What Is the Qiblah?

Qiblah (Arabic: قبلة; also spelled qibla) is pronounced QIB-lah.

Meaning

The word comes from a root meaning to face. The qiblah is the direction Muslims turn to in prayer: towards the Kaaba, the ancient house of worship in Makkah that Muslims believe Abraham and Ishmael built for the worship of the One God.

For about sixteen or seventeen months after moving to Madinah, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and the early Muslims prayed facing Jerusalem — a direction honoured by Jews and Christians as well. Then the qiblah was changed:

قَدْ نَرَىٰ تَقَلُّبَ وَجْهِكَ فِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ ۖ فَلَنُوَلِّيَنَّكَ قِبْلَةًۭ تَرْضَىٰهَا ۚ فَوَلِّ وَجْهَكَ شَطْرَ ٱلْمَسْجِدِ ٱلْحَرَامِ ۚ وَحَيْثُ مَا كُنتُمْ فَوَلُّوا۟ وُجُوهَكُمْ شَطْرَهُۥ ۗ وَإِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْكِتَٰبَ لَيَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّهُ ٱلْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّهِمْ ۗ وَمَا ٱللَّهُ بِغَٰفِلٍ عَمَّا يَعْمَلُونَ ﴿١٤٤﴾

We have certainly seen the turning of your face, [O Muhammad], toward the heaven, and We will surely turn you to a qiblah with which you will be pleased. So turn your face toward al-Masjid al-Haram. And wherever you [believers] are, turn your faces toward it [in prayer]. Indeed, those who have been given the Scripture well know that it is the truth from their Lord. And Allah is not unaware of what they do.

How Muslims use it

Wherever they are, Muslims work out the direction of Makkah before praying. Mosques have a niche called the mihrab showing the qiblah, hotels in Muslim countries often mark it on the ceiling, and today many people use a phone compass. If someone genuinely cannot tell, they do their best, and their prayer is accepted.

Muslims do not worship the Kaaba. The Qur’an reminds that the east and the west both belong to God (Qur’an 2:142). Facing one direction is a sign of unity and obedience: millions of people, in every land, turning together towards one point in worship of the One God.

Example

“Before she spread her prayer mat in the park, she checked the qiblah on her phone.”

Learn more in How Do Muslims Pray? and Do Muslims Worship the Kaaba?