Surah Al-Baqarah 2:115

Facing the Qiblah (Direction of the Prayer)

This ruling brought comfort to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his Companions, who were driven out of Makkah and had to depart from the area of Al-Masjid Al-Haram. In Makkah, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to pray in the direction of Bayt Al-Maqdis, while the Ka`bah was between him and the Qiblah. When the Messenger migrated to Al-Madinah, he faced Bayt Al-Maqdis for sixteen or seventeen months, and then Allah directed him to face Al-Ka`bah in prayer. This is why Allah said,

وَلِلَّهِ الْمَشْرِقُ وَالْمَغْرِبُ فَأَيْنَمَا تُوَلُّواْ فَثَمَّ وَجْهُ اللَّهِ

(And to Allah belong the east and the west, so wherever you turn (yourselves or your faces) there is the Face of Allah (and He is High above, over His Throne)).

`Ali bin Abi Talhah said that Ibn `Abbas said, "The first part of the Qur'an that was abrogated was about the Qiblah. When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ migrated to Al-Madinah, which was inhabited by the Jews, he was at first commanded to face Bayt Al-Maqdis. The Jews were happy, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ faced Bayt Al-Maqdis for some ten months. However, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ liked to face the Qiblah of Ibrahim (Al-Ka`bah at Makkah), and he used to look to the sky and supplicate. So Allah revealed,

قَدْ نَرَى تَقَلُّبَ وَجْهِكَ فِي السَّمَآءِ

(Verily, We have seen the turning of your (Muhammad's) face towards the heaven) until,

فَوَلُّواْ وُجُوهَكُمْ شَطْرَهُ

(turn your faces (in prayer) in that direction) (2:144).

The Jews were disturbed by this development and said, `What made them change the direction of the Qiblah that they used to face' Allah revealed,

قُل لّلَّهِ الْمَشْرِقُ وَالْمَغْرِبُ

(Say (O Muhammad ): "To Allah belong both, east and the west") and,

فَأَيْنَمَا تُوَلُّواْ فَثَمَّ وَجْهُ اللَّهِ

(So wherever you turn (yourselves or your faces) there is the Face of Allah (and He is High above, over His Throne))."

`Ikrimah said that Ibn `Abbas said,

فَأَيْنَمَا تُوَلُّواْ فَثَمَّ وَجْهُ اللَّهِ

(So wherever you turn (yourselves or your faces) there is the Face of Allah (and He is High above, over His Throne)) means, "Allah's direction is wherever you face, east or west." Mujahid said that,

فَأَيْنَمَا تُوَلُّواْ فَثَمَّ وَجْهُ اللَّهِ

(So wherever you turn (yourselves or your faces) there is the Face of Allah (and He is High above, over His Throne))

means, "Wherever you may be, you have a Qiblah to face, that is, Al-Ka`bah."

However, it was said that Allah sent down this Ayah before the order to face the Ka`bah. Ibn Jarir said, "Others said that this Ayah was revealed to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ permitting the one praying voluntary prayers to face wherever they wish in the east or west, while traveling, when in fear and when facing the enemy." For instance, Ibn `Umar used to face whatever direction his animal was headed and proclaim that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did the same, explaining the Ayah,

فَأَيْنَمَا تُوَلُّواْ فَثَمَّ وَجْهُ اللَّهِ

(So wherever you turn (yourselves or your faces) there is the Face of Allah)."

That Hadith was also collected by Muslim, At-Tirmidhi, An-Nasa'i, Ibn Abi Hatim, Ibn Marduwyah, and its origin is in the Two Sahihs from Ibn `Umar and `Amr bin Rabi`ah without mentioning the Ayah. In his Sahih, Al-Bukhari recorded that Nafi` said that whenever Ibn `Umar was asked about the prayer during times of fear, he used to describe it and would then say, "When the sense of fear is worse than that, pray while standing, or while riding, whether facing the Qiblah or not." Nafi` then said, "I think Ibn `Umar mentioned that from the Prophet ." It was also said that the Ayah was revealed about those who are unable to find the correct direction of the Qiblah in the dark or due to cloudy skies and, thus, prayed in a direction other than the Qiblah by mistake.

The Qiblah for the People of Al-Madinah is what is between the East and the West

In his Tafsir of this Ayah (2:115), Al-Hafiz Ibn Marduwyah recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

«مَا بَيْنَ الْمَشْرِقِ وَالْمَغْرِبِ قِبْلَةٌ لِأَهْلِ الْمَدِينَةِ وَأَهْلِ الشَّامِ وَأَهْلِ الْعِرَاق»

(What is between the east and the west is the Qiblah for the people of Al-Madinah, Ash-Sham and `Iraq.)

