Should One Raise the Hands during the Opening Takbir or before It?

Answered by Ustadha Shazia Ahmad

Question

Is it permissible to raise the hands as you say the Takbir (when starting the prayer), or do your hands need to be raised before it? I have come across both opinions; are they from different madhhabs?

Answer

It says in the Reliance of the Traveller, according to the Shafi’i school:

f8.12 It is recommended to lift the hands to shoulder level when one says, “Allah Akbar” (O: meaning that one’s fingertips are even with the tops of the ears, thumbs with the earlobes, and palms with one’s shoulders), fingers slightly outspread. If one intentionally or absentmindedly does not lift the hands at the first of saying “Allah Akbar,” one may do so during it, though not afterward. The palms face the direction of qibla, and the hands are uncovered.

Please see this link as well:
How Do I Follow an Imam In the Shafi’i School?

Here is the link for the Hanafi school:
What is the ruling and method of raising the hands for the opening takbir?

May Allah give you the best of this world and the next.

[Ustadha] Shazia Ahmad
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani 

Ustadha Shazia Ahmad lived in Damascus, Syria for two years where she studied aqida, fiqh, tajweed, tafsir, and Arabic. She then attended the University of Texas at Austin, where she completed her Masters in Arabic. Afterward, she moved to Amman, Jordan where she studied fiqh, Arabic, and other sciences. She later moved back to Mississauga, Canada, where she lives with her family.