Qibla direction in Mokopane

How to face the Qibla in Mokopane

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards north and move a further 13.9° towards east: the result is the bearing of 13.9°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at north would leave you about 14° 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 Mokopane, 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

On a flat (Mercator) map, the straight line from Mokopane to Mecca points to 13.0°, only 0.9° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 13.9° bearing remains the exact one.

The value of 13.9° is the direction in which the shortest route from 24.1944° S, 29.0097° 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 Mokopane to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 5,206 km from Mokopane as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 5,530 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 6 h 37 min, although most pilgrims from Mokopane connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Mokopane run 1 hour behind Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Mokopane rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Mokopane

On 365 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Mokopane 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 12:06 local time.

The sun is never opposite the Qibla of Mokopane 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 Mokopane: at 11:18 and 11:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Mokopane compared with other cities

Compared with Pretoria, 191 km away, the Qibla in Mokopane is turned 0.7° further anticlockwise (13.9° against 14.5°), and Mecca is 187 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Polokwane (57 km), prays towards 13.4°, a difference of 0.5°.

Across the 59 cities in South Africa on this site, the Qibla ranges from 9.4° in Richards Bay to 23.4° in Cape Town, a spread of 14.0°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for South Africa.

Qibla in cities near Mokopane

• Polokwane13.4° · 57 km
• Somaroboro13.8° · 129 km
• Hammanskraal14.5° · 153 km
• Soshanguve14.7° · 169 km
• Middelburg13.0° · 182 km
• Emalahleni13.2° · 188 km