Christian observers misread Islamic prostration as heaven-directed hand-raising

Evidence

‘Kissing’: the forehead, not the mouth, touches the earth. The raising of hands and eyes to Heaven is a purely Christian interpretation given to the ritual by the Christian observer; it is not Islamic. For the number of the times of prayer, see also the kitab al-mi’raj, Muhammad’s bargaining with God to reduce the number to five; this theme was popular with Spanish authors. — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 2341

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the broader theme of cross-cultural misreading of rituals, similar to how Ibn Battuta’s accounts in the immodesty article reflect observer bias. — connects to: Christians misread Islamic ritual by assuming it mirrored their own
• ADDENDUM: Relevant to ‘Complaints About Immodesty Go Way Back’ — both deal with Christian/European travelers misreading Muslim ritual practice.