During the recitation, one should not spread his palms upward in the manner that the nations do in their prayer. However, he is permitted to make other motions with his hands if the motions help him with his kavanah.
Sources and Explanations
In Responsa Be’er Sheva (siman 71) it states as follows: “From my youth I have wondered why we do not practice praying with the raising of the hands upward, as our forefathers always practiced, as it says, ‘I have lifted my hand to Hashem, the Most High’ etc., and Onkelos translated: ‘I raised my hand in prayer before Hashem.’ And in Bereishit Rabbah, in Parashat Chayei Sarah, on the pasuk (verse) ‘And Rivkah lifted her eyes and saw Yitzchak,’ it states: ‘Rav Huna said: She saw that his hand was spread out in prayer. She said: He is certainly a great man; therefore she asked about him.’ End of quote. And as it says, ‘When I go out of the city, I will spread my palms to Hashem’ etc. And as it says, ‘And it was, when Moshe would raise his hand’ etc. ‘And his hands were steady until the sun set,’ and Onkelos translated: ‘And his hands were spread out in prayer until the sun set.’ And as it says, ‘And it was, when Shlomo finished praying to Hashem’ etc. ‘and his palms were spread out toward the heavens’ etc., and many more like these… And one cannot say that they practiced praying thus with the raising of the hands upward only in the case of distinguished, important and great people, such as the Patriarchs, prophets and kings, and that therefore we do not practice now praying thus with the raising of the hands upward because it appears as arrogance — for this is not so, since in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, in the aforementioned chapter, after it says, ‘From here you learn that the chazzan may not pray if there are not two standing there etc.,’ it says as follows: ‘And all Israel stand outside their tents and see Moshe spreading his palms to the heavens, and they spread their palms to the heavens etc.’ End of quote. Perhaps one can say that since the nations of the world, idol worshippers, are found to practice praying thus with the raising of the hands upward, as is well known, therefore we do not practice now praying thus. And similarly our Rabbis of blessed memory said on the pasuk ‘You shall not erect for yourself a pillar, which Hashem your God hates’: even though it was beloved before Hakadosh Baruch Hu (the Holy One, blessed be He) in the days of the Patriarchs, now He hates it, since these Canaanites made it a statute for idolatry. So it appears to me. End of quote.”
Rabbi Akiva Eiger cites this in his glosses on the Shulchan Aruch (beginning of siman 89), and writes that although we find this several times in Scripture, and likewise in the holy Zohar and in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, in our times one should refrain from it, since now the nations do so; just as we find that Chazal explained on the pasuk “You shall not erect for yourself a pillar” (Devarim 16:22) that even though it was beloved to Him in the days of the Patriarchs, now He hates it, since these made it a statute for idolatry.
However, the sefer Yesod VeShoresh HaAvodah (Sha’ar 3, chapter 1) is of a different spirit, and on the contrary, writes that part of the beauty of the Divine service is the great virtue of raising the hands in tefillah, or in thanksgiving and praise to the Creator, may His Name be blessed. He brings a proof from the holy Zohar, and writes that one receives a great reward for this. He explains exactly how one should raise his hands and fingers, and warns that one should not raise his hands upward other than at the time of tefillah or of praise and thanksgiving to the Creator; but at the time of tefillah one should not be lax in this lofty service. See his words there.
From the sefer “Shaf Veyativ – Laws of Saying Tehillim” by Rabbi Shay Tahan, Chapter 7: What Is Forbidden and Permitted When Saying Tehillim, Halacha 8 (p. 125 in the print edition). Translated from the Hebrew original.
