“It is not that I have failed to find anyone else,

Signed forms by the President of Al-’Azhar University, the biggest Islamic University in the world, stating that the Qiblah in North America is South-East.

Translation of the Ruling of the President of the Honorable al-‘Azhar University, Dr.^Abdul-Fattah al-Husayniyy ash-Shaykh

In the name of Allah, the Merciful to the believers and non-believers in this world, the Merciful to the believers only in the next world

University of al-‘Azhar

Office of the President of the University

Mr. Muhammad Hammadi

As-Salamu ^alaykum wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh

Thereafter, in reference to the request that was sent to us in which you requested guiding you to the correct direction of al-Qiblah in the city of Montreal, Kindly note that your request was transferred to Dr. Jamal-ud–Din Al-Fandi Professor of Astronomy and member of the Islamic Research Convention, and he advised us with the following:

1. The mathematical formulas for the triangular spherical computations are all sound.

2. The application that appeared in your request is wrong, since it was necessary to subtract the resulting figure from 180 degrees in compliance with the mathematical rules.

3. The reasoning shown in your request in scientifically wrong and is discarded. Accordingly, the direction of al-Qiblah in the city of Montreal is at an angle of 180 degrees minus 58 degrees, which is 122 degrees from due north, and it is southeast.

Please accept ample salutations and as-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh.

President of al-‘Azhar University

A.D. Abdul-Fattah 1413 AH

Dated 9/9/92

SRLNO of letter 859

8 September 1992 RC

Translation of the Response of the Chairman of the Fatwa Committee,

Shaykh ^Atiyyah Saqr.

North America

As-salamu^alaykum wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh.

Thereafter, in reply to your letter that we received on November 28,1993, we advise you that the direction of al-Qiblah for the people of the United States of America and Canada is the southeast. This is due to that North America falls in the northwestern quarter with respect to Makkah; he who prays toward northeast, his direction is incorrect and his prayers likewise.

Verily, the Qiblah for prayer for the Muslims in Canada and the United States of America is the direction of southeast, as it is shown in the previous word.

The Chairman of the Fatwa committee at al-‘Azhar

Shaykh ^Atiyyah Saqr

Translation of the Response of his Eminence, the great Imam, The Shaykh of al-’Azhar, may Allah protect him

Al-’Azhar The office of the Great Imam The Shaykh of al-’Azhar

Praise be to Allah, the lord of the worlds, and may Allah raise the rank of Prophet Muhammad and protect his nation from that which he fears for it. Thereafter,

The letter of the engineer Mr. Muhammad Hammadi from Montreal was received at the office of his Eminence, the Great Imam, and it contained the following:

“Since Islam entered their country, the Muslims in Canada took southeast as the direction of their Qiblah, and they based their Maharib accordingly.

Ten of fifteen years ago, some brothers introduced that the direction of al-Qiblah should be northeast, because it is the shorter distance of the two to al-Ka^bah. As a result, the Muslims were divided, praying toward two Qiblahs. They were divided despite that it was proven to some of those ruled with the northeast direction, who retracted their statement, that they were mistaken, and despite that all the studies agreed that the first direction (i.e., toward southeast) is correct.

Your Eminence, we hope that you would decisively put an end to this tribulation among the Muslims.”

The Reply

Among the pre-requisites for the validity of the prayer (whether optional or obligatory) is to direct oneself toward al-Ka^bah for those who are outside of Makkah, as long as they are safe and are able to do so. This has been confirmed by the Book of Allah, the Sunnah and al-‘ijma^ (consensus)

As to the Book of Allah, in Suratul-Baqarah, ‘Ayah 150:

وَمِنْ حَيْثُ خَرَجْتَ فَوَلِّ وَجْهَكَ شَطْرَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ وَحَيْثُ مَا كُنتُمْ فَوَلُّواْ وُجُوهَكُمْ شَطْرَهُ Means: “From wherever you start turn your face in the direction of the Scared Mosque, and wherever you are turn you faces in its direction.”

What is meant by the Sacred Mosque is al-Ka^abah itself.

As to the Sunnah, it was narrated by Imam Muslim that the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, said: “If you stand up for prayer, perform your complete wudu’ then face the Qiblah and say Allahu ‘akbar.” The ‘ijma^ of the Muslims (i.e., the Muslim scholars) has been established in that regard.

The basis is that it is obligatory to face the Qiblah in prayer is what was narrated by al-Bukhariyy and Muslim from the route of al-Bara’ Ibn ^Azib, may Allah reward them, that when the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, arrived in Madinah, he prayed toward Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem) sixteen or seventeen months and that he had liked that his Qiblah was toward al-Bayt. Also, the first prayer he performed was al-^Asr and a group of people prayed with him. One of them passed by a group of people in a mosque who were in ruku^ in prayer and he said: “By Allah I bear witness that I have prayed with the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, toward Makkah. All of them turned toward the House (Ka^bah).”

