Istikbal-i Qibla, What does Istikbal-i Qibla mean?

"Istikbal-i Qibla" (more commonly transliterated as Istiqbal al-Qibla or Istiqbâl-i Qibla) is an Arabic-Islamic term used in fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence).

It literally means "facing the Qibla" or "turning towards the Qibla", where "Qibla" refers to the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia—the direction Muslims face during prayer (salah/namaz).

Key Points

• Istiqbal comes from the Arabic root meaning "to face," "to receive," or "to turn towards."
• It is one of the essential conditions (shurut) for the validity of prayer in most schools of Islamic thought: Muslims must face the Qibla while praying.
• This does not mean praying to the Kaaba (as it is not an object of worship), but rather praying in its direction as commanded in the Quran and by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
• In contexts like Hanafi or other fiqh texts (often written in Ottoman Turkish or Persian-influenced languages), it is spelled as "Istikbal-i Qibla" and explicitly defined as performing namaz towards the Qibla.