שמואל א, פרק א׳, פסוק י״ב

A woman stands completely alone in front of the Holy of Holies, pouring out her heart in a long, silent plea. Nearby, the High Priest carefully watches her unusual behavior, trying to make sense of what he is seeing. This encounter between deep, personal prayer and watchful scrutiny brings up different ideas about how people should approach God. Standing in this sacred space means she was physically positioned right in front of the Holy of Holies [רלב״ג]. Because it was a quiet area with very few people around, Eli the High Priest easily noticed her and kept his eyes on her [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. She continued to pray for a very long time [מצודת ציון]. Interestingly, this extended prayer brought a sense of joy. God had kept Hannah from having children specifically because He desires the prayers of righteous people, so the more she prayed, the more joy there was before God [אלשיך].

There are different opinions regarding the value of such a long prayer. One perspective suggests that anyone who prays at length will eventually be answered. Another view considers it a flaw, arguing that the excessive length of her prayer actually caused her future son, Samuel, to have a shorter life [רד״ק]. As Hannah prayed, Eli closely watched the movement of her lips and the words she was forming [רד״ק]. Commentators offer two main ways to understand his observation. One approach is that Eli was simply waiting, anticipating the moment she would finally finish her lengthy plea [רש״י, רד״ק]. Another approach suggests he was carefully inspecting her lip movements, actively trying to hear the words she was saying [מצודת דוד, רלב״ג].

Eli was deeply puzzled by her approach, which combined an unusual amount of time with complete silence [אברבנאל]. He knew that while the main part of a prayer is meant to be silent, the additional pleas and praises that follow are usually said out loud. Because she prayed for so long, he expected her to eventually raise her voice, and her failure to do so left him confused [אלשיך, אהבת יהונתן]. A deeper explanation for his suspicion relates to the customs of that time. Direct prayer to God is essentially a request for unearned kindness, which means it should be short and quiet, since God already knows the hidden thoughts of the heart. On the other hand, praying through angels requires a person to speak at length to list their good deeds, much like a court case, and must be said out loud so the angels can hear. The people of Eli's generation were not on a level to receive open miracles, so they normally prayed using this long, loud method. When Eli saw Hannah praying for such a long time, he assumed she was following the common practice and watched her lips to hear her voice. The stark contradiction between her lengthy prayer and her absolute silence led him to conclude that she was drunk [מלבי״ם].

Ultimately, from this very moment of misunderstanding, the sages established the most fundamental rules of prayer: the requirement to focus the heart, the necessity to physically mouth the words, and the strict rule against making one's voice heard [אברבנאל].