Qibla direction in Sejong

How to face the Qibla in Sejong

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 16.1° towards north: the result is the bearing of 286.1°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at west would leave you about 16° off.

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 Sejong, 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

This is a place where maps mislead badly: a straight line on a flat map from Sejong to Mecca points to 258.7° (west), a full 27.4° away from the true Qibla of 286.1° (west). The map line keeps one compass heading and is 239 km longer than the great-circle route. Because the Earth is a sphere, the shortest way to Mecca from Sejong first heads west, and that is the direction to face.

How is the figure of 286.1° obtained? From the coordinates of Sejong (36.5925° N, 127.2922° 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 Sejong to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 8,393 km from Sejong as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 8,223 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 10 h 22 min, although most pilgrims from Sejong connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Sejong run 6 hours ahead of Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Sejong rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Sejong

On 99 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Sejong while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in July (31 days); for example, on 15 May 2027 it happens at 18:33 local time.

On 243 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 March (31 days), for instance on 1 March 2027 at 07:49.

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

Sejong compared with other cities

The Qibla here is practically the same as in Seoul (285.7°), and Mecca is 56 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Cheongju-si (18 km), prays towards 286.2°, a difference of 0.1°.

Across the 47 cities in South Korea on this site, the Qibla ranges from 285.6° in Incheon to 287.4° in Gijang, a spread of 1.9°. The difference is small, yet each city should still use its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for South Korea.

Qibla in cities near Sejong

• Cheongju-si286.2° · 18 km
• Cheonan286.0° · 27 km
• Daejeon286.2° · 28 km
• Pyeongtaek-si285.9° · 48 km
• Chungju286.4° · 71 km
• Icheon-si286.0° · 78 km