CASES EXCLUDED FROM FACING AL_QIblah

The scholars excluded the obligatory of facing the Qiblah in two cases of prayers. The first is the case of extreme fear. The second is the case of the optional prayer while traveling while riding an animal.

Upon reviewing what was written on the subject of the direction of the Qiblah in Canada, the rules dictate that the correct direction of the Qiblah is the direction of “Southeast”. It is the correct continual line of the Qiblah from the location of the Mosque.

As to the shortness of the northeast line, this is usable for traveling to it, but not in taking it as the Qiblah. Allah is the One Who guides and Allah knows best.

This is the fatwa of His Eminence, the Great Imam, the Shaykh of al-‘Azhar that we convey to you.

Signed by The Chairman of the Central Directorate of the Office of the Great Imam the Shaykh of al-‘Azhar Muhammad Yusuf ^Afifiyy.

Praise be to Allah, may Allah raise the rank of our master Muhammad, his family members and companions, and protect his nation from that which he fears for it. Thereafter;

جهة القبلة بالنسبة لأمريكا الشمالية هي جنوب شرق Qiblah Direction for North America is East South East

جهة القبلة بالنسبة لأمريكا الشمالية هي جنوب شرق

قدم المسلمون إلى أمريكا الشمالية في أوائل القرن الهجري المنصرم أفراداًَ و جماعات٬ و ما زال عددهم ينمو و يتزايد حتى صار لهم جاليات كبيرة في كل من الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية و كندا. فكان من الطبيعيّ أن يسعَوْا في بناء مساجد و مصليات يجتمعون فيها لتأدية الجماعات و استماع الخير و ذكر الله. و قد كانت كلّ هذه المصليات و المساجد تتوجه محاريبها إلى الجنوب الشرقي من غير استثناء بناء على فتاوى علماء بلاد الإسلام حتى قام عبد الله العبدليّ منذ نحو عشرين عاما و بالتحديد بين سنتى 1973 ر و 1974ر بنشر كتاب يذكر فيه أن جهة القبلة هي الشمال الشرقي في كلّ من الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية و كندا.

فتلقف كتابَهُ نفاةُ التوسل و أعضاءٌ من الحزب المسمى بحزب الإخوان المسلمين في شمال أمريكا معجبين به كإعجابهم المعتاد بالشاذِ، وقاموا بنشره و الترويج له كدأبهم مع ما فيه تشتيت الصف و تفريق الكلمة و تحريف الدين تحت اسم الإسلام. و قد تحدث بعضنا شخصيا مع مؤلف الكتاب فقال له: أنت عَلاَمَ اعتمدتَ من الأدلة الشرعية في نشر كتابك؟ فقال: أنا ما درستُ علوم الدين الشرعية لكنني اعتمدت على حساب المثلثات الكروية. فإِنَّا لله و إِنَّا إليه راجعون، صار أمر تحديد القبلة في هذه الأيام مَلعَبَةً بيد من لا يعرف علوم الدين و يريد التسلي !! بل يجد له مع ذلك أعواناً و أنصاراً!! هذا مع العلم بأن مساجد عديدة ما زالت محافظة على جهة القبلة الصحيحة، ومقابر المسلمين القديمة كمقبرة ((سكرامنتو)) كليفورنيا القديمة التى يرجع دفن موتى المسلمين فيها إلى ما قبل عام 1937ر ومقبرة ((تورو)) في مقاطعة نوفاسكوتيا الكندية التى يرجع دفنهم فيها إلى ما قبل خمسين سنة شاهدعلى أن المسلمين كانوا يتوجهون إلى الجنوب الشرقي.

وقد أصدر الأزهر فتوى جديدة (يوليو 2015) تنص على أن اتجاه القبلة هو الجنوب الشرقي، وكان قد أصدر فتوى قبلها سنة 1994

The proof to the issue of al-Qiblah in America is the consensus of the scholars of Islam in that the people of the east face to west and the people of the north face the south and the people of the south face to north, due to that Makkah is at the center of the earth, i.e., it is not at its edges. Hence, the saying that the people of the North America should face the northeast is invalid, and rather the people of North America should face the southeast. He who deviates from that has deviated from the unanimous agreement and consensus of the scholars of ‘Islam, the khalaf and the Salaf. He who wishes, let him look in shuruh al Minhaj and the book of ‘Anwar ^Amal al-‘Abrar by al-Ardabiliyy and the book of Nihayat al-Matlab by Imam of al-Haramayn and others, among the books of ash-Shafi^iyy school. Also in al-Mabsut by as-Sarakhsiyy al-Hanafiyy among the early scholars and Ibn ^Abidin among the late scholars along with others among the scholars and knowledgeable persons of the four schools.  

Websites for more info and signed forms from universities:

http://www.qiblah.us/