Qibla

The qibla is the direction toward the Kaaba in Mecca that Muslims face during Islamic prayer. Its precise bearing varies with location.

Salat: The prescribed Islamic ritual prayer performed at specified times and with defined bodily actions. Muslims orient toward the qibla while performing salat.
Kaaba: A cuboid sanctuary at the center of the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and the focal point of Islamic prayer. The qibla points toward this sanctuary.
Al-Aqsa Mosque: A major mosque in Jerusalem, within the sacred compound known as al-Haram al-Sharif. Islamic tradition associates Jerusalem with an earlier qibla before the direction changed to Mecca.
Jerusalem: A historic city sacred to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Jerusalem is associated with an earlier prayer orientation in Islamic tradition, unlike the present qibla toward Mecca.
Mihrab: A niche in a mosque wall that indicates the direction of Mecca. This architectural feature marks the qibla inside a mosque.
Geodesy: The science of measuring Earth's shape, orientation, and position in space. Qibla calculations depend on representing locations and directions on Earth.
Hijra: The migration of Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE. The change of qibla to Mecca occurred during the Medinan period after the Hijra.
Qibla dispute: A disagreement over the direction Muslims should face during prayer or how that direction should be determined. Disputes expose differences between legal standards, local practice, and directional calculations.
Qibla compass: A compass designed to help determine the direction of the Kaaba from a given location. It provides a portable way to estimate the qibla bearing.
Azimuth: A horizontal angle measured clockwise from a reference direction, usually north. A qibla bearing can be expressed as an azimuth from a location.

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