Masjid al-Qiblatain, Historic mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia.
The Mosque of the Two Prayer Directions is a rectangular place of worship in northwest Medina with two slender minarets and symmetrically arranged domes over the main prayer hall. The interior follows a classic layout with a large covered hall, side arcades, and a single prayer niche oriented southwest toward Mecca.
Sawad ibn Ghanam ibn Ka'ab commissioned the prayer house in 623 after Prophet Muhammad instructed the faithful to turn from Jerusalem toward Mecca during a prayer service. King Fahd ordered a comprehensive renewal in 1988, during which the original niche was removed and only the orientation toward Mecca remained.
The name comes from the Arabic term for two prayer directions and recalls the moment when worshippers changed their orientation mid-prayer following instructions from Prophet Muhammad. Those who pray here today follow the same ritual practice as the first Muslims at this location, facing the Kaaba and expressing the unity of the community through their shared direction.
Access is from Khalid ibn al-Walid Road in the northwest district, where ample washing facilities for ritual purification before prayer are provided. The interior holds around two thousand people and sees the heaviest attendance during the five daily prayer times, with significantly fewer visitors between services.
While the renewal under King Fahd removed the second prayer niche, the building's name remained unchanged and continues to recall the dual orientation from the early decades. Some visitors still search for traces of the original northwest niche, even though it has been absent for over thirty years.
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