Change of the Qibla: Difference between revisions

Bayt al-Maqdis is located in the northern direction of Medina, and Masjid al-Haram is located in its southern direction. Thus, the Prophet (s) turned from where he was standing to almost the reverse side. This has led to the thought that in this way, men had to stay in front of the Prophet (s) who was the leader of the congregational prayer and women had to stay in front of men. However, according to some sources, after the redirection of the Qibla to the Ka'ba, the Prophet (s) moved from his place to the other end of the Prophet (s) and people did the same and they all redirected themselves to the Ka'ba. On this account, the leader of the congregational prayer did not only turn 180 or 160 degrees, but also moved in order for there to be enough space for men and women saying their prayers behind him.