In this Hadīth, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) clarifies that the direction between the east and west is a Qiblah for the performers of prayer. This statement was addressed to the inhabitants of Madīnah and those who lie in the same direction. As Madīnah lies to the north of the Ka‘bah, its people and those who live parallel to them in the Levant, as well as those who are based in the northern direction, face the Qiblah between the east and the west, i.e. they turn southwards, where the Ka‘bah is situated. On the other hand, the people of Yemen, and other parallel places to the south, face the Qiblah northwards, between the east and the west.
As for the people living in the east or the west, their Qiblah lies between the north and the south. There are four fundamental directions: north, south, east, and west. If a praying person is in a place to the east or west of the Ka‘bah, his Qiblah lies between the north and the south. Likewise, if he is based to the north or south of the Ka‘bah, his Qiblah exists between the east and the west.
This is how Allah, the Almighty, makes things easy for His slaves. If He had enjoined them to face the exact place of the Ka‘bah, no one would have been able to offer a valid prayer. Indeed, if a person, who is distant from the Ka‘bah and cannot see it, swerves a little bit from its direction, his prayer remains valid, unless he gives his back to the Ka‘bah or keeps it to the side, in which case his prayer would be invalid, for he is not facing the Qiblah.
