Qibla · State of Uttar Pradesh
Qibla direction in Gorakhpur
To face the Kaaba in Gorakhpur, turn to 272.0° measured clockwise from true north, which is west (2.0° north of west). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 4,439 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Gorakhpur should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 272.0°, the Qibla of Gorakhpur. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 272° is all you need; a needle compass reads magnetic north and needs the local declination added or subtracted first.
Find the Qibla with your phone
How to face the Qibla in Gorakhpur
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 2.0° towards north: the result is the bearing of 272.0°. The direction is close to due west, which makes it easy to remember.
Facing the Qibla is a condition of the prayer. Whoever prays inside the Sacred Mosque faces the Kaaba itself; whoever is far away, as in Gorakhpur, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. A nearby mosque is a handy reference, because its prayer rows were aligned when it was built. Once you know the direction at home, a discreet mark on the wall saves you from checking again.
Why a flat map shows a different direction
A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Gorakhpur to Mecca points to 262.3° (west), 9.6° away from the correct 272.0°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 19 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.
How is the figure of 272.0° obtained? From the coordinates of Gorakhpur (26.7663° N, 83.3689° E) and of the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E), spherical trigonometry gives the starting bearing of the great circle joining them. Mosque architects and astronomical Qibla tables rely on exactly the same calculation.
Distance from Gorakhpur to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 4,439 km from Gorakhpur as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 4,373 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 5 h 43 min, although most pilgrims from Gorakhpur connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Gorakhpur 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 Gorakhpur rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Gorakhpur
On 170 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Gorakhpur 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 1 April 2027 it happens at 17:42 local time.
On 187 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 1 April 2027 at 06:53.
| 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 | — | — |
| 1 April 2027 | 17:42 | 06:53 |
| 15 April 2027 | 16:55 | 07:33 |
| 1 May 2027 | 16:03 | 08:19 |
| 15 May 2027 | 15:21 | 09:00 |
| 1 June 2027 | 14:39 | 09:44 |
| 15 June 2027 | 14:21 | 10:08 |
| 1 July 2027 | 14:28 | 10:08 |
| 15 July 2027 | 14:55 | 09:45 |
| 1 August 2027 | 15:40 | 09:01 |
| 15 August 2027 | 16:20 | 08:18 |
| 1 September 2027 | 17:07 | 07:22 |
| 15 September 2027 | — | 06:35 |
| 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 Gorakhpur: at 14:48 and 14:57 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Gorakhpur compared with other cities
Compared with New Delhi, 640 km away, the Qibla in Gorakhpur is turned 5.4° further clockwise (272.0° against 266.6°), and Mecca is 603 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Deoria (50 km), prays towards 272.5°, 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 Gorakhpur
Qibla in Gorakhpur: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Gorakhpur?
It is 272.0° from true north, which is west: 2.0° north of west.
How far is Gorakhpur from Mecca?
4,439 km in a straight line over the globe, and 4,373 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Gorakhpur?
On 170 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 Gorakhpur not the direction shown on a map?
Flat maps distort directions. The line on a map points to 262.3°, but the shortest route on the globe leaves Gorakhpur at 272.0°, and that is the Qibla.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 272.0° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.