Ruling on facing the Kaaba itself when near and its direction when far
Must one face the Kaaba itself, or does facing its direction suffice?
One who sees the Kaaba must face its very structure; one absent from it must face its direction, and a slight deviation does not harm him.
One who sees it must face it exactly, and the distant must face its direction; his prayer is not void by a slight turn to right or left.
Facing the Kaaba itself is required with certainty from one who sees it, and by reasoned effort from one far away; aiming at the direction alone does not suffice him.
One who sees it must face it exactly and one far away its direction; a slight deviation does not void the prayer, on the hadith «What lies between east and west is a qibla» — meaning that what lies between the two edges of the direction suffices for one whose qibla falls between them, so it is reckoned in each land according to the direction of its qibla.