Overview (Verses 144- 146)

Clarification of Issues

Next comes the indication that Muĥammad’s unease with respect to the direction of prayer was soon to be over, as God decreed a permanent one which would satisfy his wishes. However, the announcement comes with a stern warning that the Jews would oppose it and try to exploit it to sow division and confusion among the Muslims.

We have seen you often turn your face towards heaven. We shall, therefore, make you turn in prayer towards a direction you will be happy with. Turn your face, then, towards the Sacred Mosque; and wherever you all may be, turn your faces [in prayer] towards it. Those who have been granted revelations in the past know well that it is the truth from their Lord. God is not unaware of what they do. Were you to bring every possible sign before those who had been granted revelations, they would not follow your direction of prayer. And neither may you follow their direction of prayer, nor would they even follow one another’s direction. If you were to follow their whims and desires after all the knowledge that has been given to you, you would certainly be among the wrongdoers. Those to whom We granted revelation know it as well as they know their own children, but some of them knowingly conceal the truth. This is the truth from your Lord; never, then, be among the doubters. Each one has a goal towards which he turns; so vie with one another in good works. Wherever you may be, God will bring you all together. God has power over all things. From wherever you may come forth, turn your face [in prayer] towards the Sacred Mosque. It is indeed the truth from your Lord. God is not unaware of what you do. From wherever you may come forth, turn your face [in prayer] towards the Sacred Mosque; and wherever you all may be, turn your faces towards it, so that people may have no argument against you, except those who are bent on wrongdoing. Have no fear of them, but fear Me, so that I may perfect My grace on you, and that you may be rightly guided.” (Verses 144-150)

We have a graphic description of the Prophet’s strong desire that God might direct him to a qiblah other than that which the Muslims had hitherto followed, i.e. Jerusalem. The Jews attempted to mislead the Muslims and exploit that situation to their advantage. We can almost feel the restrained desire of the Prophet and his reluctance even to say a prayer that reflected his desire. This is a question on which no one could have a say. It is entirely up to God.

The divine decree, expressed here with compassion and love, comes in line with the Prophet’s wish. The new direction of prayer is exactly the one he has been silently hoping for all those months: “We shall, therefore, make you turn in prayer towards a direction you will be happy with. Turn your face, then, towards the Sacred Mosque.” (Verse 144) What is more, is that it is a permanent and universal one: “Wherever you all may be, turn your faces [in prayer] towards it.” (Verse 144)

Thus the Ka`bah was reinstated as the original focus and symbol of religious unity for the whole world community of Islam. Muslims all over the world, with all their differences of race and language, would from then on perform their prayers facing the same spot on the globe. In doing so, Muslims would assert, and be reminded of, their human and religious unity, and of their membership of a single world community with a common way of life, a common religious legacy, and a common role and aim in the world.

The Muslim world community transcends race and language. The principle of God’s oneness, the bedrock of Islam, is thus manifested in total subservience to God alone; allegiance to the same leadership, that of Muĥammad; adherence to the same religion, Islam; and adoption of the same direction of prayer. Despite all the superficial differences that may exist between people, they are one and equal in their faith. There is no other means by which a truly universal and equitable human society can be brought forth and successfully organized.

Turning to the people of earlier revelations, the sūrah confirms their certain knowledge of the history and religious status of the Sacred Mosque at the Ka`bah. They were well aware that it had been established by Abraham, the founding father of the community that had inherited the creed of God’s oneness, and that its designation as the universal and permanent direction of Islamic prayer would be totally in line with the divine universal order.

Nevertheless, the sūrah points out, they would raise doubts and endlessly quibble over it. The Muslims should not be unduly concerned at that; God will take care of it, as He is fully aware of what they do.

There would be no point in reasoning with the Jews over the issue of the qiblah. Their problem was not lack of evidence or persuasion, but lack of faith and unwillingness to accept the truth. “Were you to bring every possible sign before those who had been granted revelations, they would not follow your direction of prayer.” (Verse 145)

It was not ignorance or lack of understanding that was responsible for that stubborn attitude, but caprice and vested interests. This would also be the source of subsequent Jewish and Christian animosity towards Islam, which was to emerge in various forms in later centuries.

In response to that bigoted stance, the proper and natural attitude of the Prophet is stated: “And neither may you follow their direction of prayer” (Verse 145) This Qur’ānic statement implies, particularly in its Arabic phraseology, a strong sense of finality and permanence. It also conveys to the Muslims a clear instruction never to adopt any direction of prayer, distinctive symbol or a way of life other than what gives it its clear Islamic identity.

The sūrah further reveals that neither the bitterly divided Jewish and Christian sects, nor even the majority of the Jews and the Christians, could ever agree on the adoption of one direction of prayer: “nor would they even follow one another’s direction.” (Verse 145)

As the Prophet is made fully aware of the truth in this matter of worship, he is warned against falling in with those people and their desires: “If you were to follow their whims and desires after all the knowledge that has been given to you, you would certainly be among the wrongdoers.” (Verse 145)

Having been addressed by his Lord with warmth and compassion, the Prophet is here given a strong warning. A grave matter of principle is involved here. There should be no hesitation in carrying out God’s instructions; personal preferences or considerations must not be allowed to influence the Prophet’s or the Muslims’ response to God’s will and command. A Muslim may not abandon the certain knowledge that is given by God to pick up what suits personal whims and desires.

This strong admonition also suggests that there could have been specific cases in which a certain degree of weakness had crept into Muslim minds, in the face of the vicious and insistent propaganda campaign launched by the Jews of Madinah.

The sūrah then asserts that the Jews and Christians were absolutely certain that what the Qur’ān has stated with respect to the qiblah issue, and other issues for that matter, and what the Prophet has ordered is the truth. However, they suppress the truth they know for their own self-interest: “Those to whom We granted revelation know it as well as they know their own children, but some of them knowingly conceal the truth.” (Verse 146)

It is a very powerful simile, used among the Arabs to denote absolute certainty. The point here is that the Jews, despite their denials, were as certain of the truth of the revelations that Muĥammad was receiving, including the announcement of the new direction of prayer. Therefore, the Muslims should pay them no attention nor be influenced by their allegations and misleading interpretations.