Mosque worshippers pray in wrong direction

A mosque in Blackburn has undergone a refurbishment after discovering that worshippers were praying in the wrong direction.

Experts using modern satellite technology discovered that prayers at the mosque, which should have been in the direction of Mecca, were over 30 degrees out. The location of the Qiblah, which is what worshippers pray towards as a guide to the direction of Mecca, has now been changed at the Masjid-e-Sajideen mosque in Plane Tree Road, Little Harwood. It has been moved during a routine renovation following research from local academics which found that prayers were in the direction of Africa rather than Mecca.

Work at the mosque has seen the layout of the main prayer room altered and the Qiblah, as the focus of the room, which is similar to an alter in a Christian church, has been moved. Research has shown that it is not unusual for mosques in the UK to change the direction of the Qiblah if errors are discovered. A spokesman for the Lancashire Council of Mosques said: "There is a common problem in finding the Qiblah and it is not unusual for this sort of thing to happen.

"Often there is some error at many mosques but not always as much as 30 degrees."