Qibla direction in Mazyr

How to face the Qibla in Mazyr

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards south and move a further 19.0° towards east: the result is the bearing of 161.0°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at south would leave you about 19° off.

The scholars distinguish two cases: the one who sees the Kaaba aims at the building itself, while the one who cannot see it, as anywhere in Mazyr, aims at its direction as well as he reasonably can. Comparing with the mihrab of a local mosque is a quick way to confirm the result. If you travel or move house, check the angle again, since it changes from place to place.

Why a flat map shows a different direction

A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Mazyr to Mecca points to 164.9° (south), 3.9° away from the correct 161.0°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 2 km longer than the true shortest route. The Qibla follows the great circle, the shortest path on the curved Earth, which is why the bearing differs.

The value of 161.0° is the direction in which the shortest route from 52.0416° N, 29.2163° E sets off towards the Kaaba at 21.4225° N, 39.8262° E. Every accurate Qibla calculator, and the plans of well-oriented mosques, arrive at the same angle for this point.

Distance from Mazyr to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 3,525 km from Mazyr as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 3,190 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 4 h 39 min, although most pilgrims from Mazyr connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Mazyr run the same time as Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Mazyr rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Mazyr

On 365 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Mazyr while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in January (31 days); for example, on 1 January 2027 it happens at 11:46 local time.

The sun is never opposite the Qibla of Mazyr during daylight, so the shadow method does not apply here; the left-hand column is the one to use.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Mazyr: at 12:18 and 12:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Mazyr compared with other cities

Compared with Minsk, 234 km away, the Qibla in Mazyr is turned 1.8° further clockwise (161.0° against 159.2°), and Mecca is 232 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Babruysk (123 km), prays towards 161.5°, a difference of 0.5°.

Across the 13 cities in Belarus on this site, the Qibla ranges from 151.8° in Brest, Brest Oblast, Belarus to 164.2° in Homyel, a spread of 12.4°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Belarus.

Qibla in cities near Mazyr

• Babruysk161.5° · 123 km
• Homyel164.2° · 127 km
• Pinsk155.7° · 215 km
• Mogilev163.8° · 221 km
• Minsk159.2° · 234 km
• Borisov160.9° · 248 km