Why Face the East in Prayer?

Most religions have various traditions concerning how to comport oneself in prayer time. Three of the world’s major religions—Islam, Judaism, and Christianity have adopted the practice of facing east during prayer.

Facing the east in prayer certainly is unique as it is one of the many commonalities among the major Abrahamic religions. Although Jews, Christians, and Muslims have historically found themselves in conflict, there is unity in the God they believe they serve and the way that they communicate with this God.

Although each religion has a different reason for facing the East during prayer, the practice is common throughout the whole world. Here we examine the question “why face the East in prayer” by looking at the beliefs of these three religions.

Judaism

Among those who practice Judaism, “mizrah” or east is known as the direction that should be faced during prayer. It comes from the tradition of praying in the direction of Solomon’s temple.

When, after the Diaspora, the Jews were scattered all throughout the world, they usually ended up west of the holy city of Jerusalem. Although Jews scattered in the east are technically supposed to face west during prayer, the widespread popularity of designating the eastward-facing wall of a home the “mizrah” wall and decorating it with a wall hanging made the word “mizrah” synonymous with the east.

It has its roots in even deeper traditions as well. For example, in the Old Testament the gates to tent meetings were on the eastern side. The entrances to the great Temple of Solomon, according to the Bible, were on the East. Architecture of synagogues have historically conformed to this rule, and continue to do so even today. As a tradition, facing mizrah during prayer remains a tenet of the Jewish faith.

Islam

Saudi Arabia, a country in the Middle East, is home to the holiest site in all of Islam, the Holy City of Mecca. Mecca is the city left by Mohammad in 622 and made a triumphant return to the city eight years later.

Every Muslim is expected to make a journey to Mecca before dying so that they can visit the holy city; specifically, the Great Mosque within the city. It is the most important building in Islam, so essentially, facing the East in prayer is showing that one is oriented (in heart, spirit, and body) toward the religion’s most holy of places.

The direction of prayer is known as the qibla, and as with Jews, Muslims do not strictly face the east. Wherever they are in the world, they must face toward qibla. If one is east of Mecca, he or she is expected to face West during prayer.

Qibla is sometimes pointed out in a room by the image of an arrow on the ceiling, so an individual can be perfectly oriented toward the Holy City while they are offering their prayers to Allah.

Christianity

Although Christianity isn’t always associated with the practice of facing east in prayer time, many Christian sects believe this to be the appropriate way to pray. Why face the east in prayer if you are a Christian? The sun rises in the east, and Christ is often described in terms of light and the sun. Facing east is an acknowledgement of the light and the beauty of Jesus himself.

Moreover, a story is told in the book of Matthew wherein Jesus himself explains that, as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, so will the Son of Man (a name by which Christ referred to himself) return.

Many Christians believe to this day that Jesus Christ will return from the east. The Garden of Eden in Christianity is a place of paradise that was lost to human kind when Adam and Eve sinned, and the garden is historically understood to have been in the east.