Is it recommended to raise the hands before standing for the third Rak‘ah in the Thuhr prayer for instance, whereas it is a Bid‘ah (an innovation) to raise them after standing to offer the third Rak‘ah? Please clarify this matter.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Slave and Messenger.

The authentic narrations indicate that it is an act of the Sunnah to raise the hands after standing for the third Rak‘ah, not before this. Shaykh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah was asked about raising the hands after getting up after the first two Rak‘ahs; "Is it recommended? Did the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, or his Companions do it?" He replied: ”Yes. It is recommended according to the view of the competent researching scholars who are well aware of the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.  It is one of the two narrations of Imaam Ahmad, the opinion of some of his disciples and some of the Shaafi‘is. It was authentically reported that the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to do it in Saheeh books of Hadeeth. Narrated Naafi‘: 'Whenever Ibn ‘Umar started the prayer, he would say Takbeer and raise his hands: whenever he bowed, he would raise his hands (before bowing) and also would raise his hands on saying ’Sami‘a Allaahu liman hamidah’, and would raise his hands upon rising from the second Rak‘ah (for the 3rd Rak‘ah). Ibn ‘Umar said that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to do the same.'” [Al-Bukhari, Abu Daawood and An-Nasaa’i]

- Narrated ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib : "When the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam,  stood to offer the obligatory prayer, he used to say the Takbeer and raise his hands opposite to his shoulders; and he did like that when he finished recitation (of the Quran) and was about to bow; and he did like that when he rose after bowing; and he did not raise his hands in his prayer while he was in his sitting position. When he stood up from his prostrations (at the end of two Rak‘ahs), he raised his hands likewise and uttered the Takbeer (Allaahu Akbar).” [Ahmad, Abu Daawood, Ibn Maajah and At-Tirmithi]