JEDDAH: ABDULLAH AL-BARGI | ARAB NEWS
Published — Tuesday 27 May 2014
Astronomers say that the sun will align with the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque in Makkah on Wednesday, May 28, at noon.
The disc of the sun will be positioned immediately over the Sacred House, said the Jeddah Astronomical Society on Sunday in statement. On Wednesday, the sun will rise at 5:38 a.m. from the northeast horizon and continues moving until it comes directly overhead on the Kaaba at 12:18 p.m. The Kaaba will lose its shadow for a brief time.
Astronomers said the celestial phenomenon called “zero shadow” occurs twice every year in the Grand Mosque because of its location between the Equator and the Tropic of Cancer.
Aside from May 28, the event also happens every July 16th of each year.
Due to the tilt of the Earth’s axis, the sun travels at 23.5 degrees north and south of the celestial equator. The sun falls directly overhead on places lying over the equator during equinox and moves northwards towards the tropic of cancer and then again progresses southward.
The society has advised the public to avoid looking directly at the sun with the bare eye even for a very brief period of time
Categories: Asia, Saudi Arabia
This event can help people in East and West (limited longitude) to find the exact direction of Qiblah. The procedure is to erect a vertical pole on level surface and mark the shadow of the pole at exact time. That is the exact direction of Qiblah for that place. It helps to get exact direction for erecting any new mosque.
This event happens in May and July every year.
The people in west (USA etc.) cannot avail of this facility because when it occurs, it is night time in USA. The same can be availed in USA also on next day at exact time. There will not be much mistake.
Alla hu Akbar what a miracle
MashaAllah.Miracles .
On the particular dates, at exact time,the Sun is directly above Ka’abah so the shadow of the vertical pole will give exact direction of Ka’abah.
The direction for Muslim prayers is very important. The Muslims had the sense of direction for daily prayers from the very beginning. In early Muslim period, while in Makkah, the prophet s.a.w.s. was praying, facing Jerusalem. That was because the leadership was till then with the Jewish people and no new order had been issued about the direction of prayer centre.
This continued until after migration to Madinah. In year 2 A.H. the verses were revealed to face Ka’abah and always to face Ka’abah where ever the Muslims were assembled for prayers.
So the direction for prayers became mandatory. Allah guided the prophet s.a.w.s. to follow a direction.
It is a miracle for the sake of all Muslims to have ONE Markaz (Centre) for prayers all over the world. If there was no Markaz, there would have been chaos, in every house and every city. There would have been quarrels while building the new mosques. In every house, son would be facing east for prayers and father to the west in the same room.
Also, there could not be any congregational prayers and no need of any Imam. Any one can understand the wisdom of having a Centre for daily prayers. It is almost unique for the Muslims. It is like the Muslims having a Kalimah. Other nations do not have any Kalimah. Al Hamdu Lillah.