What is the significance of facing the Kabbah during prayer when the Earth is round?

Sources

• ✓ 2:144 · Al-Baqara

  2:144 · Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall

  قَدْ نَرَىٰ تَقَلُّبَ وَجْهِكَ فِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ ۖ فَلَنُوَلِّيَنَّكَ قِبْلَةًۭ تَرْضَىٰهَا ۚ فَوَلِّ وَجْهَكَ شَطْرَ ٱلْمَسْجِدِ ٱلْحَرَامِ ۚ وَحَيْثُ مَا كُنتُمْ فَوَلُّوا۟ وُجُوهَكُمْ شَطْرَهُۥ ۗ وَإِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْكِتَٰبَ لَيَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّهُ ٱلْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّهِمْ ۗ وَمَا ٱللَّهُ بِغَٰفِلٍ عَمَّا يَعْمَلُونَ

  We have seen the turning of thy face to heaven (for guidance, O Muhammad). And now verily We shall make thee turn (in prayer) toward a qiblah which is dear to thee. So turn thy face toward the Inviolable Place of Worship, and ye (O Muslims), wheresoever ye may be, turn your faces (when ye pray) toward it. Lo! Those who have received the Scripture know that (this revelation) is the Truth from their Lord. And Allah is not unaware of what they do.