At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah recorded this Hadith with the wording,

«مَا بَيْنَ الْمَشْرِقِ وَالْمَغْرِبِ قِبْلَة»

(What is between the east and the west is a Qiblah.)

Ibn Jarir said, "The meaning of Allah's statement;

إِنَّ اللَّهَ وَسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ

(Surely, Allah is Sufficient (for His creatures' needs), Knowing) is that Allah encompasses all His Creation by providing them with sufficient needs and by His generosity and favor. His statement,

عَلِيمٌ

(Knowing) means He is knowledgeable of their deeds and nothing escapes His watch, nor is He unaware of anything. Rather, His knowledge encompasses everything."

Sebab turunnya ayat ini ialah seperti diriwayatkan oleh Jabir sebagai berikut: "Kami telah diutus oleh Rasulullah saw dalam suatu peperangan dan aku termasuk dalam pasukan itu. Ketika kami berada di tengah perjalanan, kegelapan mencekam kami, sehingga kami tidak mengetahui arah kiblat." Segolongan di antara kami berkata, "Kami telah mengetahui arah kiblat, yaitu ke sana, ke arah utara. Maka mereka salat dan membuat garis di tanah. Sebagian kami berkata, "Arah kiblat ke sana ke arah selatan." Dan mereka membuat garis di tanah. Tatkala hari subuh dan matahari pun terbit, garis itu mengarah ke arah yang bukan arah kiblat. Tatkala kami kembali dari perjalanan dan kami tanyakan kepada Rasulullah saw tentang peristiwa itu, maka Nabi saw diam dan turunlah ayat ini." )

Allah swt menegaskan pemilikan-Nya terhadap seluruh alam ini. Dia sendiri yang mengaturnya, mengetahui apa saja yang terjadi di dalamnya, baik kecil maupun besar. Firman Allah:

¦Dan Dia bersama kamu di mana saja kamu berada. Dan Allah Maha Melihat apa yang kamu kerjakan. (al-hadid/57:4)

Firman Allah yang lain:

¦Tidak ada pembicaraan rahasia antara tiga orang, melainkan Dialah yang keempatnya. Dan tidak ada lima orang, melainkan Dialah yang keenamnya. Dan tidak ada yang kurang dari itu atau lebih banyak, melainkan Dia pasti ada bersama mereka di mana pun mereka berada¦ (al-Mujadilah/58:7)

... (Mereka berkata), " Ya Tuhan kami, rahmat dan ilmu yang ada pada-Mu meliputi segala sesuatu, maka berilah ampunan kepada orang-orang yang bertobat dan mengikuti jalan (agama)-Mu ..." (al-Mu'min/40: 7)

Karena itu pada dasarnya, ke mana saja manusia menghadapkan mukanya dalam berdoa atau beribadah, ke timur, barat, utara, selatan, ke bawah, ke atas, dan sebagainya, pasti doa dan ibadahnya itu didengar Allah dan sampai kepada-Nya.

Ayat ini membantah kepercayaan bahwa Allah mempunyai tempat, bahwa doa atau ibadah akan didengar dan sampai kepada Allah bila hamba yang berdoa dan beribadah itu menghadap ke arah tertentu saja atau suatu tempat yang dianggap lebih mulia dari tempat yang lain dan sebagainya. Kata wajh banyak sekali artinya. Dalam ayat ini berarti "kehadiran".

Berdasarkan ayat di atas dan sebab turunnya, dapat ditetapkan hukum sebagai berikut:

1.Kiblat itu pada dasarnya ialah seluruh arah. Kemana saja hamba menghadap pasti menemui wajah Allah. Untuk memelihara kesatuan dan persatuan kaum Muslimin ditetapkanlah Ka'bah sebagai arah kiblat.

2.Apabila hari sangat gelap dan arah kiblat tidak diketahui, maka boleh salat menghadap ke arah yang diyakini sebagai kiblat. Jika ternyata kemudian arah itu bukan arah kiblat maka salatnya tetap sah.

3.Bagi orang yang berada di atas kendaraan yang sedang berjalan, ia boleh berkiblat ke arah yang dia sukai. Sebagian ulama menganjurkan berkiblat ke arah depan dari kendaraan itu.