Looking upward and closing the eyes

A: The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) forbade looking toward the sky during Salah and solemnly warned the praying person against doing so. It is related by Al-Bukhari in his Sahih (Authentic Hadith Book) and others on the authority of Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: What is wrong with those people who look toward the sky during Salah? His talk grew stern while delivering this speech until he (peace be upon him) said: "Either they stop (looking toward the sky during Salah) or else their sight will be taken away." This is a serious warning indicating prohibition, yet does not render Salah invalid. As for the ruling on moving during Salah, such as fidgeting with one's beard, hand, leg, clothes or anything else, it is prohibited. It is reported in Sunan (Hadith compilations classified by jurisprudential themes) Al-Tirmidhy that the Prophet (peace be upon him) saw a man fidgeting during Salah and said: Had this man's heart felt Khushu` (being submissively attuned to the act of worship), his body would have shown Khushu`. If a movement irrelevant to Salah (Part No. 7; Page No. 23) is successively repeated more than is customarily acceptable, it invalidates Salah. Gesturing with the hand is permissible in Salah when necessary based on the Hadith narrated in the Two Sahih (authentic) Books of Hadith (i.e. Al-Bukhari and Muslim) on the authority of `Aishah and Jabir ibn `Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them both) which states that the Prophet (peace be upon him) led the Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet) in Salah while he was praying seated due to his illness. When he (peace be upon him) saw the Sahabah behind him stand, he (peace be upon him) gestured to them to sit.May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.