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submitted: Jun 20th 2008 | by: BabesTan-Magkalas | Total views: 1 | Word Count: 516 | |

Praying with clasped or folded hands is quite common among Christians. Is there a meaning to this prayer gesture? Yes there is. Apparently, such a prayer posture is a symbol of obedience, sincerity, submission and repentance. Some raise their folded hands when they make a plea to God to answer their prayers.

This gesture, however, is not only common to Christians but to Jews as well. In the book entitled "Book of Jewish Knowledge" by Nathan Ausubel, he said: "It has also been commonly assumed that folding the hands in prayer is exclusively a Christian custom. This is not the historical fact at all. As early as the post-Exilic period, when Jews prayed, they folded their hands, and they observed this custom for several centuries even after it had been adopted by Christians."

This being so, Jesus who was a Jew, also prayed with his hands clasped. It is not uncommon to see pictures or images of Him in this prayer gesture. Even the Virgin Mary and angels are often depicted in art with their hands drawn together.

The Hindus and Buddhists draw their palms together at the heart as a sign of veneration and respect. It is also a form of greeting. This is known as the "anjali mudra" which means offering (anjali) and seal (mudra). The people of India when doing this gesture would say the word "Namaste" which is some kind of a sacred hello. "Namaste" means "I bow to the divinity within you from the divinity within me." How beautiful the meaning of that word is!

In prayer, our body certainly has a role to play in prayer along with our heart, mind and soul. Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, in his book "Spirit of the Liturgy" said: "The body has a place within the divine worship of the Word made flesh, and it is expressed liturgically in a certain discipline of the body, in gestures that have developed out of the liturgy's inner demands..."

In the same book, the Pope recalled that during the time when feudalism was prevalent, those who were under a Lord would place their joined hands into the hands of their Lord to symbolize faithfulness and loyalty. Similarly, when we clasp our hands in prayer, we are doing the same - pledging to God our faithfulness and loyalty and placing our hands in His hands.

Does using the praying hands gesture help our ability to pray or meditate? Practitioners of yoga believe that doing this gesture brings the left and right hemispheres of one's brain together and quiet the mind.

I find that I am able to focus more on God and concentrate better when I pray using the praying hands gesture. It's as if folding or clasping or drawing my hands together sends a signal to my mind to calm down. It is much the same when I kneel to pray. I see it as a time when I am in God's presence so I do it to show my reverence to my Creator.

About the Author

For some valuable tips on how to make your prayers more powerful and effective, go to www.how-to-pray-effectively.com and uncover the secrets to answered prayer. For more articles about prayer, visit our praying hands blog.

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