Praying Standing Towards the East? Recalculate Your Direction

It is written in the Book of Kings, after Solomon built the Temple, he stood and prayed before Hashem, as it is said, "Then Solomon stood before the altar of Hashem in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread out his hands toward heaven and said, Hashem, God of Israel, etc., and they pray to You toward their land which You gave to their fathers, the city which You have chosen, and the house which I have built for Your name." From here our sages learned in Tractate Berachot (30), that when standing to pray (the Amidah prayer), one should pray facing Jerusalem and the Temple.

Therefore, Maran in the Shulchan Aruch (Section 94) ruled, "When standing to pray, if one is standing outside of the Land of Israel, one should face toward the Land of Israel (etc.). And if one is standing in the Land of Israel, one should face toward Jerusalem, and if one is standing in Jerusalem, one should face toward the Temple."

Our teacher the Tur, who lived in Europe, wrote, "And we who turn our faces to the east, because we dwell to the west of the Land of Israel, and when we turn our faces to the east we find ourselves praying toward Jerusalem." That is, since European countries are located to the west of the Land of Israel, the Land of Israel is to their east, and therefore Ashkenazim and other European residents generally practiced praying toward the east.

And all these things were also written by our teacher the Rama in the Shulchan Aruch, that in all Ashkenazi countries they practice praying toward the east, because they are situated to the west of the Land of Israel. Therefore, also in the United States, which is west of the Land of Israel, they practice praying (more or less) toward the east. But one who lives to the east of the Land of Israel, for example in China or India, should certainly pray toward the west, which is the correct direction for his prayer. And so in every country according to its location, one should pray toward the Land of Israel. And in the Land of Israel itself, one should always pray toward Jerusalem, and one who is in a city north of Jerusalem (for example in the city of Shechem), should pray toward the south, and one who is south of Jerusalem (for example in Hebron) should pray toward the north.

And in Jerusalem itself, one should always pray toward the site of the Temple, and there is no fixed direction toward which one must pray. And those who err in always seeking the eastern direction according to the direction of sunrise, their error stems from the expression that has become common parlance among Ashkenazim, to always call the direction of prayer "east," and they do not know that one should only direct oneself toward the Land of Israel, Jerusalem, and the Temple.

And when the Temple is rebuilt speedily, then we will merit to ascend and appear before Hashem, and we will merit that Hashem will hear the voice of our prayers, and hasten to redeem us with an eternal redemption, speedily in our days, Amen.