Qibla · Sughd
Qibla direction in Khujand
To face the Kaaba in Khujand, turn to 242.2° measured clockwise from true north, which is south-west (27.8° south of west). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 3,505 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Khujand should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 242.2°, the Qibla of Khujand. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 242° 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 Khujand
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 27.8° towards south: the result is the bearing of 242.2°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at west would leave you about 28° 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 Khujand, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. Any of the mosques of Khujand is a handy reference, because the 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 Khujand to Mecca points to 233.4° (south-west), 8.8° away from the correct 242.2°. 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.
How is the figure of 242.2° obtained? From the coordinates of Khujand (40.2826° N, 69.6222° 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 Khujand to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 3,505 km from Khujand as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 3,297 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 4 h 37 min, although most pilgrims from Khujand connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Khujand 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 Khujand rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Khujand
On 287 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Khujand while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in March (31 days); for example, on 1 February 2027 it happens at 17:04 local time.
On 12 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 June (12 days).
| 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 | 17:04 | — |
| 15 February 2027 | 16:46 | — |
| 1 March 2027 | 16:25 | — |
| 15 March 2027 | 16:02 | — |
| 1 April 2027 | 15:32 | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 15:09 | — |
| 1 May 2027 | 14:45 | — |
| 15 May 2027 | 14:28 | — |
| 1 June 2027 | 14:16 | — |
| 15 June 2027 | 14:12 | — |
| 1 July 2027 | 14:17 | — |
| 15 July 2027 | 14:26 | — |
| 1 August 2027 | 14:42 | — |
| 15 August 2027 | 14:56 | — |
| 1 September 2027 | 15:14 | — |
| 15 September 2027 | 15:29 | — |
| 1 October 2027 | 15:46 | — |
| 15 October 2027 | 16:02 | — |
| 1 November 2027 | 16:23 | — |
| 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 Khujand: at 14:18 and 14:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Khujand compared with other cities
Compared with Dushanbe, 207 km away, the Qibla in Khujand is turned 1.6° further anticlockwise (242.2° against 243.8°), and Mecca is 153 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Istaravshan (67 km), prays towards 242.0°, a difference of 0.2°.
Across the 7 cities in Tajikistan on this site, the Qibla ranges from 242.0° in Istaravshan to 246.0° in Kŭlob, a spread of 4.0°. The difference is small, yet each city should still use its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Tajikistan.
Qibla in cities near Khujand
- Istaravshan242.0° · 67 km
- Konibodom243.2° · 69 km
- Isfara243.7° · 87 km
- Dushanbe243.8° · 207 km
- Kŭlob246.0° · 264 km
- Kurgan-Tyube244.9° · 282 km
Qibla in Khujand: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Khujand?
It is 242.2° from true north, which is south-west: 27.8° south of west.
How far is Khujand from Mecca?
3,505 km in a straight line over the globe, and 3,297 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Khujand?
On 287 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 Khujand not the direction shown on a map?
Flat maps distort directions. The line on a map points to 233.4°, but the shortest route on the globe leaves Khujand at 242.2°, and that is the Qibla.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 242.2° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.