Ive always wondered, why do we pray towards Mecca?
The simple reason we pray facing towards Masjid al Haraam in Makkah is because it is the command of Allah, our Creator, Whom we worship.
This is what Allah says in the Qur'an:
"We see the turning of thy face (for guidance) to the heavens: now We shall turn thee to a Qiblah (direction of prayer) that shall please thee. Turn then thy face in the direction of Masjidul Haraam: wherever ye are, turn your faces in that direction." (Al-Qur'an 2:144)
We're praying to God right?
Absolutely. We are not worshipping the Ka'bah, nor Masjidul Haram, nor Makkah, by facing it in prayer. We worship none but Allah. That is why, even if the Ka'bah is directly in front of us, we do not look at it, rather we look at the ground before us, as the focus of our prayer is never on any created object, but Allah alone.
No. He has knowledge of everything but is not physically everywhere. Allah is above the heavens, separate from the creation but among His creation by His Hearing (as-Samiee3), His Seeing (al-Baseer) and His Knowledge (al-3Aleem).
Evidence from Qur'an and hadeeth:
"Do you feel secure that He, Who is fis-sama (above the heavens), will not cause the earth to sink…Or do you feel secure that He, Who is fis-sama (above the heavens) will not send against you a violent whirlwind?" [67:16-17]
Abdullah ibn Amr ibn Al-As related that the Messenger said, "Allah grants mercy to the merciful. Be merciful to those who are on the earth, (then) He Who is fis-Sama (above the heavens) will be merciful to you." [Abu Dawood & At-Tirmidhi]
Muawiyah bin Al-Hakam As-Salmi said:
"I had a slave-girl who used to herd sheep for me. One day I discovered that a wolf had killed one of her sheep, and I'm a man from the children of Adam, I get upset like they get upset, and I slapped her in the face. Then I went to the Prophet who impressed upon me the seriousness of my act. I said, 'O Messenger of Allah, should I not set her free?' He said, 'Bring her to me.' He asked her, 'Where is Allah', She said, 'He is above the heavens.' He said, 'Who am I?' She said, 'You are the Messenger of Allah.' He said, 'Free her, for she is a believer.' (Muslim and Abu Dawud)
So why pray towards a certain direction?
Because He is our Creator and our Lord, and that is what He has commanded us.
Does our prayer not count if we don't pray towards Mecca?
All salaat must be prayed facing Makkah. So salaat will not count if willfully not prayed in that direction. The only exception being a traveller who cannot ascertain the direction.
Ive heard the reason that its to unite the Muslims and whatnot
It is true that this does unite the Muslim ummah in their direction of worship. When we pray we know that all other Muslims all over the world from whatever country are praying facing the same direction. That is a great feeling of unity.
because its in the center of the universe. I still dont get it. Muslims used to pray towards Jerusalem. But ii guess its becuz they dont wanna b like the Jews and Christians, so they changed it to Mecca.
Allah knows best as to the reason, but some of the reasons you've mentioned above may hold true.
Allah mentions in ayah 143 of Surah al-Baqarah, "....And We appointed the Qiblah which you formerly observed only that We might know him who follows the Messenger from him who turns on his heels...".
Concerning the revelation of the ayaat about the qiblah change:
- The original appointment of Jerusalem as the qiblah for Muslim was a test for the Arabs who could not easily give up the Ka'bah they held dear. They were tried first. It was a hard test but the sincere believers passed.
- Some people thought that Allah resided in Jerusalem and that a change of qiblah meant turning away from Him. Allah made clear in ayah 142 that "To Allah belong the East and the West". All belongs to Him, He does not reside in a particular city, and thus they were not turning away from him.
- Some of the Jews and Christians who had embraced Islam at the time of the Prophet :saws: were put to the test. It was very difficult for them to accept any other qiblah than that of their forefathers. This test of qiblah change separated out the sincere Muslims.
- The last Prophet before Rasoolullah :saws: was an Israelite, and as the Muslims qiblah had been Jerusalem, the Jews thought they were still superior and leaders of the people. The change of qiblah showed and emphasised that the leadership was no longer theirs, but that of the followers of Muhammad :saws:
So there were many reasons for the change historically at that time.
Also, when Prophet Ibrahim alayhissalaam and his son Ismaa'eel alayhissalaam built the Ka'bah in response to Allah's command, Ibrahim consecrated the House for the worship of the One True God and invited humanity to visit it for that purpose. Even today, Muslims who are physically and financially able have to make pilgrimage to it once in a lifetime.
The Ka'bah has remained at the centre of a continuous tradition of worship and devotion, up to the present day. Amongst the ancient religious rites particular to the Ka'bah is circumambulation (walking around it - tawaaf). We now know that creation is in fact always in a state of circumambulation: whether at the micro level, with the electrons that go round the nucleus of an atom, or at the mega level with the Earth and the other planets orbiting the Sun. As the nucleus is central to the functioning of the cell, as there would be complete darkness without the Sun, so Allah has appointed for us a central point, to go around when directly in front of it, and to face in prayer, when we are not. It symbolises the centrality of Allah to a Muslim's life. It suggests the integrating and unifying power of monotheism in human life and how a Muslim's life should revolve around a pure devotion to Allah. The Ka'bah symbolises the unity of all true religion, the brotherhood of all the prophets, and the essential consistency of their message.
I dont see the reason to pray towards Mecca
I hope it's a little bit clearer now. What better place for Allah to choose?
Please ask if you have any other questions.
eace:
