Qibla · Punjab Province
Qibla direction in Chunian
To face the Kaaba in Chunian, turn to 261.0° measured clockwise from true north, which is west (9.0° south of west). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 3,553 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Chunian should follow.
On the compass the green needle points to 261.0°. If your phone shows true north, rotate until the heading reads 261°; 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 Chunian
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 9.0° towards south: the result is the bearing of 261.0°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at west would leave you about 9° off.
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 Chunian to Mecca points to 252.7° (west), 8.3° away from the correct 261.0°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 11 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 30.9662° N, 73.9791° 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 Chunian to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 3,553 km from Chunian as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 3,445 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 4 h 41 min, although most pilgrims from Chunian connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Chunian run 2 hours ahead of Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Chunian rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Chunian
On 216 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Chunian 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 17:18 local time.
On 137 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 05:58.
| 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 | 17:18 | — |
| 1 April 2027 | 16:30 | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 15:52 | 05:58 |
| 1 May 2027 | 15:11 | 06:33 |
| 15 May 2027 | 14:40 | 07:03 |
| 1 June 2027 | 14:13 | 07:33 |
| 15 June 2027 | 14:03 | 07:49 |
| 1 July 2027 | 14:08 | 07:50 |
| 15 July 2027 | 14:26 | 07:37 |
| 1 August 2027 | 14:57 | 07:07 |
| 15 August 2027 | 15:26 | 06:35 |
| 1 September 2027 | 16:02 | — |
| 15 September 2027 | 16:31 | — |
| 1 October 2027 | 17:06 | — |
| 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 Chunian: at 14:18 and 14:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Chunian compared with other cities
Compared with Islamabad, 319 km away, the Qibla in Chunian is turned 5.1° further clockwise (261.0° against 255.8°), and Mecca is 25 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Phool Nagar (26 km), prays towards 260.6°, a difference of 0.4°.
Across the 125 cities in Pakistan on this site, the Qibla ranges from 253.6° in Mingora to 269.0° in Badin, a spread of 15.5°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Pakistan.
Qibla in cities near Chunian
- Phool Nagar260.6° · 26 km
- Renala Khurd260.8° · 38 km
- Raja Jang260.8° · 39 km
- Kasur261.1° · 48 km
- Okara260.8° · 53 km
- Nankana Sahib260.0° · 60 km
Qibla in Chunian: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Chunian?
It is 261.0° from true north, which is west: 9.0° south of west.
How far is Chunian from Mecca?
3,553 km in a straight line over the globe, and 3,445 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Chunian?
On 216 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 Chunian not the direction shown on a map?
Flat maps distort directions. The line on a map points to 252.7°, but the shortest route on the globe leaves Chunian at 261.0°, and that is the Qibla.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 261.0° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.