sunset

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 none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Your Question: i have a doubt regarding qibla sumbody told me that where ever the sun sets its the qibla, is it so?

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 149:

149 From whencesoever thou startest forth (for prayer) turn thy face in the direction of the Sacred Mosque (of Makkah); that is indeed the Truth from thy Lord. And Allah is not unmindful of what ye do.

Dear and beloved siser in Islam, the rising, setting, or the movement of the sun has absolutely nothing to do with the direction of the prescribed ‘Qibla’ for prayer in Islam! Allah Subhanah has Guided and Commanded the believers to turn their direction towards the Sacred Mosque of Makkah, whenever they intend to offer their prayers. Thus depending on its physical location on the earth, for nations like India the ‘qibla’ would be in the westerly direction, Russia or Norway the ‘qibla’ would be in the southern direction, from South Africa it would be ‘north/north-east’, from Spain or France ‘east/sout-east’, etc.

Your Question: i m staying in bahrain next to the palace, there a mosque even, bt what i realised is that the mosque is having the qibla opposite to sunset position. please help me out?

Dear and beloved Sister, to the best of our limited knowledge of geography, Makkah happens to be directly to the ‘west’ of Bahrain, and thus the ‘qibla’ from Bahrain should be to the ‘west’ direction.

Since Makkah is directly ‘west’ of Bahrain, the ‘qibla’ from Bahrain should also be towards the ‘west’, or towards the setting of the sun which obviously sets to the west.

Beloved Sister, although it is only human to make an error, in our humble opinion it would be worthy of re-checking whether the ‘masjid’ you have specified has indeed built their ‘qibla’ to the ‘east’, or directly opposite to the ‘west’ direction where the sun sets! It is highly unlikely that the authorities and the believers of a muslim majority nation like Bahrain would allow or authorize such an error!

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

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan