Qibla · Haryana
Qibla direction in Thānesar
To face the Kaaba in Thānesar, turn to 264.4° measured clockwise from true north, which is west (5.6° south of west). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 3,810 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Thānesar should follow.
On the compass the green needle points to 264.4°. If your phone shows true north, rotate until the heading reads 264°; with a classic magnetic compass, first correct for the local magnetic declination, which can shift the needle by several degrees.
Find the Qibla with your phone
How to face the Qibla in Thānesar
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 5.6° towards south: the result is the bearing of 264.4°. The direction is close to due west, which makes it easy to remember.
Scholars agree that someone who can see the Kaaba must face it exactly, while someone far away faces its direction (jihat al-Ka‘bah) as precisely as reasonably possible. If a mosque is nearby, its mihrab and prayer lines are the easiest reference, since they were set when the building was laid out. At home, mark the direction once with tape or a small arrow so the whole family prays the same way.
Why a flat map shows a different direction
A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Thānesar to Mecca points to 255.6° (west), 8.8° away from the correct 264.4°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 13 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 angle on this page is the initial bearing of the great circle from 29.9732° N, 76.8321° E to the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E). It is the method used by mosque architects and by every serious Qibla calculator, and it gives one exact answer for each point on Earth.
Distance from Thānesar to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 3,810 km from Thānesar as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 3,715 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 4 h 59 min, although most pilgrims from Thānesar connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Thānesar run 2.5 hours ahead of Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Thānesar rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Thānesar
On 202 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Thānesar while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in May (31 days); for example, on 15 March 2027 it happens at 18:02 local time.
On 153 days the sun stands exactly opposite the Qibla: then the shadow of any vertical object, a pole, a door frame or a plumb line, points straight towards Mecca. This is most frequent in May (31 days), for instance on 15 April 2027 at 06:45.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | — |
| 15 January 2027 | — | — |
| 1 February 2027 | — | — |
| 15 February 2027 | — | — |
| 1 March 2027 | — | — |
| 15 March 2027 | 18:02 | — |
| 1 April 2027 | 17:11 | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 16:30 | 06:45 |
| 1 May 2027 | 15:46 | 07:24 |
| 15 May 2027 | 15:12 | 07:56 |
| 1 June 2027 | 14:42 | 08:30 |
| 15 June 2027 | 14:30 | 08:47 |
| 1 July 2027 | 14:36 | 08:48 |
| 15 July 2027 | 14:56 | 08:33 |
| 1 August 2027 | 15:30 | 08:00 |
| 15 August 2027 | 16:02 | 07:24 |
| 1 September 2027 | 16:41 | 06:37 |
| 15 September 2027 | 17:13 | — |
| 1 October 2027 | — | — |
| 15 October 2027 | — | — |
| 1 November 2027 | — | — |
| 15 November 2027 | — | — |
| 1 December 2027 | — | — |
| 15 December 2027 | — | — |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Thānesar: at 14:48 and 14:57 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Thānesar compared with other cities
Compared with New Delhi, 155 km away, the Qibla in Thānesar is turned 2.2° further anticlockwise (264.4° against 266.6°), and Mecca is 25 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Karnāl (35 km), prays towards 264.9°, a difference of 0.5°.
Across the 442 cities in India on this site, the Qibla ranges from 256.8° in Srinagar to 294.3° in Nagercoil, a spread of 37.5°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for India.
Qibla in cities near Thānesar
Qibla in Thānesar: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Thānesar?
It is 264.4° from true north, which is west: 5.6° south of west.
How far is Thānesar from Mecca?
3,810 km in a straight line over the globe, and 3,715 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Thānesar?
On 202 days of 2027 the sun stands in the Qibla direction; the table on this page gives the exact time for the 1st and 15th of each month.
Why is the Qibla in Thānesar not the direction shown on a map?
Flat maps distort directions. The line on a map points to 255.6°, but the shortest route on the globe leaves Thānesar at 264.4°, and that is the Qibla.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 264.4° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.