• ✓ Tafsir Ibn Kathir on 2:144

  Sunni

  Tafsir Ibn Kathir · 2:144

  Ali ibn Abi Talhah reported from Ibn Abbas that the first thing abrogated from the Qur'an was the Qiblah (direction of prayer). When the Prophet ﷺ migrated to Medina, where most people were Jews, Allah commanded him to face the Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem). The Jews were pleased, and the Prophet ﷺ faced Jerusalem for about sixteen months. The Prophet liked the Qiblah of Ibrahim and would call to Allah while looking at the sky. Then Allah revealed: "We have certainly seen the turning of your face, [O Muhammad], toward the heaven," until the command: "So turn your face toward al-Masjid al-Haram." This caused suspicion among the Jews, who said: "Why has he turned away from their Qiblah which they were upon? Say, 'To Allah belongs the east and the west; He guides whom He wills to a straight path.'" Allah says: "Wherever you turn, there is the face of Allah." And Allah also said: "We did not make the Qiblah which you used to face except that We might make evident who would follow the Messenger from who would turn back on his heels." Ibn Mardawayh related from al-Qasim al-Umari, from his uncle Ubaidullah ibn Umar, from Dawud ibn al-Husayn, from Ikrimah, from Ibn Abbas who said that the Prophet ﷺ, when greeting the prayer facing Jerusalem, would raise his head to the sky. Then Allah revealed the command to turn towards the Qiblah He approves—toward al-Masjid al-Haram, specifically the Ka'bah by the Mizab (the spout). Gabriel led the prayer facing that direction. Al-Hakim in his Mustadrak related from Shu'bah from Ya'la ibn 'Ata from Yahya ibn Qamta, who said he saw Abdullah ibn Amr sitting near the Mizab inside al-Masjid al-Haram, reciting this verse and stated that the Qiblah was near the Mizab. The narration is sound though not found in the main hadith collections. Ibn Abi Hatim also transmitted it similarly. This is one of the two views narrated by Imam Shafi'i regarding the exact direction: one is that the goal is to face the precise point of the Qiblah (the Ka'bah), the other—and the majority's view—is to generally face the direction of the Masjid al-Haram, as al-Hakim described this from a narration of Muhammad ibn Ishaq, from Umayr ibn Ziyad al-Kindi, via Ali ibn Abi Talib who said: "Turn your face toward half the Masjid al-Haram" means toward its Qiblah. This is supported by well-known scholars including Abu al-'Aliyah, Mujahid, Ikrimah, Sa'id ibn Jubayr, Qatada, al-Rabi' ibn Anas, and others. Al-Qurtubi notes a narration from Ibn Jurayj quoting Ibn Abbas, where the Prophet ﷺ said: "Between the east and the west is a Qiblah for the people of the mosque, the mosque is a Qiblah for the people of al-Haram, and the sanctuary (al-Haram) is a Qiblah for the people of the earth in its east and west among my community." Abu Nu'aym al-Fadl ibn Dukayn narrates from al-Bara' that the Prophet ﷺ prayed facing Bayt al-Maqdis for sixteen or seventeen months and he liked that Qiblah facing the house (Ka'bah). Once he prayed Asr with a group, and a man who had prayed with him left and passed by people still bowing and told them he had prayed with the Prophet before the migration and they should continue to face Bayt al-Maqdis. Abdul Razzaq reports from Isra'il from al-Bara' that when the Prophet ﷺ came to Medina, he prayed facing Bayt al-Maqdis for sixteen or seventeen months. The Prophet loved to turn toward the Ka'bah, so this verse was revealed, after which he turned to the Ka'bah. Al-Nasa'i narrated from Abu Sa'id al-Mu'alla that they would go to the mosque in the time of the Prophet ﷺ passing by the mosque where they prayed, and one day the Prophet was sitting on the minbar and recited this verse fully. Witnessing this, two companions offered two rak'ahs before the Prophet came down, thus being the first to pray facing the Ka'bah. Then the Prophet prayed Dhuhr facing the Ka'bah on that day. Ibn Mardawayh narrated from Ibn Umar that the first prayer the Prophet ﷺ led facing the Ka'bah was Dhuhr prayer. It is well-known that the first prayer facing the Ka'bah was Asr prayer, which explains why the testimony from the people of Quba relates to Fajr prayer. Al-Hafiz Abu Bakr ibn Mardawayh narrated a chain describing when they prayed Dhuhr or Asr facing the Masjid of Bani Haritha toward the mosque of Elijah (Bayt al-Maqdis), then news came that the Qiblah was changed toward the Ka'bah, and during rak'u they turned toward the Ka'bah to finish the prayer. His statement in this verse "And wherever you are, turn your face toward it [the Masjid al-Haram]" commands facing the Ka'bah from all directions of the earth—east, west, north, south—without exception except in optional prayers while traveling, where one prays wherever his heart and body turn toward the Ka'bah. Similarly, in battle or when one is unsure of the Qiblah's direction, a person prays by their best effort even if mistaken, for Allah does not burden a soul beyond its capacity. The Maliki school deduces from this verse that the worshiper should look ahead rather than at the place of prostration, countering the views of Shafi'i, Ahmad, and Abu Hanifa. The reasoning is that if one looks at the place of prostration, he would need to bend forward in a way that would disrupt the completeness of standing. Some say one should look at their chest during standing, others like the judge Shareek prefer looking at the place of prostration while standing, as it is more fitting for humility, supported by hadiths. In bowing, one looks at the place of their feet, in prostration to the place of the nose, and in sitting to their lap. Regarding the phrase "And indeed, those who were given the Scripture know that it is the truth from their Lord," this refers to the Jews who denied the change of Qiblah from Bayt al-Maqdis to the Ka'bah. They actually know from the books of their prophets and the description concerning the Messenger ﷺ and his Ummah that Allah would direct the Qiblah to the Ka'bah. Yet, because of envy, disbelief, and stubbornness, they conceal this matter and do not admit it. Allah warns them, saying He is not unaware of their deeds.

• ✓ Sunan al-Tirmidhi 47:14

  Sunni Sahih (per Al-Albani)

  Sunan al-Tirmidhi · Book 47, Hadith 14 · Narrated by Al-Bara' ibn 'Azib

  When the Messenger of Allah arrived at Medina, he prayed facing towards Bayt Al-Maqdis for six or seven months. He loved to face the Kaaba, so Allah revealed the verse: 'Indeed, We see the turning of your face to the heaven, so We will surely turn you to a Qiblah with which you will be pleased. So turn your face toward Al-Masjid Al-Haram.' So he turned his face toward the Kaaba and he loved that. A man who prayed with him in Asr passed by some Ansar who were bowing in prayer toward Bayt Al-Maqdis, and the man said this showed he had prayed with the Prophet who was now directed toward the Kaaba. The Ansar then turned away while still bowing.