Which Way to the Qiblih?

A concept that may be foreign to most Christians, Hindus, and Buddhists, but is of great importance to Muslims and Jews, is the direction to face while reciting specific prayers. The Jews have always turned toward Jerusalem, and one may argue that their problems with the Muslims began when the Prophet Muhammad directed them to turn and face Mecca instead, and they refused.

The Bahá’ís continue this practice of reciting daily “obligatory” prayers while facing the “Point of Adoration,” (Qiblih in Arabic), turning towards the resting-place of Bahá’u’lláh, at Bahji, near the city of Akko (Akká, Acre), across the bay from Haifa on the eastern Mediterranean coast.

But if one is in Ougadougou, Medicine Hat, or Siguatepeque (and there are Bahá’ís there as well as in virtually any other spot on the globe), how does one answer, “Which way to the Qiblih?” In fact, far too many make the mistake of consulting a flat map; we should all know better, since we know that it is a distortion. New Yorkers who do this, for instance, will conclude that it is just a wee bit south of east, whereas they should be facing NORTHeast.

The simplest way to find the shortest and most direct route over the surface of the earth (rather than through it) is to take a piece of string and a globe, press down one end of the string at Akko, make the other end point at wherever you are, and pull the string taut. Counterintuitive as it may seem, the string has traced the path to the Qiblih. (This will also answer why, if you’re flying to Rome from New York, you’ll stop in or pass by London on the way.) If you happen to be in Alaska, your route will take you over the North Pole. Try it!

A more precise way is to go to a website such as http://www.qiblih.com/, where you can type in your longitude and latitude, press the enter button and presto! your direction will be displayed. Of course you’ll need to know which way is north, south, east, and west, which can easily observe by watching a sunrise.